Improving introductory economics course content and delivery improves outcomes for women

Abstract

The presentation of economics in introductory courses has been highlighted as potentially exacerbating the underrepresentation of women in economics. The authors study the impact of a gender-neutral change in content and instruction in introductory economics courses intended to increase student engagement. By implementing meaningful applied problems and structured group work, their intervention focuses on the students’ perceptions of “what” economics is and “how” economics is used. Using institutional data from 8,727 students over nine semesters, they find that the intervention improved women’s grades relative to men’s in both Introductory Microeconomics and Macroeconomics and eliminated underperformance by women in Introductory Macroeconomics relative to men at baseline. These effects are evidence that course content and delivery impact the experiences and outcomes of female students in economics education.