It’s easy to fall back on stereotypes. When shown statistic after statistic after statistic showing that the tech sector is dominated by men, it’s easy to dismiss the numbers by saying: “men are better than women at computer stuff”. But could it be exactly such attitudes that are holding women back?
At primary and secondary school, girls tend to outperform boys in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Maths (STEM) subjects. So, it’s wrong to suggest that men somehow have a biological aptitude for technical subjects. Yet men dominate the science, engineering, and tech sectors.
Last year, we partnered with Google for this event in Brussels about women in the technology sector. We asked some of your questions to participants and speakers, seeing what they thought were the best ways to encourage greater diversity in the digital sector.
We had a question from Louise, who asked how we can change the idea that some jobs are for men while others are for women.
To get a response, we put her question to Sarah Cruddas, a prominent Space Journalist (which is, without doubt, the single best job title we’ve ever had on Debating Europe). How would she respond?
For a different perspective, we put the same question to Sofía Benjumea, Head of Google’s Campus Madrid; an event and location space dedicated to encouraging tech entrepreneurs (including female entrepreneurs), and to fostering a local community between them:
Does the tech industry have a problem with women? How can we change the idea that some jobs are for men while others are for women? Let us know your thoughts and comments in the form below, and we’ll take them to policymakers and experts for their reactions!
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No.
All the time the same myth. The society is not encoraging the women enough … blabla
Someone who permanently needs a helping hand is simply not grown up.
The fact is that the interests are simply not identical between men and women. And women do not feel the same presure for a high income than men have. They still can simply demand her husband has to get the money for the family. Only when the economic presure is rising, then the women also chose more technical subjects. You can simply show this by comparison of different nation or over time in one nation.
No. It’s not a problem. Most girls aren’t as geeky and don’t spend their early teens learning to code between video games and self abuse. Some talanted teens know a few coding languages by the time they’re 14 and can create various programs and stuff. Even me, as a guy who is very tech savvy, computer science class or learning a coding language won’t give me same opportunities. It might give me insight and knowledge but I would be light years behind someone who’s been doing it their in time lives. If you aren’t a tech savvy person from early in life, you won’t make it far. There’s no sexism issue. As a guy, I would love to see equal distribution of men and women across the fields, yet that distribution is still affected by your ambitions. It’s easy to say’ there are more men there’. Well then go educate yourself and become one of their employees, you’ll be surprised to see that all the doors will be open for intelligent professionals.
What code is being transgressed & what is the real agenda, concern & importance behind this “political- scientific- gender- job equality- over drive?
Specifically, since this high tech- industry changes fast and requires constant updates if one wishes to remain current- or?
Quote from one “study”: “More than half of female students believe gender may hold them back in their career” And?
Should one conclude from the above that more than “half females” actually would prefer an opposite gender- be male- or what? Join the army, become a lumberjack or……….. a statistic?
Maybe we need the mother of all “studies”: why are so few men employed in female dominated occupations? Or- what to do to allow male’s to bear children? To be taken serious? Of course- deadly serious.
The Frankfurt School has a great deal to answer for. Here is a view on so called ‘feminism’ that has become an obsession with those who rule over us. And the reason is to enslave further both sexes. Not to liberate women. The true agenda behind feminism is to remove all natural female instincts. It is designed to reduce the male of the species to impotence by sending a message that indicates women want weak men. In reality Feminism is misogynist. It dislikes intensely the natural female instinct. And to be a truly feminine woman you do not need to be a doormat. Quite the reverse is a fact..
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GaOLgy3YKtA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rfYAThnwinc
Men should find this interesting as the speaker is heavily endowed so the eyes can remain fixated.
A man that is attractive on every level to women is not effeminate. In fact, he is the opposite. Here is an example. Tom of course is getting on now, but, finding a modern man who isn’t feminine is not easy.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JChh4iYhU4Q
Yes, especially when you drill into the percentage of women filling leadership and technical roles.
It’s a Catch 22. The lack of female leaders in tech has led to a lack of female role models in industry, university faculty and ultimately in the graduate student population.
We don’t need to “change the idea”. It’s nonsense. Strong women who go to into STEM or leadership roles don’t need society to victimise them and change the discourse on gender roles. As a typical cosmopolitan educated “emancipated” woman I actually feel disappointed when men don’t open the door for me or when I have to pay for my share of the meal on the first date. Furthemore, as I will never join the army, risk my life at work or do hard physical work, I’m okay with the gender wage gap. Radical, huh?
While some work IS for men and other for women by nature, there are of course assholes that just wants to be sexists. so i’m neutral on this one this time, let’s see what other people say
We are equal in knowledge and aspirations. This doesn’t mean we are interchangeable on everything.
