During my career I’ve often thought it seemed that more women than men worked in the field of communications. Why are women attracted to jobs in communications? Is it the hours, the pay, the other wonderful workers in the field? And was my gender observation correct? These questions piqued my interest and ultimately led to a research study I conducted as part of my Master’s degree.

The Gender Gap
Turns out, my observation accurately reflected the state of the industry. The field of communications has been at the forefront of gender equality for many years. Since the late 1970s women have been attracted to the field of communications in great numbers. In recent years this trend continues with the percentage of women employees in nearly every area of communications increasing year after year. In fact, the U.S. Department of Labor shows that the percentage of women in occupations including public relations, advertising, writing and design all hold more than 50 percent of the total jobs in those fields.

The Study
The focus of my research project was to determine why individuals are drawn to careers in the field of communications and what makes the industry unique in its ability to show gender balance or, in some instances, a tendency to attract more women than men.

The Results
Respondents overwhelmingly felt that they were drawn to the field because they had the natural skills and ability to do the work. Although this discovery was true for both genders, additional data indicated that differences existed within each gender set. For instance, women were more influenced by advancement opportunities than were men. Men on the other hand were more influenced by pay.

Once into a career in communications, money and work/life balance attributes tended to matter more than when first starting in the career. Two attributes that were more influential over time for women were leadership opportunities and the ability to use education or training. However, these same attributes decreased in influence for men over time. This could suggest that women have found the field of communications to be an occupation that encourages leadership roles for women. It also corresponds with the fact that more women tended to have background degrees in communications, at 40 percent of the total female sample compared to only 30 percent of the male sample, whereas men reported having higher rates of other degrees including business and art or design.

One consistent attribute that was influential to the majority of respondents when both entering the field and in deciding to stay in the field was the ability to have a stimulating and challenging work environment. This high rating corresponds with the reported high level of job satisfaction— 90 percent of all respondents—and relatively high tenure, with 64 percent of individuals reporting having been in the field for more than 10 years.

In designing the study, special consideration was given to looking for links that past researchers have found between women and career choice motivations. These included the influence of family and children in career decisions. Although a smaller percentage of women in the study had children than did the men, women reported a higher rate of influence from family circumstances in career decisions. In fact, 38 percent of women reported that family circumstances were influential in the decision to work in the field of communications as compared to only 20 percent of men. This finding mimics the results from previous related research and suggests that the field of communications may foster environments that are accommodating of the needs of workers with families.

Now What?
Like my own curiosity, others seemed to have been intrigued by the issue of gender and its influence in communications. The online survey I used to gather data for this project resulted in a surprising 21 percent response rate, showing an elevated interest and a willingness to learn more about the topic.

So what can we do with this knowledge? I think we can take pride in knowing that communications is a field that embraces talents, training and leadership opportunities for women. Whether male or female, communications offers a stimulating environment with high job satisfaction. Perhaps this study can act as a conversation point for those in the field to feel more comfortable talking about  ender and the role it plays in the workplace. Or just as a topic of discussion around the water cooler to help us understand one another a little bit better.

Diana Lillicrap is co-founder of 5 by 5 Design. She may be reached at
diana@5by5design.com.