Women in Science : Barriers and Facilitating Factors Contributing to Their Progress to a Leadership Position at BSU

Abstract

The present study identified the factors that contributed to authorities’ decisions on women’s leadership roles and explored the perceptions of women in science departments at Baku State University about their progress to leadership positions. The study also discovered barriers that women faced when seeking leadership positions. The research on barriers causing the underrepresentation of women at higher levels of the academic hierarchy in science in Azerbaijan is almost non-existent. In this regard, this study may be a valuable source for future researchers in the field of science, social sciences, and education who are interested in investigating female leadership. The sample size consisted of three female leaders, three male leaders, and four female leaders to be. The data were collected via semi-structured interviews and document analysis. The data analysis started with sorting, organizing, and then coding. After coding, labeling was applied to identify different themes and their relationships that assisted in managing the data efficiently. Ensuring the legitimacy and internal validity of the research findings, the data obtained from interviews and document analysis were triangulated. To verify the research findings' accuracy and avoid misunderstanding of what respondents stated or intended and uncover researcher biases and misconceptions, member checks were applied. Peer review employed benefited ensuring the reliability of the research findings. Respondents' privacy and rights were respected and protected via a consent form. To secure the research participants’ anonymity, their names were changed, and responses were not divulged to anybody or discussed with others. Besides, the recorded data, transcripts, consent papers, and audiotapes were kept in a safe place to be deleted later. The limitation of the study was a small size, a convenience sampling to recruit participants who were in leadership positions at BSU and the language of the study. Since this study was limited to one university and three departments of it, the findings lacked generalization.