Gender disparities in pediatric research: a descriptive bibliometric study on scientific authorships

Background The proportion of women in medicine, especially in pediatrics, is noticeably increasing. Yet, leadership positions are predominantly occupied by men. Methods Academic authorships of 156,642 pediatric original research articles were analyzed with regard to gender disparities. The evaluation included the proportion of female authorships (FAP), distributions over first-, co- and last-authorships, gender-related citation rates, a productivity analysis and investigations on journals, countries and pediatric sub-disciplines. Results In all, 46.6% of all authorships in pediatric research were held by female authors. Women held relatively more first-authorships (FAP = 52%) and had higher odds for first- (OR = 1.3) and co- (OR = 1.11) authorships, compared to men. The Prestige Index of -0.13 indicated an underrepresentation of female authors at prestigious first- and last-authorships. Citation rates were not affected by the gender of the key authors. At the country-level pronounced gender-related differences were detected. The time trend showed increasing female prospects forecasting a female-dominated Prestige Index of 0.05 in 2023. Conclusion The integration of women in pediatric research has advanced. Opportunities for female authors differ at the country-level, but overall women are lacking in leadership positions. Improving career opportunities for women in pediatric research can be expected in the coming years. Impact There is a measurable progress in the integration of female scientists. Gender-neutrality is partially achieved in pediatric research with yet a female underrepresentation in leading positions. Our descriptive study presents gender-related dynamics in pediatric research that forecast improving career opportunities for female scientists.

Automated summary

The proportion of women in medicine, especially in pediatrics, is increasing, but leadership positions are mostly occupied by men. This study found that women in pediatric research hold a relatively higher proportion of first-author and co-author positions, but are still underrepresented in prestigious first-author and last-author positions. Citation rates are not affected by the gender of the key authors. Pronounced gender-related differences were also found at the country-level. It is expected that career opportunities for women in pediatric research will improve in the coming years.