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You have to work twice as hard as a woman to show that you are competent. Experiences, opportunities and workplace gender harassment for Sport and Exercise Medicine practitioners working in elite sport in Australia
  1. Sallie M Cowan1,2,
  2. Michael Girdwood1,2,
  3. Melissa Haberfield1,2,
  4. Andrea Britt Mosler1,2,
  5. Andrea M Bruder1,2,
  6. Kate Mahony3,
  7. Kirsty Forsdike4,
  8. Nicola McNeil4,
  9. Kate A Beerworth5,
  10. Miranda Menaspa6,
  11. Phillipa Inge7,
  12. Sue White7,
  13. Rachel Harris8,9,
  14. Adam Castricum10,
  15. Kay M Crossley1
  1. 1 La Trobe Sport and Exercise Medicine Research Centre, La Trobe University Faculty of Health Sciences, Bundoora, Victoria, Australia
  2. 2 La Trobe University, Australian IOC Research Centre, Bundoora, Victoria, Australia
  3. 3 Sydney Swans, Paddington, New South Wales, Australia
  4. 4 La Trobe University La Trobe Business School, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
  5. 5 Cricket Australia, Albion, Queensland, Australia
  6. 6 Australian Institute of Sport, Belconnen, Australian Capital Territory, Australia
  7. 7 Victorian Institute of Sport, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
  8. 8 Female Performance and Health Initiative, Australian Institute of Sport, Belconnen, Australian Capital Territory, Australia
  9. 9 Perth Orthopaedic and Sports Medicine Research Institute, West Perth, Western Australia, Australia
  10. 10 Axis Sports Medicine Specialists, Queenstown, New Zealand
  1. Correspondence to Dr Sallie M Cowan; sallie.cowan{at}latrobe.edu.au

Abstract

Objective Our aim was to investigate (1) gender representation, (2) opportunities and training and (3) harassment experiences in Sport and Exercise Medicine (SEM) practitioners working in elite sport in Australia.

Methods All titled Australian Physiotherapy Association Sport and Exercise Physiotherapists, SEM Physicians and Registrars and doctors and physiotherapists (SEM practitioners) currently/previously/aspiring to work in Australian elite sport were invited to participate in a bespoke online survey and the Gender Experiences Questionnaire.

Results For SEM practitioners currently working in elite sport, men worked more paid hours each week (mean difference (MD) 12.2 (95% CI 5.5 to 19.0)) and more paid weeks each year (MD 6.8 (95% CI 1.2 to 12.5)). Women SEM practitioners (both currently and previously) were more likely than men to work with women, rather than men athletes. All women SEM practitioners experienced significantly more gender harassment, infantilisation, work/family policing and gender policing than men. For SEM practitioners (both current and previous), there were no gender differences in how practitioners found out about or were recruited to their elite sports roles. Women were four times more likely than men to report that their gender or sexual orientation influenced their opportunities in elite sport. Most roles were not advertised with direct approach being the most common method of job recruitment.

Conclusion Women SEM practitioners currently working in elite sport worked less paid hours per week and less paid weeks per year. All SEM practitioners were appointed to positions without established procedures, and there were significant challenges for women SEM practitioners in the elite sport workplace with women facing considerably more gender harassment than men.

  • Sport
  • Women in sport
  • Sexual harassment

Data availability statement

Data are available upon reasonable request.

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Data availability statement

Data are available upon reasonable request.

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Footnotes

  • X @PhysioHill, @m_girdwood, @melhabphysio, @AndreaBMosler, @AndreaBruder, @kirstyforsdike, @nickyjane1205, @kaymcrossley

  • Contributors SMC, ABM, KM and KMC designed the study. All authors helped to disseminate the survey. MG, SMC and KMC analysed the data. SMC drafted the manuscript, and all coauthors provided feedback and revised the manuscript critically for important intellectual content. All authors gave final approval of the version to be published. All authors agreed to be accountable for all aspects of the work. All authors agreed to ensure that questions related to the accuracy or integrity of any part of the work have been appropriately investigated and resolved. SMC is the guarantor.

  • Funding This work was supported by Grant from The Australian Physiotherapy Association. The funders of the study had no role in the study design, data collection, data analysis, data interpretation, writing of the report or the decision to submit the article for publication.

  • Competing interests None declared.

  • Patient and public involvement Patients and/or the public were involved in the design, conduct, reporting or dissemination plans of this research. Refer to the Methods section for further details.

  • Provenance and peer review Not commissioned; externally peer reviewed.

  • Supplemental material This content has been supplied by the author(s). It has not been vetted by BMJ Publishing Group Limited (BMJ) and may not have been peer-reviewed. Any opinions or recommendations discussed are solely those of the author(s) and are not endorsed by BMJ. BMJ disclaims all liability and responsibility arising from any reliance placed on the content. Where the content includes any translated material, BMJ does not warrant the accuracy and reliability of the translations (including but not limited to local regulations, clinical guidelines, terminology, drug names and drug dosages), and is not responsible for any error and/or omissions arising from translation and adaptation or otherwise.