Where are women doing research in the field of ICTs?

Abstract

A great body of literature evidences the low representation of women in technology-related fields. However, few research lines have analyzed the role played by women in the field of research on ICTs. The main aim of this paper is to explore the participation and posit ion of women in a group of public and private institutions doing research in the field of ICTs in Spain. After mapping all the private and public institutions doing research in field of ICTs in Spain, we carried out an analysis of the presen ce and position of women in the field of ICTs research in those institutions. Our findings show, on the one hand, a scarce representation of women in the research areas specialized in the field of ICTs. On the other hand, we have also observed that few women hold posts of responsibility in the research area of IC Ts and have the required qualifications to promote professionally in those rese arch areas. We discuss all our findings and the possible implications of our study.