[iDC] Where have all the women gone?

[Hughie]

Is posting the only ?best? form of "participation"??

Why the assumption that making noise on-list is the only thing a list member 
can "contribute"?   Whatever happened to the power behind the throne??

Cheers,
Hughie

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Ellis Godard" <ellis.godard at csun.edu>
To: <trebor at thing.net>; "'IDC list'" <idc at bbs.thing.net>
Sent: Wednesday, July 12, 2006 10:52 AM
Subject: RE: [iDC] Where have all the women gone?


Trebor asked:
> Women and men are fairly evenly subscribed here
> but it is clear that men post more often than women. How can
> we entice continued, and more extensive participation?

I'm asking these, not arguing them, and only raise them because it was
suggested by an implicit assumption in your question, but...

If women post/participate less often than men, why would you want to entice
them to participate more extensively? Do you want women to behave like men?
Do they need to? Want to? Multiple voices might benefit the group, but would
extensive participation necessarily benefit the participators?

If someone is socialized to participate less, and/or is within a social or
technological environment that discourages their participation, are there
concommittant strengths and strategies that person has that equips them for
effective communication (or communication effective to their needs, wants,
expectations, contributions, etc.) through less communication, and/or
resistance or weaknesses that make more extensive communication? Is
artificial enticement to women (or any peripheral group) to participate more
necessarily to their individual advantage?

Curious,
Eg



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