Understanding underrepresentation: women in mathematics and other fields (Q2341286)

The article discusses the underrepresentation of women in mathematics in the United States. It gives a survey of relevant statistics and compares mathematics with other fields. The main finding is: ``As status increases, the proportion of men tends to increase.'' This is true within mathematics (high-status mathematics departments have less female faculty) and also among the different fields (there are more men in fields with high prestige and high salaries). The causes for this are varied (individual, societal, organizational) and often based on stereotypes. The author gives some recommendations how to increase the number of women in mathematics and, in particular, she refers to the AMS Award for Mathematics Programs that Make a Difference.