A questionnaire on the perception of social and academic discrimination against female general surgeons in Türkiye

The purpose of this research was to identify the specific prejudices that women in general surgery in Türkiye have to face in their workplace and academic careers. This was achieved by gathering the opinions of both genders on these issues and raising awareness of gender bias to promote a more inclusive environment for future generations of surgeons.

A total of 202 people, 99 male and 103 female surgeons, participated in the survey. The questionnaire was distributed to people working in general surgery clinics via e-mail and WhatsApp groups of the Turkish Surgical Association and the Turkish Colorectal Association.

The mean age of the participants was 37.65±11.55 years (ranging from 24 to 74 years). Among the partipiciants, 40.4% agreed that surgery is more suitable for males, while 89.3% of women disagreed (p<0.001). 88.3% of the women stated that women are negatively influenced in choosing general surgery because of the male-dominated environment, and 52.5% of men agreed, while 40.4% of men disagreed (p<0.001). 66.7% of men and 65% of women believed that women do not prefer to work in general surgery because it is difficult to balance with family responsibilities (p=0.890). Women are more subjected to humiliating behaviors, while 53.4% of women agree. 85.4% of the women stated that it is important to have a female lecturer as a role model in the institution where they work.

This study shows different views on gender prejudice among male and female surgeons in general surgery. Female respondents, including male and female surgeons, indicated experiencing bias and underrepresentation in academic disciplines, although they had differing perspectives on discrimination. Both genders agreed on the difficulty of work-life balance, with a similar percentage of individuals identifying family responsibilities as an obstacle.