Introduction: Towards a gender perspective of science

According to a research report in Nature (Sanderson, 2021), a review of papers published by about 6,000,000 researchers worldwide between 1996 and 2018 shows that the proportion of women working in science increased over time. The gender balance in science has attracted much attention in academic and social circles in various countries and has become a fruitful subtopic in scientific culture study. Some studies have originated from feminism and other gender perspectives when exploring the development of science and technology (S&T). Some have emerged from a historical perspective, summarizing the course of women's participation in scientific undertakings within a particular cultural background. Others have taken a social perspective, with a focus on the gender difference in science, or have focused on policy dimensions, underscoring the importance of gender balance among practitioners. In these contexts, by focusing on women in science, this special issue seeks to depict, analyse and reflect on the characteristics of scientific culture. It may look to be a ‘fashionable' selection of topic, but, in essence, is an integral part in the study of scientific culture.

This special issue includes six articles discussing women in science in different countries from different perspectives. In ‘An analysis of factors influencing the career success of Chinese women scientists’, Wang Jingying analyses the influencing factors on the career success of Chinese women scientists through a literature review and data-based observations of the current situation in China. The paper provides a window into the careers and working environment of Chinese women scientists, and the substantial amount of data used in the paper also makes the author's views more convincing.

In ‘Women in science: Rising numbers but an eternal glass ceiling’, Marta Entradas uses a ‘storytelling’ approach to review the long history of female participation in science in Portugal. She notes that, although the situation for women in science has improved, women still face many obstacles in their pursuit of scientific careers, which is a global trend.

‘The development of female science and technology workers in China: Achievements, problems and suggestions’ by Wang Hongwei et al. is based on an extensive quantitative analysis of the current status of female S&T workers in China. It proposes the idea of building respect and improving the environment for female S&T workers to help them increase their productivity. Wang et al. cite theoretical views in the field of gender studies and refer to some international theoretical findings to conduct a data-based comparative analysis.

In ‘Science communication to empower women in science: The case of Brazil’, Germana Barata and Zélia Ludwig introduce the situation of Brazilian women's participation in science, especially their contributions during the COVID-19 pandemic, and propose strategies for empowering women in science through science communication.

In ‘Growth experiences of the older generation of women scientists in China: Historical lessons and recommendations for women's career development’, Zhang Meifang and Ma Yanyang describe the status of Chinese female scientists in different historical periods using an approach of group biographies in historical studies. The article is based on the collection, analysis and review of a large number of sources of data about female scientists. This is important for understanding the general context of the growth of Chinese women scientists and provides useful information for the cultivation of future talent.

Anne M Dijkstra, in her ‘Perspectives from the Netherlands on women in science’, starts with a short introduction to women in science in the Netherlands and then explains the European Union's analytical frameworks and concepts, such as responsible research and innovation (RRI) and open science, putting the Dutch situation into an international context, and thus presenting a clearer picture of women's participation in scientific research in the Netherlands.

In China, where this journal was created, women's participation in scientific research has improved (Yu and Li, 2021). First, the number and proportion of female S&T workers are increasing within broader types of industries. By 2017, female S&T workers accounted for 38.9% of the total S&T workforce in China. The proportion of women engaged in different types of jobs increased, such as in clinical research, teaching, basic research, application development and design, science popularization, intermediary services and S&T management. Second, female S&T practitioners play an important role in areas such as S&T entrepreneurship and academic research. For example, Tu Youyou won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, becoming the first Chinese to win a Nobel Prize in science. The proportion of female S&T workers who have published research articles in journals or been granted patents has also steadily increased. Third, the problem of the ‘glass ceiling’ for women has been reduced (Li, 2022), and the difference between women and men in title promotion is narrowing. From 2008 to 2017, the men-to-women ratio dropped from 5.47 to 3.92 for holders of senior professional titles and dropped from 1.94 to 1.57 for holders of intermediate professional titles. Fourth, more female researchers are being rewarded—women accounted for 27.4% of all S&T personnel who received awards in 2019.

Research on gender and science has been growing. Numerous international research results have been translated and integrated, to some extent, with Chinese culture. For example, in 2008, Shanghai Jiaotong University published a book, Readings in Gender and Science, which contains dozens of research papers by Chinese and foreign scholars on a wide range of topics, including introductory feminist theory, feminist philosophy of science, feminist history of science, and feminism and STS (science, technology and society). The book has inspired scholars engaged in research on scientific culture. Another example is A Flourishing Yin: Gender in China's Medical History, 960–1665 published by Jiangsu People's Publishing House in 2006. Authored by American scholar Charlotte Furth, this piece of medical anthropology is well known in international medical history, anthropology and sinology circles. Due to the wide range of subject areas covered, especially the gender perspective that has led to conclusions different from those of traditional medical history studies, the book has generated wide interest and intense debate. With a focus on local knowledge, the research perspective of the book has also contributed to the presentation of the diversity of scientific culture.

In 2015, Professor Zhang Meifang, one of the authors in this special issue, published A Historiographical Study on Feminist History of Science with Science Press, which introduces the historical evolution, current situation and future development of feminist science historiography. In this sense, this special issue is not limited to presenting innovations in original theories but also aims to expand the content and diversity of research in this field based on previous research.

A true understanding of women in science requires not only data analysis but also theoretical analysis when examining their participation in science. For example, given their different biological characteristics and ways of thinking, are women more or less suited to participating in scientific careers than men? This is a question on which the relevant discussion has already produced some outcomes. We cannot deny the objectivity of some of the evidence cited, but, if we reflect more deeply on the rationality of scientific development itself, we will know that whether women are suited for science is not an easy question to answer. Take the speed and efficiency of scientific development as an example. In recent years, while celebrating rapid advances of science, we have also paid attention to the ethics and values of science, which have become important factors influencing the development of science. In this context, the growth model that focuses on the speed of development will need adjustments, and thus the alignment between gender and science practice needs to be revisited.

We should also note that viewing scientific development through the lens of gender is an important dimension for studying scientific culture. Gender perspectives have developed as ideological trends with an impact on many humanities and social science topics. This is because of the biological gender differences between individuals or groups, as well as the social gender differences generated by cultural construction and the underlying differences arising therefrom, including ways of thinking, observation perspectives, and value choices in dealing with the same issues and subjects. Based on such considerations, women's participation in science is, to some extent, only a small part of the study of gender and scientific culture. Such research provides a solid basis for presenting the diversity of scientific culture around the world, but further studies are still needed to establish the cultural features of science from a gender perspective. From the results of ongoing research and the direction of scientific culture study, it is clear that this is a research field holding great promise.

This special issue aims to provide a basic picture of the diverse international landscape of women in science through a description of the historical process and contemporary situation of women's participation in science in various countries and areas, using the cultural backgrounds of the authors as a blueprint. This framework marks only the beginning of research on gender and science in an international context. We hope this could stimulate the interest of more researchers in scientific culture and encourage them to delve into different cultural traditions, examine the gender factors in various cultures at different historical stages, and analyse from a gender perspective the impact on the development of science of the ways of thinking, observation perspectives and value choices of different actors. Through such studies, we will be able to put our discussions in the context of local culture and examine the historical factors and optimal paths for women's participation in science. Thus, we can move beyond the statistical gender balance and explore the best model and scale of women's participation in science in particular cultural contexts, which will provide support for the development of science and the realization of women's values.

Looking to a more distant future—when gender is no longer a meaningful topic of conversation in science, when no one is concerned about the ratio of men to women in science, and when the recognition of women scientists’ accomplishments no longer needs proof—we can claim to have achieved the goal pursued by generations of women in science.