Gender gap in the perceived academic autonomy of Croatian male and female researchers

Marija Brajdić Vuković, PhD, Associate Prof. Anita Dremel, PhD and Ana Maskalan, PhD presented their paper “Gender gap in the perceived academic autonomy of Croatian male and female researchers“ at the symposium Academic Freedoms, held on 5th and 6th November, 2024 in the library of the Croatian State Archive in Zagreb. The symposium was organized by the Faculties of Law of the Universities of Zagreb, Osijek, Rijeka and Split.

The paper is a result of the project “Social responsibility and professional ethics of Croatian researchers – RESETH“, financed by the Croatian Science Foundation. It tackles the question of perceived autonomy of female and male researchers in their research work, freedom of speech within the framework of institutional bodies, and the freedom of speech in the media and public affairs. All these aspects are situated in a broader context of disciplinary and institutional settings. The analysis of two recently conducted research studies is provided, both of which were carried out on a representative sample of researchers coming from all disciplines and positions at institutes and universities in Zagreb, Rijeka and Split. The findings indicate a significantly lower perceived autonomy of women, regardless of their scientific or scientific-teaching position. Particular focus is on extreme differences found among the social, natural and technical sciences. The data are contextualized within the culture of disciplines and organizations, the hypotheses of a “cold climate“ for female researchers, and a more complex professional environment in organizations and disciplines, in terms of personal and academic freedom.