Entrepreneurs who need funding often turn to the venture capital industry. In Sweden, women entrepreneurs represent a third of the total number of entrepreneurs. Meanwhile, women-owned businesses only raise one percent of the total venture capital in Sweden. Previous research has attempted to explain why male entrepreneurs raise more venture capital than women entrepreneurs, however, more research is needed to understand the circumstances for success. This leads to the study’s aim which is to create an understanding of what makes women entrepreneurs successful when raising venture capital, and how they do it, and the research questions, which are How do drivers enable women entrepreneurs to raise venture capital? How do women entrepreneurs overcome the different challenges that they meet when raising venture capital? To reach the study’s aim and answer the research questions a qualitative method was used. Semi-structured interviews with ten respondents, who were women entrepreneurs who had raised venture capital, were conducted. This study contributes new perspectives to the already existing field of entrepreneurship and venture capital, by providing a new framework showing how women entrepreneurs overcome challenges and use drivers for raising venture capital successfully. The results show how the respondents use their entrepreneurial, risk-prone, and highly self-confident personality in their relationship with investors and other entrepreneurs, to successfully raise venture capital. The findings in this study suggest that governmental agencies should provide more network possibilities with venture capitalist firms and investors for women entrepreneurs.

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This dissertation brings new causal evidence on three topics in education and health. In the first chapter, I study how in-utero exposure to floods affects the education and health outcomes of individuals. I focus on the 1982-1983 El Niño event in Peru to exploit a natural experiment. I assess the impacts of plausible and exogenous in-utero exposure to excess rainfall on education achievement at adulthood. I find that individuals exposed in-utero to the 1982-1983 El Niño floods, have less chances to have completed primary education at adulthood with different effects by place of residence and gender. In the second chapter, I study how a low-cost face-to-face intervention, that exposed senior-year high school students to female role models affects career preferences and reduces the gender preference gap for STEM programs in Peru in a randomized controlled trial. I find that exposure to role models increased preference for engineering majors only for those girls in the top math ability quartile; and that the effect was stronger for those who reside geographically close to the role models' university. Finally, in the third chapter, I investigate how to optimally allocate students to academic programs. I evaluate external signals of ability transmitted to students by academic probation rules in Peru using a regression discontinuity design. The analysis suggests that academic probation is associated with higher drop-out rates from programs and a deterioration in subsequent academic performance. I conclude that in a society with predominant gender norms, signals of ability could aid to the retention of only qualified students in selected programs with further implications on aggregate productivity and the allocation of talent. / Doctor of Philosophy / This study sought to understand how exposure to different adverse events in life affects individuals' decision choices. I focus on a developing country, Peru, where returns to education are high and investment in human capital can improve individuals' lives. In the first chapter, I study how prenatal exposure to extreme weather conditions (i.e. the 1982-1983 El Niño floods in Peru) affected the education achievement of those individuals when they were older. This adverse and unpredictable event, affecting the evolution of babies while in-utero, during the nine months of gestation, reduced the probability that the exposed individual had completed primary education. In the second chapter, I implement an experiment in the field to understand the effect of the exposure to role models on the reduction of the gender gap in careers that are male dominated such as Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM). The gender gap in STEM fields is a major cause of concern for policymakers around the world since it not only contributes to talent misallocation but also critically deepens gender-based socioeconomic inequalities. I find that a brief exposure to role models of about 20 minutes increases preferences for engineering majors of high talented female high school students, and I attribute this to inspiration rather than information mechanisms. The evidence suggests that, inspired by role models, high math ability girls had increased self-confidence for succeeding in engineering majors. Finally, in the third chapter I investigate the misallocation of students to academic programs and more specifically the effect of one university policy related to academic probation on attrition rates and subsequent academic performance. Academic probation is a warning received by students failing to make substantial academic progress required for graduation. By receiving academic probation, students get additional information of their capabilities to successfully complete a degree. The analysis suggests that academic probation is associated with higher drop-out rates from programs and a deterioration in subsequent academic performance aiding to the retention of only qualified students in selected fields of study.

