Technology Licensing Officers Fail Women Inventors

Under the headline “How Universities Fail Women Inventors,” Scott Shane, a professor at Case Western, writes inBusinessWeek (12/28/11) that “researchers have posited several explanations “for women creating fewer spinoffs than men, another factor that draws less attention, but is equally important, is “the attitudes of technology licensing officers on university campuses.” Shane and several colleagues conducted an experiment and found that “licensing officers were significantly more likely to report that they would dissuade the female inventor from starting a company.” He concludes, “This finding means that universities will have to change the attitudes of technology licensing officers to increase the number of female founders of spinoff companies.”