Rheumatology speaker introductions suggest gender bias: an evaluation of the 2022 American college of rheumatology convergence meeting.

Abstract

Despite gender parity in the rheumatology workforce, biases may persist in speaker introductions at professional rheumatology meetings, as observed in other specialties. We analyzed speaker introductions at an international rheumatology conference to assess the relationship between speaker and moderator gender on professional address. We analyzed video-archived speaker introductions from the 2022 American College of Rheumatology (ACR) Convergence meeting. Two reviewers coded speaker and moderator gender and form of address. We defined a "strict address" as use of "Doctor" or "Professor" and "lenient address" as full name with a professional title. Fisher's exact tests and logistic regression analyses examined associations between gender and forms of address. We analyzed 355 speakers (52.7% female, 47.3% male). Female speakers were less likely to receive a strict address by male moderators than male speakers (42.1% versus 57.9%, χ²=4.20, p = 0.030). In logistic regression models after adjusting for moderator gender, male speakers were 1.8 times more likely to receive a strict address versus female speakers [odds ratio (OR) 1.76; 95% confidence interval (CI) (1.10, 2.82)]. Male moderators were 64% less likely to provide a strict address than female moderators [OR 0.46; 95% CI (0.29, 0.73)], adjusting for speaker gender. At an international rheumatology meeting, male (versus female) speakers received formal introductions more frequently, and male (versus female) moderators were less likely to provide them. Our results suggest persistent gender bias in speaker introductions, highlighting a need for standardized practices for session moderators to improve gender equity.