RUI: The Influence of Network Structure on Sex Disparities in Scientific Collaboration: Commercial Innovation in the Life Sciences

RUI：网络结构对科学合作中性别差异的影响：生命科学中的商业创新

• 批准号: 0915725
• 负责人: Kjersten Bunker Whittington
• 金额: $ 11.57万
• 依托单位: Reed College
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Standard Grant
• 财政年份: 2010
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2010-01-01 至 2013-12-31
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0915725&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: RUI; Influence; Network; Structure; Sex

This research examines the influence of network structure on sex disparities in scientific collaboration. It incorporates data on the collaboration networks of the national population of biotechnology inventors and those from a variety of organizational settings (including public research organizations, pharmaceutical companies, and government laboratories) across a thirty-year period (1976-2002). The results should provide direct causal linkages between network mechanisms and gendered outcomes in science.Intellectual MeritPrevious research on sex differences in social connectivity suggests that women and men assume qualitatively different patterns of interaction in their work settings. These network theories of influence on women's performance suggest that a key mechanism in the production of sex disparities manifests itself through the ties and connections that women make, or are able to make, in workplace settings. Little is known about the ways in which network mechanisms might be operating to produce differences in outcomes across scientific settings, however. It is not clear what types of networks support women's collaboration and whether those factors differ from those that support men's collaboration. And while it has been shown that sex disparities in scientific productivity appear to differ across organizational settings -- specifically, in more horizontally-organized work settings as compared with more hierarchical ones. The mechanism for these differences has not been clearly identified. Greater insight into the stratification processes of women and men in science can be gained by studying how organizational forms affect the way collaborative work is structured across sectors. The premise of the proposed study is that the differing structures of collaboration in particular organizations or industries not only influences men and women scientists? opportunities for finding collaborators, but the subsequent influence of these connections on productive work more generally. The transformative nature of this research lies in the integration of network theories of social structure and current insight in work on gender and occupational dynamics within a national innovation context. In addition, this research employs novel research methods that extend our current approaches to network analysis.Broader ImpactThis project has significant implications for current discussions on the causal factors bringing about sex disparities in science and innovation, and also for the larger theoretical literature on networks and social structure. This research establishes whether network mechanisms across organizational forms result in decreased innovation by women. As such, it provides insights into how policy can be targeted to fully engage women in science and contribute fully to national scientific innovation.

这项研究研究了网络结构对科学合作中性别差异的影响。它结合了有关生物技术发明者全国人口的合作网络以及各种组织环境（包括公共研究组织，制药公司和政府实验室）的数据，该数据纳入了30年（1976-2002）。结果应提供网络机制和科学性别结果之间的直接因果关系。关于社会连通性的性别差异的智能优先研究表明，男女在工作环境中的质量互动模式在质上不同。这些对妇女表现影响的网络理论表明，性别差异产生的关键机制通过女性在工作场所环境中建立或能够建立的关系和联系而表现出来。但是，对于网络机制可能在科学环境中产生结果差异的方式知之甚少。目前尚不清楚哪些类型的网络支持女性的合作以及这些因素是否与支持男性合作的因素有所不同。尽管已经证明，科学生产力的性别差异似乎在组织环境中有所不同 - 特别是在更水平组织的工作环境中，与更加分层的工作环境相比。这些差异的机制尚未清楚地识别。通过研究组织形式如何影响协作工作的方式，可以获得对科学中男女分层过程的更深入了解。拟议的研究的前提是，在特定组织或行业中协作的不同结构不仅影响男女科学家？寻找合作者的机会，但是这些联系随后对生产工作的影响更广泛。这项研究的变革性质在于社会结构的网络理论与国家创新背景下的性别和职业动态工作的当前洞察力的融合。此外，这项研究采用了新的研究方法，将我们当前的方法扩展到网络分析。BroaderImpact这对当前的讨论对导致科学和创新性别差异的因果因素以及对网络和社会结构的较大理论文献产生了重要意义。这项研究确定了跨组织形式的网络机制是否导致妇女创新减少。 因此，它提供了有关如何针对政策使妇女完全吸引科学并为国家科学创新做出充分贡献的见解。