Fifty percent of respondents to a recent Women In Optometry poll shared that they believe that women are under-represented in leadership in the optometry profession. Another 44 percent of those who responded were neutral about women in leadership, and just 6 percent felt that women are well-represented in optometric leadership.

Respondents cited family responsibilities not leaving time for leadership positions as a major reason that they believe women are under-represented. Many others noted that women are less likely to ask for promotions and this may impact their leadership roles, as well as that businesses aren't ready to hire women in executive leadership positions.

WO compares these results to obstacles to female leadership by the Pew Research Center. Several of the major reasons cited by Pew Research Center did overlap with our respondents, however, Pew Research Center marked that its top reason was that women were held at a higher standard than men, while that was not a major reason among most of WO respondents.

Click here to access the full story from Women In Optometry.