Bichos raros: Género y subjetividades en el campo de la investigación en matemáticas en Chile

Abstract

We explored the construction of subjectivities in the research field of mathematics in Chile. It is based on 11 focus groups - seven mixed and four with women - with mathematicians from different regions of the country. The results illuminate two intertwined dimensions of this phenomenon. On the one hand, we distinguish three senses of the notion of strangeness that articulate the construction of subjectivities of women mathematicians: disciplinary, statistical, and normative. On the other hand, we contribute to understanding how these forms of strangeness are linked to the reproduction of sexist discourses that make them invisible as occupants of prestigious positions, while they make them visible according to stereotyped forms of femininity. Using the theory of ambivalent sexism, we suggest that these discourses are articulated in benevolent and hostile ways around three stereotypical figures: helplessness, motherhood, and object of male desire. We propose that ambiguous forms of expression contribute to perpetuating the sexist structures of the field. These findings contribute to the analysis of the research field of mathematics from a gender perspective