It's common knowledge that very few women choose a career in IT, and in general there are more men involved in science than women. Even on this forum there are clearly a lot more men than women. But why is this?
Do we have cultural norms that say women shouldn't be involved in science, or is there some biological difference between the genders that makes men more willing or able to work in science? And why do women prefer social / behavioural sciences over natural sciences?
In most countries more men than women have a professional career (partly due to gender roles in child care), but that doesnt explain the enormous differences in gender ratios in science.
Some statistics from the EU:
Academic staff in the EU, 2002:
-Agricultural sciences: 1.8 times more men than women
-Engineering and Technology: 4.2 times more men than women
-Humanities and Arts: 1.5 times more men than women
-Medical sciences: 1.4 times more men than women
-Natural sciences: 2.6 times more men than women (math, physics, IT, chemistry, biology, earth/environmental science)
-Social sciences: 1.5 times more men than women
-Unknown: 1.3 times more men than women
source