A study by the L’Oréal Foundation on gender equality in science published on Thursday shows that one in two female scientists is a victim of sexual harassment at work. Shedding light on a phenomenon that persists despite #MeToo.
In October 2017, the Weinstein case was dropped. He highlighted sexual harassment in the film industry. In the process, the #MeToo wave hit the political world, the media, sports… However, more than five years later, omerta remains in certain quarters. That’s how science works. According to a study by the L’Oréal Foundation (1), in collaboration with Ipsos and published this Thursday, every second woman reveals that she has faced at least one situation of sexual harassment during her career. For 47% of them, it happened in the last five years, after the emergence of the #MeToo movement.
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A closer look at the research shows that sexual harassment hits younger female researchers more often. 64% of women say they were victims of it at least once early in their careers. And this is not without consequences. For the majority of respondents (65%), this episode had a negative impact on their commitment to work: poor health, feelings of insecurity and, in some cases, loss of self-confidence. 12% of women even claim that they have missed professional opportunities.
law of silence
The finding is alarming, and yet only one in five people have talked about it in their company. For social innovation and professional equality expert Marie Donzel, this is no surprise. “Science is a masculine, elite and prestigious environment,” he comments. There are many women who tell themselves, “I’ve worked hard to get where I am” and therefore don’t want to ruin their careers by being involved in this type of relationship. Indeed, there is a great deal of interpersonal interaction in science, where peer recognition is paramount, almost more than anywhere else. “Victims don’t want to risk their career, their reputation, even the reputation of the aggressor,” says Marie Donzel.
In academia, we wash our dirty laundry as a family
Marie Donzel, professional equality expert
The reality of sexual harassment on the ground is usually very different from the clichés you may have in mind. “There is often a story. Victims may take months or even years to speak up. Others will remain silent forever,” assures Marie Dontzel. However, most of them adopt avoidance or acceptance strategies; “Laughing at jokes because it’s cheaper than, for example, defending yourself from them.”
Another impressive indicator of the L’Oréal Foundation study. 86% of respondents (all genders combined) admit to having witnessed situations of sexism, and 56% of them say they have condemned them. An indicator that may seem low, but it testifies to the law of silence that still prevails in science. “Among scientists, we do not work as elsewhere. We wash our dirty laundry as a family,” Marie Donzel sums up. Especially since daring to speak out has consequences. Of those who did not speak out about the situation they witnessed, half said they had heard stories of people being negatively impacted for speaking out. Result: 39% of them say that they are afraid of reprisals. Languages still need to be loosened.
(1) The study was conducted from July 26 to September 16, 2022. The interviews were conducted using an online questionnaire sent by Ipsos to researchers in the fields of science, technology, engineering and mathematics, from more than 50 different institutions (67%). public institutions and 12% private institutions). A total of 5,184 people (22% men and 76% women) were interviewed in 117 countries.
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Source: Le Figaro
