Why women leave IT - Mahalanobis
QUOTE
"Skill obsolescence is the number one issue for I.T. workers," Professor Deb Armstrong of the University of Arkansas told NewsFactor. And it turns out, according to a study by Armstrong and her colleagues, that certain facts of women's lives make staying ahead of the game harder than it is for men. Click here to read the story.
UNQUOTE
By "certain facts of women's lives" Mahalonobis means the consequences of procreation are born mostly by women. When men and women decide to have children, it is generally the mother who drops out of the labor market for long spells.
I wonder if women in college are shying away from IT majors for this reason? Do women choose majors taking into consideration that skill obsolescence is more prominent in some fields than others? Is it the responsibility of universities to inform students of skill obsolescence and its consequences?
Notice that if women choose majors based on differentials in occupations' skill obsolescence, then the male-female pay gap, measured ignoring differences in occupation, will close faster.
QUOTE
"Skill obsolescence is the number one issue for I.T. workers," Professor Deb Armstrong of the University of Arkansas told NewsFactor. And it turns out, according to a study by Armstrong and her colleagues, that certain facts of women's lives make staying ahead of the game harder than it is for men. Click here to read the story.
UNQUOTE
By "certain facts of women's lives" Mahalonobis means the consequences of procreation are born mostly by women. When men and women decide to have children, it is generally the mother who drops out of the labor market for long spells.
I wonder if women in college are shying away from IT majors for this reason? Do women choose majors taking into consideration that skill obsolescence is more prominent in some fields than others? Is it the responsibility of universities to inform students of skill obsolescence and its consequences?
Notice that if women choose majors based on differentials in occupations' skill obsolescence, then the male-female pay gap, measured ignoring differences in occupation, will close faster.
posted by John B. Chilton at 3/10/2005 05:13:00 AM
1 Comments:
I believe I saw an American Economic Review article a number of years ago that made the point about the connection between the half-life of knowledge and the attractiveness of an area to women who were contemplating career + family.
When I have introduced the idea in class, my sense is that the women nod their heads and the men look mystified.
Could be part of the explanation of the strong interest among women in law school, and the long established interest in the Humanities, especially in such areas as Literature.
Post a Comment
<< Home