Four types of gender bias affecting women surgeons and their cumulative impact

What is it about?

Women are underrepresented in surgery and experience a gender pay gap. This article reports findings from a qualitative, in-depth interview study with women surgeons. It identifies four types of gender bias experienced by women surgeons: workplace discrimination; epistemic injustice; stereotypical role expectations; and objectification. Given that many instances of these types of bias are small, unintentional, and sometimes harmless on their own, the article discusses the role of accumulation and interaction between instances, drawing on theoretical work on moral aggregation in ethics. This informs some general recommendations for addressing gender bias in surgical careers.

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