Increasing gender diversity has been a long-sought goal across many of the sciences, and interventions and programs to attract more women into fields like physics and math often happen at the undergraduate level. But is representation enough to improve gender diversity in science? In a new study, researchers say there’s more to the story: They’ve found that even when undergraduate women outnumber men in science courses, women may still be experiencing gender biases from their peers.

But is representation enough to improve gender diversity in science? In a new study, Colorado State University researchers say there’s more to the story: They’ve found that even when undergraduate women outnumber men in science courses, women may still be experiencing gender biases from their peers.

The CSU team, combining expertise in gender psychology, instructional intervention and physical sciences, conducted a survey-based study among both physical and life science undergraduate courses at CSU, asking students how they perceived each other’s abilities within those courses. Their results were published online June 25 in the journal PLOS ONE.

«The assumption has been that if you have the numbers, if you just increase the number of women, you won’t have bias,» said study co-author Meena Balgopal, professor in science education in the CSU Department of Biology. «But we find that’s not the case.»

For their study, the researchers focused on courses with a peer-to-peer learning component, such as group lab work, partner work or breakout sessions during lectures. They recruited instructors to administer surveys asking students how they perceived each other, with questions including: Are there any students in your class you are more likely to go to if you need help with the class? Thinking about your course, do any students stand out as particularly knowledgeable? Thinking about your course, who would you consider to be the best student(s) in the class? In total, they surveyed about 1,000 students.

Outnumbered and undervalued

Here’s what the researchers found: In physical science classes — where women are more traditionally underrepresented — women were indeed outnumbered, and they had higher average GPAs, statistically higher course grades, and were 1.5 times more likely to earn an A or A-plus than men. However, the researchers found that both men and women presumed that the men in the class outperformed the women. In these classes, both women and men were less likely to select a woman as someone they would seek help from, find knowledgeable, or perceive as best in the class.

Story Source: Materials provided by Colorado State University. Original written by Anne Manning. Note: Content may be edited for style and length.