LSE Philosophy, Logic and Scientific Method aims to adopt policies and put procedures in place that encourage better representation of women and other underrepresented groups in philosophy.

Policies

From 2014-15, LSE Philosophy, Logic and Scientific Method subscribes to the following elements of the British Philosophical Association/Society for Women in Philosophy (BPA/SWIP) UK’s Good Practice Scheme, aimed at improving the representation of women in philosophy:

Actions Taken

The actions we have taken from 2015 include:

  • Unconscious Bias Training. Training sessions on unconscious bias have been attended by all members of the department, including faculty, administrative staff, and LSE teaching fellows. Similar sessions are being arranged for graduate students.
  • Anonymous Recruiting. When recruiting, we now request anonymous writing samples from candidates.
  • Seminar Survey. We are developing an anonymous survey to assess whether the members of the department would like to make any changes to the way that our seminars are conducted. After carrying out this survey we will meet to consider the survey results.
  • Course Reading Lists. When a reading list is compiled, the teacher-responsible will discuss with others in the department or draw on resources like the UPDirectory or the APA Diversity Resources as needed for suggestions as to how women and other underrepresented philosophers might be naturally included.
  • Awareness Leaflet. New members of staff will be provided with a leaflet that (among other things) states who can be contacted in cases of sexual harassment.
  • Sexual Harassment Reading Group. A discussion group has been arranged on the article “Stop thinking so much about ‘Sexual Harassment'” by Jennifer Saul, in order to raise awareness of sexual harassment and to open a dialogue on the topic.

Find out more about the BPA/SWIP Good Practice Scheme.