SS24: How do stereotypes affect the career of a scientist?
Mondays, 16.40 - 18.20 o'clock, room SE2/102
How do stereotypes affect the career of a scientist?
Which stereotypes exist and how do they affect our behavior and that of others? What consequences do stereotypes have on our career as a male/female scientist? How can we consciously deal with and react to the structural mechanisms induced by gender roles?
This interdisciplinary seminar aims at raising consciousness about existing differences that female and male scientists encounter during their career. It is directed to both men and women who want to sharpen their perception, professionalize their interactions and their appearance and take decisions based on well-defined criteria rather than stereotypes.
After finding out about prevailing stereotypes in our daily life, we will discuss concrete contexts where stereotypes strongly affect our choices: employee selection and evaluation, leadership, and career paths.
Learning Outcomes
After the successful participation in this module the students will
- Recognise stereotype perception
- Become aware of your own biases
- Know the main gender differences encountered during a career in a scientific context
- Be able to argue, based on scientific studies, against standard opinions devaluating women
- Be empowered to make informed career choices standing social pressure for stereotypes and typical roles
- Work with a publication from social sciences: analyse, judge and teach its content
- Prepare and deliver an interactive teaching unit
Learning and Teaching Methods
The seminar will be divided in teaching units of two SWS according to the different topics. After an introduction in the first seminar with a presentation of the seminar and subjects, the first three teaching units are held by the professor. The last eight teaching units will each be prepared by a small group of 2-3 students under guidance of the teacher. The teaching unit will include a presentation of around 20 min, a guided discussion and an activity that will consolidate the content and actively involve all participants of the seminar. This might for example take the form of a group exercise or a game.
Media
Literature
We will have our interactive course on Monday between 16.40 and 18.20 o'clock. The first 4 teaching units are given by the lecturer, the last up to 8 teaching units will be held by the students.
The participants are divided into up to 8 groups of 2-3 people. Each group prepares and delivers a teaching unit about a given subject, that will be chosen during the first week. The subjects are:
1: Are there genetic differences between men and women?
2: Sexism at work
3: Women in science
4: Female versus male leadership: Is leadership stereotyped?
5: Influence of implicit bias on personal decisions
6: Work-family balance
7: Brilliance as a predictor of gender distributions
8: The challenging postdoc stage
Which stereotypes exist and how do they affect our behavior and that of others? What consequences do stereotypes have on our career as a male/female scientist? How can we consciously deal with and react to the structural mechanisms induced by gender roles?
This interdisciplinary seminar aims at raising consciousness about existing differences that female and male scientists encounter during their career. It is directed to both men and women who want to sharpen their perception, professionalize their interactions and their appearance and take decisions based on well-defined criteria rather than stereotypes.
After finding out about prevailing stereotypes in our daily life, we will discuss concrete contexts where stereotypes strongly affect our choices: employee selection and evaluation, leadership, and career paths.
Learning Outcomes
After the successful participation in this module the students will
- Recognize stereotype perception
- Know the main gender differences encountered during a career in a scientific context
- Be able to argue, based on scientific studies, against standard opinions devaluating women
- Be empowered to make informed career choices standing social pressure for stereotypes and typical roles