Page 98 - Through the gate of the neoliberal academy • Herschberg
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96 CHAPTER 4
They do not reflect on the role they themselves play in the construction of women candidates as modest or non-assertive. Particularly in STEM department, research participants explicitly put the responsibility on women. We learn that in the Slovenian STEM department almost all research participants stressed that it is the women who bear responsibility if they are not sufficiently self-confident to progress in academia. In the STEM department in Iceland a respondent similarly puts the responsibility for gender equality on women researchers and stressed that they have to be more like men.
Across the six higher education institutions, committee members construct competition as an inherent aspect of contemporary academic work and expect excellent early-career researchers to be able to deal with this competition. Because of the precarious, competitive academic environment, committee members require early-career researchers to be confident, and show that confidence in the job interview. The perceptions and expectations about modest women researchers most likely negatively influence committee members’ assessment of women candidates as researchers who have the potential to make a career in academia. Moreover, committee members generally attributed non-confident behaviour to all women researchers and made women responsible for not ‘surviving’ in academia.
For some research participants the lack of confidence of women candidates is also connected with women’s communication style. We found that they expect of researchers a certain style of articulating ideas, which reflects a masculine, bold way of communicating.
Yes, when they come for an interview they have to just show it. Yes, then I want to just know: what drives someone? What I realize now is that there might be a gender bias there. [...] At least what I have learned is that women say what they really think to a lesser extent and less often go on thin ice. Because they are a bit more worried that they will fall through. While I can appreciate that; if someone does that in a conversation. [...] I think that men feel less embarrassed to just yell and shout it out occasionally. And by doing so they are more open to criticism, because they can have their heads chopped off. But on the other side, that gives me a better idea of what is on their mind. And I have noticed that during conversations with female students, PhD students, and postdocs. In a longer conversation I suddenly found out. Why didn’t you say that an hour ago? Yes, and if you are in a job interview that lasts one hour, yes, then it is possible that you miss the opportunity. (NL, STEM, M)
The respondent argues that he experienced women having another style of





























































































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