Role | Area | Estimated % female (SD) | Actual % female | Difference (estimated−actual) | |||||
Consultants/GPs | General practice | Estimated by | Male respondents | 56.83 (11.14) | 54 | 2.83a (1.35 to 4.31) | t=3.77 | P<0.001 | d=0.25 |
Female respondents | 59.83 (11.69) | 5.83a (4.19 to 7.47) | t=7.01 | P<0.001 | d=0.50 | ||||
Medicine | Estimated by | Male respondents | 42.76 (10.61) | 37 | 5.76 (4.35 to 7.17) | t=8.06 | P<0.001 | d=0.54 | |
Female respondents | 43.83 (11.72) | 6.83 (5.19 to 8.48) | t=8.21 | P<0.001 | d=0.58 | ||||
Surgery | Estimated by | Male respondents | 24.75 (10.62) | 14 | 10.75 (9.34 to 12.17) | t=15.02 | P<0.001 | d=1.01 | |
Female respondents | 25.26 (10.71) | 11.26 (9.76 to 12.76) | t=14.79 | P<0.001 | d=1.05 | ||||
Trainees | General practice | Estimated by | Male respondents | 62.28 (11.91) | 69 | −6.72b (−8.36 to −5.08) | t=−8.08 | P<0.001 | d=0.57 |
Female respondents | 64.93 (12.70) | −4.07b (−5.90 to −2.24) | t=−4.39 | P<0.001 | d=0.32 | ||||
Medicine | Estimated by | Male respondents | 53.15 (10.28) | 53 | 0.15 (−1.27 to 1.56) | t=0.20 | P=0.84 | d=0.01 | |
Female respondents | 54.55 (9.99) | 1.55 (0.12 to 2.99) | t=2.13 | P=0.03 | d=0.16 | ||||
Surgery | Estimated by | Male respondents | 37.36 (11.48) | 33 | 4.36 (2.78 to 5.94) | t=5.43 | P<0.001 | d=0.38 | |
Female respondents | 37.38 (12.40) | 4.38 (2.59 to 6.16) | t=4.84 | P<0.001 | d=0.35 | ||||
Medical school graduates | Estimated by | Male respondents | 59.75 (8.48) | 55 | 4.75 (3.58 to 5.92) | t=8.02 | P<0.001 | d=0.56 | |
Female respondents | 59.60 (11.13) | 4.60 (2.99 to 6.20) | t=5.66 | P<0.001 | d=0.41 |
Positive difference scores indicate overestimations of women’s representation.
Values in brackets are 95% CI around that difference score.
The t, p and d values indicate whether that difference score deviated significantly from 0 (one-sample t-test, effect size d; ie, whether estimations of women’s representation significantly differed from their true representation).
The superscripts ‘a’ and ‘b’ indicate the magnitude of male and female respondents’ overestimation/underestimations (ie, their mean deviations from the actual % female) for this area/role significantly differing from one another (t=2.68/2.14, p=0.01/.03, d=0.26/.22). For all other areas/roles (without a superscript), male and female respondents’ overestimations did not significantly differ from one another (all t≤1.37, p≥0.17). Actual percentages reflect statistics aligned to the time of data collection (obtained from refs 21 22).
GPs, general practitioners.