PT  - JOURNAL ARTICLE
AU  - Wright, Katherine
AU  - Paladine, Heather
AU  - Moore, Miranda
AU  - Wheat, Santina
TI  - Exploring the gender composition of CERA survey authors
AID  - 10.1370/afm.22.s1.5920
DP  - 2024 Nov 20
TA  - The Annals of Family Medicine
PG  - 5920
VI  - 22
IP  - Supplement 1
4099  - http://www.annfammed.org/content/22/Supplement_1/5920.short
4100  - http://www.annfammed.org/content/22/Supplement_1/5920.full
SO  - Ann Fam Med2024 Nov 20; 22
AB  - Context: CERA (Council of Academic Family Medicine Educational Research Alliance) is a collaboration of the academic family medicine organizations (STFM, AFMRD, NAPCRG, and the ADFM) with the goal of facilitating and improving educational research in family medicine. CERA conducts approximately 5 surveys per year, including residency program directors, clerkship directors, department chairs, and general membership. Members of these organizations propose modules of 10 question sets to these surveys. Proposals are peer reviewed, and the top proposals are incorporated into an omnibus survey along with standardized demographic questions.Objective: This study sought to determine if there is a difference between survey module acceptance rates based on self-reported gender of the primary submitter.Study Design and Analysis: We conducted a bibliometric analysis to explore author characteristics and quantify dissemination efforts.Setting or Dataset: n=723 CERA survey module proposals submitted between June 2011 and July 2023. The following data were collected: submitter name, degree, level of mentorship needed, submission due date, submission decision and module topic. Gender and ethnicity data were obtained via CAFM membership rosters. Scholarly output was obtained via correspondence from the author and a Web of Science search.Population Studied: n=439 CERA survey module proposal submitters and authors.Outcome Measures: Chi square analyses were conducted to determine if the proportion of accepted proposals differs by gender. The exact binomial test was used to compare proportions of female authors to the benchmark proportion of women in STFM.Results: Overall, women submitted 66% (460/699) of CERA survey module proposals. Women authored 65% of accepted CERA surveys (157/241) with the highest proportion concentrated among Clerkship Surveys (73%, 40/55). The acceptance rate did not differ significantly by gender (χ2=0.072, df=1, p=0.789). Overall, 69.3% (167/241) of survey module authors went on to present or publish their findings; there were no significant differences in scholarly output by gender (χ2=1.520, df=1, p=0.218).Conclusions: These findings indicate the CERA survey module submission process has been successful in achieving comparable acceptance rates for male and female submitters. Future research exploring the impact of CERA survey mentors may add context to these findings.