Why does South Asia have Disturbingly Few Women in STEM?

A quick glance at the lives and careers of trailblazing female icons in STEM will uncover one too many common challenges that they all had to endure. Be it unfair recruitment policies to sexist micro-aggressions at the workplace, a dozen societal, structural, and personal barriers have obstructed women from actively pursuing a career in STEM. Here’s an honest look through this widely spoken about “glass ceiling.”

Needless to say, deep-rooted gender norms in South Asia have historically gotten in the way of many aspiring women and girls. Growing up in a South Asian household, young people are exposed to some of the following gendered colloquialisms at some point in their lives.

Girls must learn to cook. Do you want your husband to starve when he comes home?

Women are natural nurturers. Once you get married, stay at home and look after the children.

She wants to become an engineer. What will people think?

If you study mathematics, you will be the only girl in that class. Imagine all the jokes they will say about you.

It’s not our culture. Just consider teaching like the rest of your sisters.

The belief hat women are natural nurturer, for example, have historically led many aspiring female mathematicians, engineers, computer scientists, etc. to give up on their career dreams and limit themselves to the private sphere. South Asian culture does not encourage equal roles when it comes to care work and household responsibilities. Therefore, it is almost a given that the male members of a family are to earn an income and financially provide for his family while the women take care of the house and children.

Other gender norms involve a complete shutdown of women’s confidence over fears that she may be humiliated or made a laughingstock in her community, should she pursue a career in STEM. The concern over “what will people think?” is commonplace in many South Asian communities, thereby placing importance over societal perceptions and expectations over ambitions and individual happiness. These gender norms are so deep-rooted in South Asian culture that many young women and girls internalise it to a level that becomes damaging to their own self-worth. At times, even though there is no direct negative influence from their families, the lack of female peers in STEM academic and career fields may be discouraging. Fears of isolation and humiliation have made several women and girls reconsider their future options or prompted them to drop out, in the middle of their academic or career cycle.

Apart from rigid gender norms, South Asia also has many gender segregated schools that do not offer STEM subjects for G.C.E Advanced Levels exams. While many boys’ schools in the region offer subjects such as technology, advanced mathematics, information and communication technology and engineering – girls’ schools opt for subjects traditionally considered “feminine” such as home science, nursing, literature and humanities. 

The fact that schools are often segregated according to gender and implicitly contributes to the gender gap between STEM and non-STEM subjects certainly has negative effects on the primary socialization processes of young female students. Eventually, they end up growing up in an environment that encourages the false narrative that STEM subjects are harder and complex, and therefore should be left for their male counterparts.

Venturing further into barriers that arise in STEM careers, biases in recruitment processes is another driving factor behind the persistent underrepresentation of women in STEM fields, especially at top decision-making levels. Company with no gender-sensitive HR policies often unintentional discriminate against female candidates by taking into account the fact they would have to accommodate “family needs” such as paid maternity leave and other personal commitments that women are traditionally expected to balance. Most women foresee this challenge and are discouraged even before applying for a position in STEM. False perceptions among employers that women are not natural leaders or are not fit for leadership roles in technology or the sciences, for instance, also add to the problem.

Implicit biases, structural barriers, and even intra-personal doubt to historically upheld gender norms have all contributed to the underrepresentation of women in STEM. Understanding these drivers are crucial if we are to take concrete action in fostering conducive space for present and future generations of women and girls who dream of becoming doctors, engineers, mathematicians, and computer scientists.

Sources –

https://www.policyforum.net/breaking-barriers-for-women-in-stem/

https://stem4all.eurasia.undp.org/gender-barriers-in-stem

https://ttu-ir.tdl.org/handle/2346/67077

https://www.britishcouncil.org/sites/default/files/women_researchers_jan15_print.pdf