Why Do EA Events Attract More Men Than Women? Focus Group Data - EA Forum
!tags:: #litā/š°ļøarticle/highlights
!links:: diversity, effective altruism (ea), gender gap,
!ref:: Why Do EA Events Attract More Men Than Women? Focus Group Data - EA Forum
!author:: forum.effectivealtruism.org
=this.file.name
Reference
=this.ref
Notes
Summary
Women particularly emphasised time costs
- No location available
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they had occasionally experienced some level of sexual harassment and did find anti-feminist views at EAL events uncomfortable
- No location available
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Introduction
Other events, such as lectures, projects, and career coaching, are more evenly balanced.
- No location available
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descriptive statistics provided by David Nash showing that women are as likely to attend an event initially, but less likely to return to events.
- No location available
- attendance,
Methods and Limitations
In order to have a good idea of why women are less likely to attend EAL events, weād also need to interview women who have stopped attending events.
- No location available
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Analysis
Why were these individuals drawn to EA events?
Everyone I spoke to was initially drawn to events based on the ideas of Effective Altruism.
- No location available
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[Iāll go to an event] to learn more about EA ā¦ if thereās an external speaker from an EA organization I havenāt come across before because I think Iām going to get something more in depth.ā
- No location available
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biggest reason stated for continued attendance is continued learning, whether thatās about EA ideas or another topic.
- No location available
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[My reading group] keeps me really disciplined with making progress through my reading list and achieving the learning goals that I wanted to do.
- No location available
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Both men and women said they really enjoy socializing at EAL events. They enjoy spending time with people who have shared interests, catching up with friends, and (for some individuals) the debate-oriented or not-worried-about-looking-cool culture.
- No location available
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ābecause people are much more thinking-orientated or action-orientated, they donāt care so much [about looking cool].ā
- No location available
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āIt [pushes] me to do stuff. Because I see other people stuff and itās not a competition, but it just like, it helps me to ā to be like ā itās a bit like, āOh well, they can do it, so I should try to do it.ā
- No location available
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Why donāt they attend more events?
Time was the most frequently mentioned cost.
- No location available
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āI donāt really like going to pubs and spending money particularly muchā
- No location available
-
- [note::We need a food budget!]
Social events were very popular with most of these attendees when they first became interested in EA, but as they learned more, conversations quickly became repetitive.
- No location available
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- [note::This is a super insightful. I could definitely see how socials get repetitive if its the same format and with the same people.]
Several men and women mentioned difficult or very intense people as a negative factor. Many also mentioned the cost of meeting new people in general.
- No location available
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ā[At pub socials,] often I get stuck talking to people I donāt want to talk to.ā
- No location available
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- [note::How to prevent this?]
āI felt a little bit [unsafe] walking in and out of [the home of one EAL organizer, in a rougher neighbourhood].ā
- No location available
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The women interviewed were feminists and found others in EA didnāt share their views.
- No location available
-
āThe burden of proof is on us to like prove that weāve been disadvantaged by society rather than on someone else to prove that they have something new, worth saying. ā¦
- No location available
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The women recalled minor incidents of sexual harassment or discomfort, such as being clumsily hit on at social events or repeatedly messaged by someone theyād met, but stressed that they didnāt think EA was worse than other environments.
- No location available
-
Conclusion
Itās possible that in London, women are engaging with EA ideas at an equal rate to men, but experience a heavier time cost or less of a community benefit from attending socials and so only attend more learning-focused events.
- No location available
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EA London is deprioritising community events to some extent, in favour of one-on-one coaching, the monthly newsletter, and a looser ānetworkā approach
- No location available
-
dg-publish: true
created: 2024-07-01
modified: 2024-07-01
title: Why Do EA Events Attract More Men Than Women? Focus Group Data - EA Forum
source: hypothesis
!tags:: #litā/š°ļøarticle/highlights
!links:: diversity, effective altruism (ea), gender gap,
!ref:: Why Do EA Events Attract More Men Than Women? Focus Group Data - EA Forum
!author:: forum.effectivealtruism.org
=this.file.name
Reference
=this.ref
Notes
Summary
Women particularly emphasised time costs
- No location available
-
they had occasionally experienced some level of sexual harassment and did find anti-feminist views at EAL events uncomfortable
- No location available
-
Introduction
Other events, such as lectures, projects, and career coaching, are more evenly balanced.
- No location available
-
descriptive statistics provided by David Nash showing that women are as likely to attend an event initially, but less likely to return to events.
- No location available
- attendance,
Methods and Limitations
In order to have a good idea of why women are less likely to attend EAL events, weād also need to interview women who have stopped attending events.
- No location available
-
Analysis
Why were these individuals drawn to EA events?
Everyone I spoke to was initially drawn to events based on the ideas of Effective Altruism.
- No location available
-
[Iāll go to an event] to learn more about EA ā¦ if thereās an external speaker from an EA organization I havenāt come across before because I think Iām going to get something more in depth.ā
- No location available
-
biggest reason stated for continued attendance is continued learning, whether thatās about EA ideas or another topic.
- No location available
-
[My reading group] keeps me really disciplined with making progress through my reading list and achieving the learning goals that I wanted to do.
- No location available
-
Both men and women said they really enjoy socializing at EAL events. They enjoy spending time with people who have shared interests, catching up with friends, and (for some individuals) the debate-oriented or not-worried-about-looking-cool culture.
- No location available
-
ābecause people are much more thinking-orientated or action-orientated, they donāt care so much [about looking cool].ā
- No location available
-
āIt [pushes] me to do stuff. Because I see other people stuff and itās not a competition, but it just like, it helps me to ā to be like ā itās a bit like, āOh well, they can do it, so I should try to do it.ā
- No location available
-
Why donāt they attend more events?
Time was the most frequently mentioned cost.
- No location available
-
āI donāt really like going to pubs and spending money particularly muchā
- No location available
-
- [note::We need a food budget!]
Social events were very popular with most of these attendees when they first became interested in EA, but as they learned more, conversations quickly became repetitive.
- No location available
-
- [note::This is a super insightful. I could definitely see how socials get repetitive if its the same format and with the same people.]
Several men and women mentioned difficult or very intense people as a negative factor. Many also mentioned the cost of meeting new people in general.
- No location available
-
ā[At pub socials,] often I get stuck talking to people I donāt want to talk to.ā
- No location available
-
- [note::How to prevent this?]
āI felt a little bit [unsafe] walking in and out of [the home of one EAL organizer, in a rougher neighbourhood].ā
- No location available
-
The women interviewed were feminists and found others in EA didnāt share their views.
- No location available
-
āThe burden of proof is on us to like prove that weāve been disadvantaged by society rather than on someone else to prove that they have something new, worth saying. ā¦
- No location available
-
The women recalled minor incidents of sexual harassment or discomfort, such as being clumsily hit on at social events or repeatedly messaged by someone theyād met, but stressed that they didnāt think EA was worse than other environments.
- No location available
-
Conclusion
Itās possible that in London, women are engaging with EA ideas at an equal rate to men, but experience a heavier time cost or less of a community benefit from attending socials and so only attend more learning-focused events.
- No location available
-
EA London is deprioritising community events to some extent, in favour of one-on-one coaching, the monthly newsletter, and a looser ānetworkā approach
- No location available
-