Is gendered power irrelevant in higher educational institutions? Understanding the persistence of gender inequality

ABSTRACT

For the past 30 years, many researchers have highlighted the gendering of higher educational institutions. However, many organizations in the broadly defined Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) area in the EU have varying degrees of interest, or academic staff available, in the gender equality area with many being largely unaware of this literature. This article draws provocatively on existing concepts to ‘make sense’ of the persistence of gender inequality. Such concepts include gendered organizational power, which is frequently taken-for-granted and is reflected at structural and cultural levels. The concept of legitimating discourses (including excellence, choice, women’s ‘nature’ and organizational gender neutrality) helps to explain why gender inequality is not perceived. Other manifestations of institutional resistance to gender inequality provide insights into why it is not tackled effectively. The article recognizes that gendered change does occur and uses the metaphor of bonsai-ing to highlight attempts to limit the impact of such changes. Finally, it identifies some key issues that need to be tackled.

KEYWORDS:

• Higher educational institutions
• gendered organizational power
• legitimating discourses
• institutional resistance
• gender inequality
• bonsai-ing; gender; gendered processes

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Pat O’Connor

Pat O’Connor is Professor Emeritus of Sociology and Social Policy, University of Limerick (UL) and Visiting full Professor, Geary Institute, University College Dublin. A member of the five-person National Review on Gender Equality in Irish Higher Education Institutions (2016) her research interests revolve around gender inequality and include leadership, power and institutional resistance with a particular focus on excellence, organizational culture, micropolitics and policy related interventions. She was the first female full professor (1997) and faculty dean (2000) in UL and the first female professor of sociology in Ireland (1997). Her 120 publications include eight books, over 80 peer reviewed articles and 30 book chapters (https://www.ul.ie/research/prof-pat-oconnor; Pat O'Connor (researchgate.net) She has been involved in international research consortia including FESTA and WHEM and has been on the Advisory Boards of several EU funded research projects including TARGET, CHANGE and RESET. An editor of Special Issues on Gender and Leadership (2018, 2020), she has held visiting professorships at London, Aveiro, Linkoping, Deakin and Melbourne. Her next book: “A ‘proper' woman? One woman’s story of success and failure in academia” will be published by Peter Lang in 2023.