Gender Bias: Another Rising Curve to Flatten?

Area of Science:

• Medical sociology
• Gender studies in STEM
• Organizational psychology

Background:

• The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted professional environments, potentially exacerbating existing gender inequalities in academic medicine.
• Established mechanisms of marginalization, including unconscious bias and gendered expectations, may be amplified under conditions of stress and altered communication.

Discussion:

• Heightened stress and socially distant communication during the pandemic may unconsciously favor traditional male leadership, minimizing women's contributions.
• Undermining and harassing behaviors toward women in healthcare have reportedly increased during the crisis, often stemming from unconscious biases rather than overt hostility.

Key Insights:

• Women's professional marginalization in academic medicine is a persistent issue, potentially worsened by the pandemic's unique stressors.
• The pandemic's impact on women's leadership roles highlights the need to actively address unconscious bias and promote equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI).

Outlook:

• Investigating the frequency of behaviors limiting women's leadership during the pandemic is essential for future preparedness.
• Proactive measures to "flatten the rising gender bias curve" in academic medicine are necessary to ensure collective intelligence and combat future crises effectively.