Thesis advisor: Matthias von Davier / The transition of major international large-scale assessments (ILSAs) from paper- to computer-based assessments has made process data increasingly available. While process data is potentially valuable for analyzing students’ test-taking behaviors, it also raises ethical concerns and involves considerable costs. This prompts the question: “Does process data add value to the analysis of ILSA data?” In response, this dissertation explores the utility of process data through three studies. Study 1 proposes a multiple-group hierarchical speed-accuracy-revisits model to examine the gender differences in mathematics ability, response speed, revisit propensity, and the relationships among them. The model’s flexibility allows it to be applied in diverse contexts to investigate group differences in test-taking behaviors and achievement beyond gender. Study 2 addresses the overparameterization challenge in ILSA scaling by proposing a new approach: adding process variables to the usual contextual variables and replacing principal component analysis with variable selection for latent regression modeling. The findings show that process variables consistently improved measurement precision; using Lasso, random forests, and ultimately gradient boosting for variable selection achieved or surpassed the measurement precision of the conventional approach but with considerably fewer covariates. Integrating variable selection and process data yielded the highest measurement precision while achieving parsimony, demonstrating the effectiveness of the proposed method. Study 3 investigates students’ test-taking behaviors in the context of girls consistently outperforming boys on average across countries and assessments. Three types of test-taking behaviors were identified through latent class analysis: “Rapid”, “Challenged”, and “Engaged”. Using Bolck-Croon-Hagenaars and three-step methods reveals that girls in the “Rapid” class outperformed boys on average in all countries, while there were no significant gender differences in the “Engaged” class in three of the four countries. The gender gap in reading achievement may diminish to a mild to moderate extent if boys were to behave like girls, highlighting the importance of addressing disengagement issues in ILSAs. Collectively, these three papers advance the use of process data and demonstrate its value for analyzing and reporting results of ILSA data. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2024. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Education.

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La presente investigación tiene como objetivo central identificar cuáles son los principales determinantes que influyen en la brecha de género en la inclusión financiera del Perú durante 2016. En tal sentido, se utiliza la Encuesta Nacional de Demanda de Servicios Financieros y Nivel de Cultura Financiera (ENIF, 2016), en la cual se encuestó a 6,303 individuos seleccionados al azar, formando una muestra representativa de todo el Perú, y se realiza la estimación de modelos de elección discreta (logit y probit). Además, se calculan los impactos marginales de las variables socioeconómicas sobre la posesión de cuentas de ahorro y tarjetas de crédito tanto para varones como mujeres. Los resultados muestran que el nivel educativo es la variable que genera un mayor aumento en la probabilidad de acceder al sistema financiero aunque no de manera muy diferenciada entre géneros; mientras que la posesión de activos, relación de parentesco, residencia y estado civil generan impactos menores en el género femenino. / The main objective of this research is to identify the main determinants that influence the gender gap in the financial inclusion of Peru during 2016. In this sense, the National Survey of Demand for Financial Services and Level of Financial Culture (ENIF, 2016) is used, in which 6,303 randomly selected individuals were surveyed, forming a representative sample of Peru. The estimation of discrete choice models (logit and probit) is made. In addition, the marginal impacts of socioeconomic variables on the possession of savings accounts and credit cards for both men and women are calculated. The results show that the educational level is the variable that generates a greater increase in the probability of accessing the financial system although not in a very differentiated way between genders; while the possession of assets, kinship relationship, residence and marital status generate minor impacts on the female gender. / Trabajo de investigación

Previous studies have shown that many students have misconceptions about basic concepts in physics which persist after instruction. It has been concluded that one of the challenges lies in the teaching methodology. To address this, Georgia State University (GSU) has begun teaching studio algebra-based physics. Although many institutions have implemented studio physics, most have done so in calculus-based sequences. Additionally, the unique environment of GSU’s population as a diverse, urban research institution is considered. The effectiveness of the studio approach for this demographic in an algebra-based introductory physics course was assessed. This five-semester pilot study presents demographic survey results and compares the results of student pre- and post-tests using the Force Concept Inventory (FCI). FCI results show that 1) the studio approach yields higher learning gains than the conventional course, 2) there are significant performance differences among ethnic groups, and 3) a gender gaps exists regardless of instructional method.

