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The Delayed Acceptance of Female Research in Economics

Author

Listed:
  • Bruns, Stephan B.

    (Hasselt University)

  • Doucouliagos, Anthony

    (Coles Group)

  • Doucouliagos, Chris

    (Deakin University)

  • König, Johannes

    (University of Kassel)

  • Stanley, T. D.

    (Deakin University)

  • Zigova, Katarina

    (University of Zurich)

Abstract

We investigate gender differences in the time taken to accept empirical articles. On average, female-authored economics articles take notably longer to accept. Acceptance delay is nine weeks longer when solo-authored and five weeks longer for all female teams. This gender gap cannot be attributed to differences in author affiliation, research productivity, research quality and novelty. Female-authored articles are of higher quality, as measured by citations, reflecting higher research thresholds for female-authored work. The gender composition of editorial boards does not affect acceptance time for female authors. Nevertheless, this gender gap narrows as female representation in an area of research deepens.

Suggested Citation

  • Bruns, Stephan B. & Doucouliagos, Anthony & Doucouliagos, Chris & König, Johannes & Stanley, T. D. & Zigova, Katarina, 2025. "The Delayed Acceptance of Female Research in Economics," IZA Discussion Papers 17649, Institute of Labor Economics (IZA).
    • Handle: RePEc:iza:izadps:dp17649
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    More about this item

    Keywords

    social norms; economics journals; acceptance time; gender;
    All these keywords.

    JEL classification:

    • J16 - Labor and Demographic Economics - - Demographic Economics - - - Economics of Gender; Non-labor Discrimination

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