Experiences and Gender Demographics of Researchers in Long‐Term Individual‐Based Study Systems
5 affiliations
- 1Department of Biology Memorial University of Newfoundland St John's Newfoundland and Labrador Canada
- 2Department of Biology University of Saskatchewan Saskatoon Saskatchewan Canada
- 3Independent Researcher Calgary Alberta Canada
- 4UK Centre for Ecology and Hydrology Penicuik UK
- 5Department of Ecosystem and Public Health University of Calgary Calgary Alberta Canada
Abstract
Long‐term individual‐based studies have invaluably advanced our understanding of animal ecology and evolution. Participants involved in the creation and/or maintenance of long‐term study systems benefit from synergistic collaborations, which can provide greater opportunities for co‐authorship. We conducted two surveys to collect anonymous data from current and former participants of long‐term individual‐based studies about leadership structure and authorship patterns as it is unclear whether all participants—regardless of their intersectional identity—derive the same benefits from participation in these systems. Our goal was to collect these data in a less harmful way through self‐reporting gender compared to gendering participants/authors by their first name. We found that gender representation was biased toward men historically and has recently become more equitable across genders. PI gender demographics were positively associated with the gender composition of project participants. Male PIs had higher numbers of publications compared to those of marginalized genders for overall authorship and as last author. Our results parallel similar patterns observed across other science disciplines. This research may serve as a first step in sparking broader reflection, discussion, and action on how gender data is collected and to ensure that the remarkable opportunities offered by long‐term individual‐based study systems are equitably accessible to all.
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BibTeX
@article{kusch2026experiences,
title = {{Experiences and Gender Demographics of Researchers in Long‐Term Individual‐Based Study Systems}},
author = {Jillian M. Kusch and Ruth J. Greuel and Chanwoori Jeong and Charlotte E. Regan and Mason R. Stothart and Julie A. Colpitts},
journal = {Ecology and Evolution},
year = {2026},
month = nov,
doi = {10.1002/ece3.74577},
url = {https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ece3.74577},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Experiences and Gender Demographics of Researchers in Long‐Term Individual‐Based Study Systems
AU - Jillian M. Kusch
AU - Ruth J. Greuel
AU - Chanwoori Jeong
AU - Charlotte E. Regan
AU - Mason R. Stothart
AU - Julie A. Colpitts
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/11/06
JO - Ecology and Evolution
DO - 10.1002/ece3.74577
UR - https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/ece3.74577
AB - Long‐term individual‐based studies have invaluably advanced our understanding of animal ecology and evolution. Participants involved in the creation and/or maintenance of long‐term study systems benefit from synergistic collaborations, which can provide greater opportunities for co‐authorship. We conducted two surveys to collect anonymous data from current and former participants of long‐term individual‐based studies about leadership structure and authorship patterns as it is unclear whether all participants—regardless of their intersectional identity—derive the same benefits from participation in these systems. Our goal was to collect these data in a less harmful way through self‐reporting gender compared to gendering participants/authors by their first name. We found that gender representation was biased toward men historically and has recently become more equitable across genders. PI gender demographics were positively associated with the gender composition of project participants. Male PIs had higher numbers of publications compared to those of marginalized genders for overall authorship and as last author. Our results parallel similar patterns observed across other science disciplines. This research may serve as a first step in sparking broader reflection, discussion, and action on how gender data is collected and to ensure that the remarkable opportunities offered by long‐term individual‐based study systems are equitably accessible to all.
SN - 2045-7758
SN - 2045-7758
ER -