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COVID-19 and Faculty Equity

This reference list contains studies about the impact of the pandemic on faculty workload and productivity and reports and research on institutional interventions to address equity. It also includes some selected references about the impact of stress, burnout, and workload inequity on important faculty outcomes such as productivity and advancement. This document will be update as new research emerges.

Authors: Krukowski, R.A., Jagsi, R., & Cardel, M.I.

Background: Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, most faculty in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medicine (STEMM) began working from home, including many who were simultaneously caring for children. The objective was to assess associations of gender and parental status with self-reported academic productivity before (i.e., mid-January to mid-March 2020) and during the pandemic (i.e., mid-March to mid-May 2020).

Authors: Turk, J.M., Soler, M.D., & Chessman, H.M.

With the summer term nearing an end and the start of the fall 2020 term only weeks away, college and university leaders continue taking steps to support safe operations. In early July, ACE launched its fourth Pulse Point survey of college and university presidents on COVID-19.

Authors: Deryugina, T., Shurchkov, O., & Stearns, J. E.

The rapid spread of the COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent countermeasures disrupted economic activity around the world. We investigate the effects of COVID-19 disruptions on the gender gap in academia. We administer a global survey of academics to collect nuanced data on the respondents' circumstances, such as the number and ages of children and time use. All academics report substantial increases in childcare and housework burdens, but women experienced significantly larger increases than men.

Authors: Joya Misra

This brief from UMASS Amherst ADVANCE outlines different kinds of faculty activities that have been impacted by the pandemic and can be documented in various evaluative settings (e.g., faculty activities reporting, COVID-19 impact statements).

Authors: Settles, I. & Linderman, J.

The University of Michigan ADVANCE Program developed this brief which summarizes policies, practices, and strategies for enhancing equity in institutional responses to COVID-19.

Authors: Culpepper, D., & Kilmer, S.

Researchers, agencies, associations, and faculty members have almost unanimously agreed that without intervention, the COVID-19 pandemic will have severe impacts on the advancement of faculty from historically minoritized groups, including women and racially minoritized faculty members. While recommendations abound, less empirical work has focused on how U.S. higher education institutions have responded to the pandemic.

Authors: Merin Oleschuk

Rising care demands created by COVID‐19—specifically those brought on by remote working, a lack of childcare, and the virus’ particular risk to aging populations—are disproportionately incurred by women and impede their ability to work. The starkness of gender differences in productivity and its visibility during this time provokes a rethinking of how faculty will be evaluated for tenure and promotion during the pandemic and beyond it.

Authors: Cui, R., Ding, H., & Zhu, F.

Problem definition: We study the disproportionate impact of the lockdown as a result of the COVID-19 outbreak on female and male academic research productivity in social science. Academic/practical relevance: The lockdown has caused substantial disruptions to academic activities, requiring people to work from home. How this disruption affects productivity and the related gender equity is an important operations and societal question.

Authors: Flaherty, C.

Early Journal Submission Data Suggest COVID-19 is Tanking Women's Research Productivity.

Authors: Rogers, B

COVID-19 has forced everyone to adjust to a new way of life and a new way of working. But the career effects of the global pandemic haven’t been equitable for all workers, according to a new study of more than 1,000 U.S. adults conducted by Qualtrics and theBoardlist.