‘Women are expected to do better than men to be acknowledged as their equals.’ Julia Puczyńska talks about women in AI

What made you decide to pursue a research career in IT research?

AI solutions were needed in my area of research and I wanted to be the one to implement them.

Briefly, what is your current research at IDEAS NCBR about?

My research concerns the spread of disinformation, i.e. how and why disinformation is forwarded, and how this spread can be limited.

Do you think there is a gender disproportion in the number of AI/ML experts? What could be the reason for so few women to decide to pursue a scientific career in this area?

There is a gender disproportion. And many women are discouraged by sexism, apparent during almost every stage of education. Prejudices about what every girl should and shouldn’t be interested in. There is little encouragement for girls to try and pursue career in IT or mathematics in general. Women are expected to do better than men to be acknowledged as their equals.

There tends to be an even stronger pressure to choose between having kids or pursuing a career in male-dominated fields. Because men are more often in positions of power, they tend to introduce other men into their field – either as friends or as their protégés – rather than women. Men are not encouraged to acknowledge how privileged they are, or understand what discrimination looks like and why it’s important to fight it.

What, in your opinion, could change that situation?

Initiatives that encourage children, teens and young adults to actually pursue what they want. Not ‘gendering’ everything. Allowing and encouraging all interested kids to play with toy cars or to do ballet. Celebrating important and often forgotten role models. Allowing minorities to be represented in the media. Encouraging people from different groups to learn at least a little bit about gender inequality.

How can women contribute to the development of this area of science?

First of all, to be clear – women do not need to contribute anything special or ‘more’ to any area to be worthy of being included.

Secondly – many women already contributed to mathematics, very long ago, like Ada Lovelace or Mary Jackson! However, due to the Matilda effect, they are often neglected.

Are there any related cultural factors that can encourage women to pursue their careers in AI/ML?

Plenty! To name a few: different role models in the media – so that everyone can find someone inspiring; acknowledging the importance of paternity leave, as well as maternity leave, because having a child is not just about giving birth; popularizing knowledge about gender inequality.

If you were to point out one character trait that describes a good scientist, what would it be?

A scientist should be passionate. Deeply devoted to doing good science.

Julia Puczyńska is a PhD student at IDEAS NCBR and at the Doctoral School of Information and Biomedical Technologies at the Institutes of the Polish Academy of Sciences. She is involved in combating disinformation and analyzing social media. A graduate in psychology and criminology, she has worked on topics related to memory, facial recognition, and lie detection. She leads the “Zgłoś trolla” [Report a Troll] project in cooperation with DC9 and the Geremek Foundation.