Since 2019, an increasing number of studies show that female economists confront gender-related structural disadvantages regarding job appointments, publication decisions, and obtaining research funding in economics.[1] In a survey by the American Economic Association (AEA) on the professional climate in economics, almost half of around 9,000 international female economists stated that they had suffered harassment and discrimination during their careers because of their gender.[2] Another study shows that women in the field of finance hold positions at lower-ranked institutions, are less likely to be full professors, and publish fewer papers. At the same time, women have more female coauthors, suggesting smaller publication networks.[3] The seminar culture in economics also discriminates against female scientists.[4] That is the conclusion of a study collecting and analyzing data on the interaction between speakers and their audiences in hundreds of research seminars in leading economics departments, during job market talks, and summer conferences. It shows that female presenters are treated differently than their male counterparts. Not only are women asked more questions during seminars, but those questions tend to more be condescending or hostile.
With this picture in mind, the "Women in Macro, Finance, and Economic History Workshop" (WIMFEH) workshop promotes subject-specific networks, crucial for achieving equal opportunities for women in economics and advancing the field in this perspective. The third edition of WIMFEH, held May 3-4, 2023, brought together 30 female economists from macroeconomics, finance, and economic history. The workshop provided a platform for these professionals to present their research, establish research connections, and exchange ideas. During the two-day workshop, nine research papers were presented in 30-minute slots, followed by 10-minute discussions and Q&A sessions with the audience. The workshop's agenda also included ample time for networking and exchanging research ideas, with extended breaks between sessions, a conference dinner, and a guided walking tour of Berlin's city center. In addition to the research presentations, three distinguished speakers – Elena Carletti (Professor of Finance and Dean of Bocconi University), Claudia Steinwender (Professor of Economic History at the University of Munich), and Silvia Miranda-Agrippino (Bank of England) -- delivered keynote speeches. These keynotes not only showcased their excellent research but also provided candid, diverse, and inspiring insights into their career paths and beyond.
With the WIMFEH workshop, we aimed to enhance professional exchange among female economists and increase women's visibility in economics in both public and academic spheres. The success of this endeavor is evident not only from the substantial number of research paper submissions (over 90) but also from the consistently positive feedback received from participants during the workshop. Xiang Li, one of the presenters, finds that WIMFEH is a “wonderful workshop! Besides super interesting paper presentations, it was inspiring to know the interesting career path of the three keynotes and the difficulties they met as a woman in this profession. Kudos to the organizers!” Participants highlighted the collaborative atmosphere, high-quality discussions, and inspiring keynotes as the key elements contributing to the overall success of this year's workshop. This overwhelmingly positive experience highlights how important the promotion of subject-specific networks is. Building on this, plans are already underway for WIMFEH 2024.
References:
[1] See among others Baetman V., Kanakanam Gamage D., Hengel E., Liu X. ‘The Gender Imbalance in UK Economics: Royal Economic Society’, Silver Anniversary Women’s Committee Report. Accessible under https://www.erinhengel.com/research/women-in-academic-economics-report-FINAL.pdf
[2] www.aeaweb.org/news/press-release-climate-survey-results-march-2019
[3] Sherman, M.G. and Tookes, H.E. (2022), Female Representation in the Academic Finance Profession. The Journal of Finance, 77: 317-365. Accessible under doi.org/10.1111/jofi.13094
[4] Dupas, P., Modestino, S. A., Niederle, M., Wolfers, J. and The Seminar Dynamics Collective (2021) ‘Gender and the Dynamics of Economics Seminars’ National Bureau of Economic Research Working Paper Nr 28494. Accessible under www.nber.org/papers/w28494
Tim Lohse
Salmai Qari
TEST
Say researchers are interested in thorough and truthful answers to a questionnaire. How can they incentivize respondents to provide such answers? Simple monetary incentives do not work: paying more for longer answers would incentivize babbling. More generally: in many social or market interactions, requests of economic significance can not be accompanied by common economic incentives.
One approach to such situations is to choose the language of a request strategically. Bruttel et al. (2021) study how adding the phrase “thanks in advance” to a request affects effort in answering a questionnaire. In a simple lab experiment, they ask participants to explain their behavior in a previous task as thoroughly as possible. The treatment difference is whether or not participants additionally see the phrase “thanks in advance.”
Surprisingly, participants exert less effort when seeing the phrase “thanks in advance.” They spend 30 to 50 seconds less on answering the question and tend to write shorter answers. This result shows that even tiny lapses in language can have noticeable consequences on cooperation in such a small-stakes environment, underlining the importance of considering language carefully – in any context.
Why do they react in this way? Possibly, participants could feel that using this phrase is impolite and react reciprocally. However, participants across treatments rate the phrase as very polite and react negatively nevertheless. Alternatively, it might feel like the researchers really do expect them to fulfill the request, leaving them no choice. Then, the participants might react negatively to this reduction of their autonomy.
Lisa Bruttel (University of Potsdam)
Juri Nithammer (University of Potsdam)
Florian Stolley (University of Potsdam)
The paper, titled “’Thanks in Advance’ - the Negative Effect of a Polite Phrase on Compliance with a Request,”can be viewed here and is forthcoming in the German Economic Review.
