The Effects of Gender Composition in Academic Departments on Faculty Turnover

TLDR

The study examines how gender composition in departments informs affirmative action policy implementation. The authors aim to test hypotheses about how departmental gender composition affects faculty turnover using data from 50 academic departments between 1977 and 1988. They analyze longitudinal data from these departments to assess the relationship between gender mix and turnover rates. Increasing female representation raises women’s turnover until about 35–40%, after which it falls, confirming that minority growth fuels intergroup conflict, while female presence has little or negative effect on male turnover.

Abstract

Using data collected from a sample of 50 academic departments over the years 1977–88, the authors test several hypotheses about the effects of departmental gender composition on faculty turnover. They find that as the proportion of women in a department grew, turnover among women also increased, confirming the prediction that increases in the relative size of a minority will result in increased intergroup competition and conflict. The evidence also suggests, however, that when the proportion of female faculty reached a threshold of about 35–40%, turnover among women began to decline. The proportion of women had a negligible or negative impact on turnover among male faculty. The authors discuss the implications of this research for the implementation of affirmative action policies.