Female authorship in global research: a bibliometric study of high- and low-income country collaborations.

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this study was to examine female authorship in research from collaborations between high-income countries (HICs) and lower-middle-income and low-income countries (LMICs/LICs) across two time periods: 2018-2020 and 2021-2023.

Methods: A bibliometric analysis of neurosurgical research articles from the Scopus database, published between 2018 and 2023, was performed to investigate collaboration trends between HICs and LMICs/LICs. Only neurosurgical publications were included, and female authors were identified based on names traditionally associated with female gender identity, verified through online searches and tools such as Genderize.io. Articles with more than 25 authors, commentaries, letters, and news items were excluded to ensure a focus on original research. The selected articles spanned various neurosurgical specialties and were restricted to English-language journals with an impact factor greater than 1. The country affiliations of first, corresponding, and last authors were categorized using the 2018 World Bank classification to understand collaboration patterns across income levels.

Results: The analysis revealed a steady increase in neurosurgical publications from 2018 to 2023, with a notable rise in the second triennium (2021-2023). Authors from HICs consistently held the majority of first, corresponding, and last authorship positions. Concerning first authorship, authors with affiliations from HICs increased from 66% in the first triennium to 75% in the second. Similarly, corresponding authors from HICs increased from 75% to 82% over the same period. Male authors dominated all key authorship roles, with 127 male-led first authorships compared with 46 female-led first authorships in the second triennium. This male predominance persisted in corresponding and last author roles as well.

Conclusions: Global neurosurgical research is growing but significant gender disparities persist, especially in LMICs/LICs, with female researchers underrepresented in key authorship roles, requiring targeted efforts to address systemic barriers and promote gender equity in academic leadership.