Don’t tolerate bad behavior

Bad Behavior by a Veterinary Leader

I was saddened to learn today that one of the male veterinarians serving in Congress thought it was acceptable to use abusive and derogatory language toward a female member of congress. This happened on the steps of the Capitol building and he felt his language and behavior was justified because he did not agree with her political beliefs.

I’m angry today.  I realized that by supporting the AVMA-PAC, in hopes of lobbying for much needed debt relief for veterinarians, that I had indirectly supported someone who does not respect women.

It was important for me to write this post because of the strong and civil response that Rep. Ocasio-Cortez delivered on the House Floor.  As she stated,

“This issue is not about one incident.  It is cultural. It is a culture of lack of impunity, of accepting violence and violent language against women and an entire structure of power that supports that.”

As a female veterinarian, it is important for me to speak out directly against bad behavior that reflects poorly on our profession.

Bias exists even in a female dominated profession

This incident brought me back to a very interesting research article on the veterinary profession that my mom found and recently shared with me.  The researchers were interested in knowing whether increasing gender representation within a profession would lead to greater equality and decreasing bias.  Veterinary medicine was a perfect profession for them to study due to its changes in gender balance.

The Research

The study had two parts.  In the first part, a field survey was done of 1147 veterinary professionals, 66% of which were female.  Participants were asked how often they experienced gender discrimination at work and the extent to which they felt their overall competence and value was recognized by colleagues.  Not suprisingly, women were more likely than men to report experiencing discrimination at work. They were less likely than men to feel recognized among colleagues for their value and worth.  These findings were highly statistically significant on multivariate analysis.

In the second part of the study, 254 managers (122 male/132 female) actively involved in performance reviews in the veterinary field were recruited to participate in a study. The stated goal of the study was that it would help the British Veterinary Association understand the experience of managing others in the veterinary profession.  Gender was not mentioned in the description.  This was a randomized double-blind study where managers were given a performance summary of a veterinarian that was EXACTLY the same except for name, (Elizabeth or Mark).  The managers were asked, based on the information given, to assess competence and their anticipation of the admiration, or perceived value of the staff member by other team members.  The managers were then asked the salary they would advise for this employee and were asked to give the typical salaries for employees with similar levels of expertise for people at their practices.

After completing the first part of the study, they were then asked whether they thought gender discrimination was an issue in veterinary medicine.

Bias is worse when you don’t think you have it

Interestingly, male and female managers who reported that gender discrimination was NOT an issue in the veterinary medicine, were significantly MORE likely to demonstrate a systemic bias, evaluating the male employee as significantly more competent than the identical female employee.  The same finding was true when looking at whether they thought the employee would be valued by their team.  When looking at salary, managers who reported that gender discrimination was NOT an issue advised paying the “male” employee 2500-3500 more than the “female” employee.  The researchers noted that the theoretical “pay gap” in this study mirrors the actual veterinary pay gap in Britain.

The researchers summarized, “Those who believe gender bias is no longer an issue in their profession, or who generally underestimate its pervasiveness, may be at the highest risk for exhibiting such bias.”

Calling out Bad Behavior

This research highlights that just because you don’t think you are biased, doesn’t mean you are not.  Having a wife and two daughters does not mean that you understand the impact of your actions on others.

This research study also highlights that acknowleging bias is crucial to fighting gender discrimination.  A similar study on race could be exceptionally valuable for the veterinary profession in further confronting bias. 

Thus, I am asking today for us to acknowledge that there is still a problem with gender bias in veterinary medicine.  I am also asking that we hold our national leadership accountable.  Represenative Yoho’s behavior should be condemned publicly in print to the media by the AVMA.  While I believe we need representation in Congress to advocate for veterinarians, I will not support the AVMA PAC if it is complicit or silent in the face of bad behavior.

AVMA Contacts

Please take a minute today and send an email to the AVMA asking for them to take action in condeming Representative Yoho’s language.