WOMEN IN PHYSICS IN ARGENTINA: A COMPARATIVE STATISTICAL ANALYSIS

Abstract

Urged by the need of detailed information concerning the current situation of women in Physics in Argentina, we performed a statistical study focused on the Physics discipline within the hierarchical structure of researchers with permanent positions at CONICET. We analyzed gender composition data of the different career stages and studied its evolution in the past 20 years. The obtained results reveal the well-known glass ceiling and its dynamics, unveiling its relationship with differences arisen during the promotion process in the researchers' career. The analysis of evolution of the percentage of women in Physics shows that its projection would not surpass 30%. This result indicates that gender balance will not be reached unless novel mechanisms are proposed, actively promoting the incorporation of women as researchers. The results presented for Physics are also compared with others disciplines in Natural and Exact Sciences and the full population of researchers in all areas working in CONICET