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676 SOHAR ET AL.

utility patent category, we find a marked difference For example, 61% of men and just 46% of women
in women’s participation across technologies, with holding STEM doctoral degrees work in research
more women inventors named on chemical patents and development positions (22).
than electrical or mechanical patents” (9). In their Frietsch et al. (19) find that, internationally, the
international analysis, Frietsch et al. note low shares relative contribution of women between 2003 and
of female patenting in the U.S. in the top two fields 2005—averaged across all technological fields—is
of pharmaceuticals and basic chemicals and found highest in Spain (12.3%), followed by France (10.2%)
that, overall, the U.S. comes in below the interna- and a group of countries with similar levels (of more
tional average in female patentees (19). than 8%) consisting of Denmark, Australia, the U.S.,
In IT fields, the overall level of female participation Belgium, and Sweden. At the lower end of the scale
in IT patents remains low; however, recent trends are are Germany (4.7%) and Austria (3.2%). The gen-
promising. While women held only 2% of all IT pat- eral trend over time has been a strong increase in
ents in 1980, the share increased to approximately 6% women’s contributions to technology output in
in 2005 and 8% in 2010. Women’s patenting patterns most countries, but it is still at a relatively low level.
differ widely from one organization to another. For Female contributions are highest in pharmaceutical
example, several companies were shown to have 20% and basic chemicals, with the lowest contributions
to 30% of their patents naming at least one female in engineering.
inventor, while some companies have less than 5% While all of these studies and prior work analyzed
of their patents naming a woman inventor. This sug- barriers to female patenting and entrepreneurship
gests that individual organizational environments do rates, many have also indicated a need for additional
matter and can influence women’s patenting patterns tools and resources to better understand and mea-
(20). sure female participation in the innovation economy.
There is a strong gender gap in STEM entre- Recommendations from prior work for increasing
preneurship and patenting; across all STEM fields, women’s patenting activities include developing sys-
women with doctorate degrees have lower rates of tems and data tools to better track gender (8). Our
patenting and entrepreneurship than do men, with study is an initial analysis on such systems and tools.
women STEM doctorates engaging in both activ-
ities at lower rates (5.4% versus 7%, respectively) METHODOLOGY
(21). Influencing all of this is the ongoing issue The following sections outline the specific aspects
with women entering and staying in STEM fields. of the research methodology, including research
Illustrating this point, “[i]n 2010, only 19.1% of questions, research design, sampling strategy, and
engineering degrees, 20.9% of computer science, data collection process as well as the data analysis
and 38.7% of degrees in the physical sciences were strategy and validity and implications techniques
awarded to women, whereas 58.3% of degrees in that were undertaken.
the biological sciences were held by women” (8).
Women in STEM are concentrated in the life sci- Purpose of the Study
ences, which do not produce as many patentable The purpose of this study was three-fold: to
inventions as do fields such as engineering and com- uncover how TTOs are incorporating gender con-
puter science. Hunt et al. (18) estimate that gender siderations into their reporting activities, to increase
segregation across STEM fields accounts for 31% of awareness about the importance of gender tracking
the commercial patenting gap and that gender seg- for those who have not considered gender impact,
regation in specific job tasks explains at least 13% of and finally to increase the number of university TTOs
the commercialized patenting gap. This gender gap tracking gender. This investigative study was guided
becomes more pronounced in positions where a great by the following questions:
amount of experience is required (6). Women are
also less likely than men to work in patent-intensive 1. What is the availability of data on participa-
jobs, including research, development, and design. tion rates at academic institution TTOs regarding