Collaborative Research: Women in Science and Technology Policy

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The work of science and technology (S&T) policymaking agencies in the United States is important to building knowledge and economic growth. These agencies make decisions about how to structure policies and programs for funding science and technology development, how to promote technology transfer and innovation, and how to use scientific and technical methods in federal regulation and oversight. This project investigates role that gender plays in the creation of science and technology policy through a study of women's careers in US federal policymaking. Research across the social sciences has investigated the advantages of including diverse perspectives in decision-making, including the perspectives of men and women leaders. While there is much research on women in science and women in management or government, there is little previous research on the role of women leaders in science and technology policy. This project explores new ground by providing both qualitative and quantitative measures of women's participation and influence on science and technology policy at the federal level. Data collection focuses on leadership in S&T policymaking agencies from 1992-2008. Products include a multiyear, multiagency dataset of women's careers in S&T policy at the federal level. The research informs understanding of organizational processes from theories at the intersection of multiple social science disciplines and areas, including: science and technology studies; sociology; political science; public policy; management science; and economics. For example, whether variation in the organizational structures of S&T agencies shapes women's participation in science and technology policy is a question of wide intellectual interest. To science policy studies, this work contributes important insights on how leaders at agencies that fund science view their respective roles in the knowledge production processes. Broader Impacts: Research funding is the lifeblood of science and engineering. This project contributes to our understanding of that vital role of S&T policymaking agencies by investigating the organization and leadership of federal level S&T policymaking agencies in the United States. Understanding how women leaders have contributed to the S&T policy agenda, how variation in the participation of women in different agencies has produced different outcomes, and what the anatomy of a healthy S&T policy sector looks like are important outcomes expected in this project. This project generates knowledge with practical implications for improving policy organization structures and practices, and a dataset that other researchers can use to investigate the relationship between gender and science policymaking.