Gender Differences in the Publication Rate Among Breast Imaging Radiologists in the United States and Canada

AJR Am J Roentgenol. 2018 Jan;210(1):2-7. doi: 10.2214/AJR.17.18303. Epub 2017 Nov 1.

Abstract

Objective: The purpose of this study is to determine whether academic achievement differs by gender among breast imaging radiologists.

Materials and methods: We examined the gender disparity in academic breast radiology using several parameters, including the h-index, the number of publications, and the number of citations. We also inspected gender disparity in academic ranks and leadership ranks.

Results: The research productivity of female breast imagers was found to be significantly lower than that of male colleagues across all academic ranks (p < 0.001). In addition, no correlation was noted between female gender and leadership positions (p = 0.57), despite the fact that women dominate the specialty of breast imaging.

Conclusion: The number of publications by female radiologists has risen steadily over time; however, a significant gender disparity is seen in scholarly productivity.

Keywords: breast imaging; gender disparity; h-index; publications; research productivity.

MeSH terms

  • Bibliometrics*
  • Breast / diagnostic imaging*
  • Canada
  • Female
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Publishing*
  • Radiology*
  • Sexism*
  • United States