Engendering Economics

Between 1950 and 1975, the percentage of women receiving economic doctorates in the US sunk to an all time low. This book consists of a series of interviews with the pioneering few who did attain this status during that period.
It is an amazing fact that by the 1950's the percentage of all economic doctorates awarded to women dropped by a record low of under five percent. This book supports the growing feminist literature that challenge the unrelenting focus on the suburban post-war housewife that has obscured the complexity of women's lives during this period and the gender ambiguities embedded in the post-war culture. In a first of its kind, this book provides a richer understanding of the sociology of the economics profession by presenting the oral histories of women economists who received the PhD's between 1950 and 1975. Recounting their stories about their post-war experiences as family members, students and professionals, we learn not only what it was/is like to be a woman and /or African-American in a white male dominated profession, but also how the profession operates, and what specifically is required for its improvement. By interviewing a wide range of female economists, Olsen and Emami have managed to present an impressive scope of philosophical perspectives, career paths, research interests, feminist proclivities, and observations about the profession and women's place within it. Contributor