Currently, between 21.9 and 23 million veterans have served in the United States armed forces. Of those, 2 million are women, and of those, only 6.5% use the Veterans Health Administration system. These females often suffer from physical and mental health disorders, and overall impaired quality of life (QOL), rendering their healthcare needs complex. Seeking, and providing care in this specialty area may become overwhelming not only for the women seeking the care, but also for healthcare systems that are unfamiliar with the specific needs of this population. A retrospective medical records review was completed of 51 female veterans between the ages of 40 and 60 years, and who attended a women’s health specialty clinic in a women’s health center in the VA healthcare system. This center provides comprehensive women’s health services to female veterans. By attending this center, female veterans are having most if not all of their healthcare needs met in one location. Some of the services provided at the center include: primary care; gynecology; other gender specific health care needs; mental health care; and social assistance among other issues that may be associated with the overall QOL and depression. Despite this study having a small sample size (n = 51), the participants were ethnically diverse: White (52.9%); African American (29.4%); Hispanic/Latino (15.7%); and Asian/Pacific Islander (2%). The overall results of this study reveal that female veterans who attend this clinic, have significantly lower baseline scores for QOL when compared to a North American population reference value. Means and standard deviation for total Menopause Rating Scale (MRS) score were; (n = 51, M = 21.2, SD = 9.2) compared to the North American women population reference values (n = 1,376, M = 9.1, SD = 7.6), z = 9.41, p < .0001, cohens d = 1.31. These results were significantly lower for all MRS subsets. The higher the means and standard deviation, the lower the QOL. A paired sample t-test indicated significant improvement in QOL after treatment in QOL (t = 7.80, p < .0001), and depression levels (t = 3.74, p < .0001) among female veterans attending the women’s health specialty clinic. Forward stepwise multiple linear regression models were fit to explore the association between the following variables and the outcomes of QOL and depression levels: low socioeconomic status (SES); number of deliveries; years of service; and military sexual trauma (MST). The only predictor that appeared to be significantly associated with higher MRS scores at baseline was a history of MST (β = .363; t = 2.44; p = 0.02). Higher MRS scores can be interpreted as lower QOL among female veterans. Despite the complexities and unique needs of female veterans, the findings of this study suggest that timely, comprehensive and gender specific healthcare can significantly improve overall QOL and depression levels. In addition, further studies are need to assess what other variables may have a direct association with QOL, depression levels, and overall health of female veterans.

Försvarsmakten uppnår inte sina jämställdhetsmålsättningar med en ökad andel kvinnliga officerare på högre chefsnivåer. Detta trots att styrdokument och policys finns, är välkända och etablerade i organisationen. Samtliga militära yrken har varit öppna för kvinnor i mer än 30 år, fortfarande är dock antalet kvinnor som valt att göra karriär på högre nivå idag lågt.  Denna kvalitativa intervjustudie syftar till att utforska och förstå hur kvinnliga officerare ser på valet att göra karriär – om det är ett aktivt val, ett incitament eller en konsekvens av något. Upplever kvinnorna några hinder eller motstånd, i organisationen eller hos dem själva? Resultatet visar att kvinnliga officerare som finns i Försvarsmakten idag är nöjda med sina befattningar på olika nivåer och de val som de gjort för att nå dit. Motstånd och hinder upplevs inte i den omfattning som tidigare forskning beskriver. Chefers stöd är starkt och avgörande, organisationen har erbjudit möjligheter för kvinnorna att utvecklas och välja karriär efter vilja, förutsättningar och intressen. Däremot lockar inte det högre chefskapet kvinnliga officerare i den omfattning som Försvarsmakten eftersträvar. En diskrepans finns mellan uppsatta mål och de val som kvinnorna gör.  Kvinnor som söker sig till militära organisationer har inte siktet inställt på karriär. Kvinnor behövs på alla nivåer men för att få fler att söka sig till högre befattningar behövs tidig uppmuntran och målbilder. Stödet för- och möjligheter att som officer och kvinna göra karriär som chef, finns väl etablerat i organisationen idag.

Women tend to be underrepresented among cyclists in many Western cities. The literature on gender and cycling identifies two main reasons to explain the gender gap: differences in risk aversion, and unequally shared domestic responsibilities. While urban cycling policies often focus on developing cycling infrastructures to encourage cycling, this research argues that such approach is not sufficient to achieve diversity among cyclists. The case study of Lyon, in France, provides a good example, as increased cycling infrastructures over the past few years have not prevented the existing gender gap among cyclists in the city. This research uses qualitative methods and feminist theories to investigate the reasons for the lower representation of women among cyclists in Lyon. It focuses especially on the role of the gendered meanings attached to cycling in explaining the gender gap, i.e., how cycling is perceived, interpreted, and appropriated by women. Female cyclists, non-cyclists, and members of cycling associations have thus been interviewed to understand their motivations and barriers to cycling. Numerous aspects impacting negatively cycling levels among women have been raised throughout the interviews, some not directly related to cycling infrastructures. These include a lack of representation of women among cyclists, restraining social norms, and gender inequalities in general. These findings underscore the importance to take into consideration, besides cycling infrastructures, social and cultural factors that may encourage or not women to cycle in urban cycling policies to close the gender gap.