What’s Missing? Gaps in Gender Data Collection and Evidence from the Geological Survey of Italy

The analysis of documents and datasets aimed at assessing the current state of gender equality at the Geological Survey of Italy highlights several critical gaps: (i) gender variability is rarely considered in gender data collection; (ii) domestic workload is not quantified in official reports; and (iii) efforts to increase women’s representation in STEM are not matched by comparable initiatives aimed at making careers traditionally perceived as feminine more attractive to men. This imbalance reinforces widespread gender stereotypes that distinguish between “first-tier” careers - also accessible to women but still largely male-dominated - and “second-tier” careers.

This contribution seeks to highlight these gaps and presents the results of a survey administered to employees of the Geological Survey of Italy. The survey pursues multiple objectives: collecting data on gender variability, quantifying gender imbalance in domestic work and assessing whether gender disparities also affect fieldwork activities.

Preliminary results suggest that this type of survey, developed with the support of social scientists and administered at regular intervals in public universities, offices and research institutes, could represent an effective tool for addressing these issues. The dissemination of questionnaires and the sharing of results would help quantify gender variability and disparities while simultaneously raising awareness, thereby laying the groundwork for identifying concrete solutions to problems of which we are not always aware. As previously observed for data on female leadership, the systematic quantification of these aspects may ultimately enable the adoption of targeted measures aimed at reducing gender disparities.