How to ensure equal recognition of women in research: 7 tips for fair authorship
In this article, based on a recently published research, Maria Figueroa-Armijos, Associate Professor at EDHEC, and one of her co-authors George C. Banks, Department Chair and Professor at UNC Charlotte’s Belk College of Business, wrap up in 7 key actions how equal recognition of women in research could be ensured.
In the academic world, authorship is far from being a simple formality. It is a key factor for career development, funding opportunity and recognition. Still, the process of attributing authorship is often influenced by informal power dynamics, and most of the time, this power struggle ends up disadvantaging women.
This is confirmed by the findings of a recent meta-analysis (1) that looked at the experiences of 3,565 researchers across 12 countries. The study found that women are more often subject to unfair authorship practices, such as being excluded from authorship or placed lower in the author order.
There are three key types of issues regarding authorship.
The first one is a lack of transparency. There is a grey area in naming and ordering authors that could go as far as to lead to ghost authorship (exclusion of contributors) or gift authorship (inclusion of non-contributors).
The second issue is the absence of a common standard, as there is no universally accepted framework regarding author naming and ordering.
And finally, a lack of policies and support tools: most universities do not have formal policies to resolve authorship disputes.
As a result, women, especially early-career researchers, are often assigned roles that are perceived as less prestigious.
How can we ensure equal recognition of women in research? Here are 7 tips:
1. Open conversations from the start
The first step to improve authorship practices starts even before the research project begins. Researchers and scientists should create an open environment that clears the way for clear conversations about expectations, concerns and changing circumstances. This is important because the study shows that only 12% of researchers consistently discuss authorship roles at the beginning of a project, while women reported feeling less comfortable discussing it.
Since gender and power dynamics may still play a role here, it is important to ensure that both men and women take responsibility to create open and transparent conversations around authorship. Another solution is to encourage all authors to create an Authorship Contribution Disclosure.
2. Resolving disputes through policies
Unfortunately, there is still a significant lack of policies when it comes to intellectual credit and resolving authorship conflicts. The study shows that 76% of research institutions do not have structured dispute resolution processes. This creates an environment where researchers, especially women, experience more disagreements regarding being named as author and authorship order.
Advocating for university-wide policies that provide guidance to fair authorship practices and mechanisms to resolve disputes is essential to prevent any bias.
3. Department level rules to reduce gift authorship
A lot can be done below the university level, at the department level. Gift authorship often happens when senior faculty members are being added to research papers without having made any meaningful contributions. And it is a fairly common practice: more than two thirds (68%) of respondents have witnessed instances of gift authorship.
This is why department chairs are particularly important to ensure that authorship policies are being enforced. First, senior researchers should take the responsibility and lead by example by discouraging unethical practices. Second, training can be implemented at the department level to ensure norms and expectations are understood, and to create a safe space where faculty and students can discuss authorship practices.
4. Empower the next generations of researchers
Graduate students and early-career researchers, particularly women, are not only unaware of their authorship rights but they also fear speaking up due to potential career repercussions. To ensure fair authorship practices, especially towards women, empowering young students with authorship ethics programs is key.
Training that involves graduate students or early-career researchers is important to create shared knowledge about authorship and empower them to foster open dialogues for the next generations of researchers.
5. Order naming and Authorship agreements
Beyond author naming, author order is also important. Last-minute changes to authorship order can create tension among research collaborators, and it happens more than is perhaps expected. One researcher shared an experience where a co-author unexpectedly changed the authorship order just before submission.
Formal authorship agreements that outline roles and order from the start can help avoid such conflicts. These should be flexible enough to evolve in case of changing contributions, but should remain firm in ensuring proper recognition.
6. Keep records of contributions to tackle ghost authorship
Authorship agreements not only help align expectations between researchers, they can also make women feel more comfortable when discussing authorship. Without thorough documentation, contributions can easily be downplayed or even overlooked. The findings indicate that the majority (55%) of researchers have observed ghost authorship, where deserving contributors were excluded from recognition.
Keeping detailed records, such as meeting notes, logs, and contribution summaries, can be crucial to ensure fair credit and can also serve as evidence in case of disputes.
7. Speaking up and raising awareness
Speaking about unethical authorship practices can be intimidating, especially for young researchers. However, support from the institution can make a real difference. This is true for one study participant who managed to secure fairer authorship credit after seeking help from their department. This story should not be an exception. Speaking up can truly shift the balance. If it cannot restore past injustices, it can still prevent future ones from emerging.
Mentors, department heads, or even ethics committees can be called to intervene in cases of unfair treatment. Accordingly, if a scholar does not feel comfortable discussing their concerns with the project lead or other collaborators, they can always reach out to other trusted figures within the university.
Gender unfairness in authorship won’t disappear overnight, but these seven strategies can help create a more ethical and equitable academic culture.
References
(1) Women’s and Men’s Authorship Experiences: A Prospective Meta-Analysis - Banks, G. C., Rasmussen, L. M., Tonidandel, S., Pollack, J. M., Hausfeld, M. M., Williams, C., Albritton, B. H., Allen, J. A., Bastardoz, N., Batchelor, J. H., Bennett, A. A., Briker, R., Castille, C. M., De Jong, B. A., Demeter, E., DeSimone, J. A., Field, J. G., Figueroa-Armijos, M., Fernanda Garcia, M., … Yang, T. (2025). Journal of Management, 0(0). https://doi.org/10.1177/01492063251315701
