This biographical essay by experimental psychologist Naomi Weisstein recounts the barriers she faced doing her scientific work during graduate school and in her early career. From denial of access to scientific instrumentation to psychological obstructions, she frames her experience as part of the "social-sexual" subjectification of women, especially in science. She credits the women's movement for her survival and growth in the profession.
Source
I scanned this text from the book Working it Out, an anthology of women professionals writing about their work and relationship to the women's movement. I borrowed this book in January 2024 from Sharon Traweek.
Full citation: Weisstein, Naomi. 1977. "How can a little girl like you teach a great big class of men?" the Chairman Said, and Other Adventures of a Woman in Science. In Sarah Ruddick and Pamela Daniels (Editors), Working it Out: 23 Women Writers, Artists, Scientists, and Scholars Talk About Their Lives and Work. Random House: New York.
Naomi Weisstein, "Weisstein 1977, "How can a little girl like you teach a great big class of men?"", contributed by Prerna Srigyan, STS Infrastructures, Platform for Experimental Collaborative Ethnography, last modified 7 February 2024, accessed 31 December 2024. https://stsinfrastructures.org/content/weisstein-1977-how-can-little-girl-you-teach-great-big-class-men
Critical Commentary
This biographical essay by experimental psychologist Naomi Weisstein recounts the barriers she faced doing her scientific work during graduate school and in her early career. From denial of access to scientific instrumentation to psychological obstructions, she frames her experience as part of the "social-sexual" subjectification of women, especially in science. She credits the women's movement for her survival and growth in the profession.