Health sciences: women are the ones signing the most research papers

Women do not sign scientific papers in classical physics, quantum physics, or condensed matter physics. On the contrary, however, they outnumber men as authors in fields related to health. This was confirmed by an analysis published a few months ago in Nature. By examining how the global balance tilts in terms of gender among the authors of academic papers in specialized journals, the British magazine created its first “Nature Index Gender Ratio”—an analysis conducted on more than one and a half million authors who published articles between 2015 and 2024.

The clearest finding is the persistent and widespread male predominance among authors. There are, however, some exceptions—ones that align with the theme of this issue, which focuses on bodies. In the list of journals mainly covering health sciences, the top 14 positions are all occupied by publications in which at least 50% of the articles include a female author. And, when ranking journals by the percentage of female authors, the top 50 are all dedicated to research in health and biological sciences.

Presenting its study, Nature specifies: “The gender gap in scientific publishing is narrowing, but the percentage of female researchers remains low in many countries and regions, and in certain fields.” This is further confirmed by looking at the topics most studied by female researchers—and those that, over time, have shown the greatest growth toward a better gender balance among authors. In both cases, these areas are almost always reproductive medicine, pediatrics, nutritional sciences, epidemiology, and medical microbiology. In 2024, only in these disciplines did the number of women exceed the parity zone—the balance area, defined as between 40% and 60%. Moreover, over the ten-year period and across all disciplines considered, the presence of female authors increased most notably in reproductive medicine (+9%), epidemiology (+6.9%), and medical microbiology (+6.5%).

Examining the numerical impact of female authorship in specialized journals also helps outline certain aspects of women’s participation in research development—and their potential contribution across sectors, starting with how many engage in a given field. Since publishing in recognized journals is the culmination of a research path, it is not too surprising to see persistent imbalances already visible in the number of students choosing certain disciplines after high school. It is no secret, for example, that although the numbers are rising, women are still a minority in physics or mathematics faculties. While, of course, the initial choice is not the only factor determining one’s later research focus, starting percentages do have an effect.

This numerical imbalance is also evident in the presence—or absence—of role models in leadership positions, which in turn seems to influence the composition of research teams. According to some studies, female researchers leading research teams appear more likely to “bring along” other women colleagues. An Australian analysis covering 20 years from 2000 found that, among government-funded research groups, those led by women had a higher proportion of female researchers (32%) compared with those led by men (24%).

Although change is underway, scientific publications are still largely male-dominated. Only in three countries—the United States, Canada, and France—does the proportion of female authors exceed 30%, with the United Kingdom (29%) and India (28%) just behind. At the opposite end of the spectrum is Japan, where only 16% of papers include a female author.