Gender (In) Authenticity, Belonging and Identity Work in Engineering
Year: 2011
Type: article
Abstract: This paper proposes the concept of ‘gender (in)authenticity’ to think about the apparent congruence or non-congruence of gender and engineering identities for men and women engineers respectively, in terms of the normative pressures of ‘the way things are’. Drawing on ethnographic evidence, it demonstrates that gender (in)authenticity is consequential. Women engineers often face an ‘(in)visibility paradox’ whereby they struggle to be seen as either ‘real’ engineers or ‘real’ women. They have to do more practitioner and gender identity work, where men engineers belong more readily on both fronts. These subtle gender normative dynamics can significantly undermine the retention and progression of women in engineering. Yet sustained efforts can challenge these dynamics.
Author: Wendy Faulkner
Language: English
Subfield: Applied Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7047534805