Fall back? That would mean that we had left them behind and we have not
You can’t.
The women who do men’s job generally look like men.
Truck driver/Bovine veterinarian/builder….
I do not really see women lifting concrete blocks all day to build a wall.
But of course for all intellectual and non physical jobs, of course there should be no difference.
Nevertheless if is harder for women to leave home, especially with children for long periods of time if they have to for their job. Not that I say that men are not able to keep the kids. It is just that for women it is harder not to see their kids. It is also harder for the kids not to see their mum.
Many things are like this in fact. But of course equalitarians say it is not like this.
The idea is good, the reality is different.
For jobs on the road like sales reps. Women are generally torn between making weeks of appointments or stay a maximum in the office. Which generally makes them less efficient than men. I know female reps, do not get me wrong. But they are way less numerous than men, and they try as much as they can to be home every evening.
That is a fact, and even if the society wants to change it, I think women will not want to change it
The women who do men’s job generally look like men.
Truck driver/Bovine veterinarian/builder….
I do not really see women lifting concrete blocks all day to build a wall.
But of course for all intellectual and non physical jobs, of course there should be no difference.
Nevertheless if is harder for women to leave home, especially with children for long periods of time if they have to for their job. Not that I say that men are not able to keep the kids. It is just that for women it is harder not to see their kids. It is also harder for the kids not to see their mum.
Many things are like this in fact. But of course equalitarians say it is not like this.
The idea is good, the reality is different.
For jobs on the road like sales reps. Women are generally torn between making weeks of appointments or stay a maximum in the office. Which generally makes them less efficient than men. I know female reps, do not get me wrong. But they are way less numerous than men, and they try as much as they can to be home every evening.
That is a fact, and even if the society wants to change it, I think women will not want to change it
Whenever a discussion is made about disparities in an occupation based on sex we never try to dismiss a women dominated stereotype such as teachers should be female because men are not good with kids.
This shows how these agendas are not focused on equality but they are lobbying for female positive only legislation.
Social stereotypes keep women from their full potential and then we observe the spill over effect on every aspect of their lives. Girls and boys are raised differently so the grow differently and they develop different views for each other so it’s only natural that by puberty all is set, women are thought not to be so smart or capable and destined to be crazy mothers with no time and motive for anything whereas men are smarter, get better jobs, go out with colleagues etc. Get the stereotypes down and each can fight their fight but it will take ages and it’s time for women as well to earn their place by their own means, anyway they have done it before during the wars without any initiatives about inequality.
When I see women doing construction work and Freeport work..and lifting heavy objects like the men !
Just let people do what they want. If there is naturally a difference so be it. Being equal doesn’t mean being the same.
What about the wages? Same position the man get paid more than a woman
man has a little chanse to become a prostitute anyway.
mah
Perhaps we should not! How you explain, for example, the fact that -despite the fact , women generally spend a hell lot of time in kitchen , cooking- all big chefs historically-worldwide are MEN!! I believe that women are very capable in some jobs while men for other! Women , i believe do not have the fantasy required as men;s minds do.
Start in the toy shops and clothing stores.
Well maybe women could work in a coal mine and men in a bodyshop. That would be equal no? Oh wait.
We can not and we do not want to change that.
Our brain works different so our skills are different. Women have the same opportunities. BUT maybe you talk about some societies that dont recognize women as equal , with same rights. In this case yes, you are right, its time to change.
Man woman not equal. Man is the head Bible Koran.
The only conditions for jobs should be: have the right skills, the required knowledge and experience, and a lot of enthusiasm for the job
I guess you will hire men to baby sit your two-year olds from now on,. And you will pick women to move your furniture to a new home. And women workers to build your new home. And women for bodyguards. Or prison guards.
By changing the idea?! 😮
had a conversation with my son years ago, he was just a child. to arrive at something women can’t do he has to arrive to the pope! the way is women teaching sons and daughters that does not exist a job for male or female, simply as that!
Why do we actually have to?
It depends on the environment that they are working or they want to work, It depends on their specialisation.
but to ask the question you need at least to have a job….
Easier said than done. Maybe when men get pregnant then we can start talking.
I dont know any job that cannot do for any woman. I know a peculiar and wonderfull job cannot do for any man , it is to get a baby.
How ashaming the current Europe looks. I´m ashamed of belonging to a “CLUB” where the lazy North humiliates and explotes the rest, Rusia included.
Make us all equals: Destroy sex differences and create a Neutral gender!
