From Witches to COVID: The Feminization of Medicine

The New Clergy part II

Medicine is not an exact science; it's more like applied engineering. In medicine, a correlation coefficient of 30% to 40% is often considered sufficient, while in fields like chemistry, anything below 95% would get you laughed out of the room. This leaves significant room for uncertainty, “guesstimates” and case-by-case judgement calls. How that uncertainty is handled is influenced by the personality traits of practitioners.

The Gendered Traits Shaping Medicine’s Evolution

The rate of female physicians in the U.S has gone from 7% in 1970 to 40% today. The impact of this shift, subtle in normal times, became starkly apparent during the COVID-19 pandemic. Especially, as discussed in part I, after having elevated doctors to a societal pedestal as the new clergy.

Extensive cross-cultural research reveals that women consistently score higher in Neuroticism, Agreeableness, Warmth, Openness to Feelings, and Orderliness (which is an aspect of Conscientiousness), favouring structure and rule-fol…