Oooops, it’s already planned !!! o.O
We can’t and we shouldn’t
Men and women are built differently, it’s just how we are, women can do so many things better than men can and vice versa
Or women can just start working in the “manly fields” instead of studying gender studies
“Women are always less likely to choose a STEM program, regardless of mathematical ability. Among those who went to university, 23% women in the three highest categories of PISA scores (out of six) chose a STEM program, compared with 39% of men in the three lowest categories of PISA scores.” This must be oppresion, the women DARED TO CHOOSE BY THEMSELVES! WE NEED TO CHANGE THIS AND REGULATE WHAT THEY WANT!!! FILL THE STEM WILL LADIES!
You can’t.
you are libtards
Thincking diferent than we do now.
Wow
Why change? Some jobs are indeed for men, while other are for women.
Same is true in every aspect of life, not only in the professional field!
My wife is a penis model and she gets rejected all the time. She cannot get a job, all penis models are males. I think this is sexism.
Gender theory…
some are ! whast about minintg ?
And now 16 ministers or ex ministers in the French government have reported continual sexual harassment. The EU makes the right noises, but when tested, has age old problems! All women who agree, vote ‘leave’.
Easy enough. Give ‘masculine’ jobs to women and ‘feninine’ jobs to men and watch out for the result. Check out what happens and accept the result. Stop debating any longer. An open trial should be the accid test :-)
We are not equal But we ate worth equal
Better payment for women when they do the same work as men and also in areas were more women works
Is more important than to do the same !
And more women into politics and in the boards of enerprices
We must admit that we should have same rights, but the same way we have different abilities. Why nobody talks about discrimination when in sports men and women have different qualifying results? The same with jobs, some requiring abilities which men more suitable for, some that women are.
Firefight is male
That idea died long ago? Where have you been? In Syria.
Why do that?
We can not, because there are jobs for men and jobs for women, so simple.
Some jobs are just for men! For heavens sake!!
Marisa Matias
Lets start from the equal payment rights and the gender gap there; to my mind it’s not about the ‘what’ but the ‘how’.
Cultural marxism sickness
We need role models! Women that succeeded in their professions, we need to hear their stories. Especially those from underrepresented groups and those that made it their own all the way to the top!
it’s hard i work as a nanny and i have to take less pay just to get a job
In most cases I agree but I mean could a man be a wet nurse?
it is a fact of life that so,e jobs are more suitable for one gender……
For erasing any rotten idea which has stuck in people’s minds, one has to read my timeline blogs. except bearing children, all other jobs can be done equally by women and men.
We can heavily experimentate on biological engineering and create a new species which is asexual and has two genders or better neither!! Then noone is going to feel bad right ? right ? ( The comment is filled with sarcasm)
Oh, we are discussing internal politics here? Well, why not! Always ready to have a little fight with marxists
As we all know, sex stereotypes are based on long observational experience of milennias long. So they truthfully reflect statistical mean differences. Over again studies do confirm that, as you said. Namely the relative difference in virtues between of sexes.
But what the exact, *quantitative* differences are, that an open question. There’s no other way to find that out than the very same, ever-hated experimental test.
Nevertheless in *quantitative* sense it wont give any new information. The differencies are just confirmed – for about the 1,000,000th time in this world. The current surge of self-confidence in women should not let us fooled away from reality.
Your study compares 15-year old children. I’m afraid there’s no other explanation for the future poor performance of those girls than they slowly, but unavoidably degenerate by the age, when compared to men. It is to say, women’s intelligence peak is around 15 yrs. Two years later they peak in sexual attractiveness. Whereas men continue to gather intelligence, wisdom and charm as they grow older.
Do you really think carrying a child and giving a birth to a child is a man`s job?
Women are equal no doubt about that but there are a jobs that are not suited for pregnant woman and cause danger to the baby… If working on gas station pregnant woman will inhale gasoline vapors 50+ times a day 5 days week it will be ~8 months exposure :( (as law give her right to stop working 45 days before birth term) …(when gas is pumped in the tank vapors go out and you can smell them from several meters)
Before you start with Tech industry I would like to see at least 50% women in mining. Let’s fight for diversity in mining industry and let’s start campaign “Women underground” :D
Stupid article. There are now more women university graduates than men, in most of Europe at least. Would this mean that men are discriminated against? I doubt.
Ppl have their own interests and in my experience lots of tech firms are hiring women for their skills and they appreciate the diversity they bring to teams.
The islamic society your clowns from Brussel are working hard to implement will eliminate almost all working places for women, your problems solved.
Well, no matter how much you want to stand “PC” on this, it’s no doubt that some jobs have their own gender characteristics, like nanny is for women, construction is for men, it’s ideal to want to break the “Berlin wall” between this, but it’s the reality.
Tried getting a woman plumber lately?
Tried getting a woman plumber lately?
Just the tech industry?