VOLUME 30, ISSUE 2 • June 2026. Full issue »
Quantifying the enduring gender gap in Movement Disorders research
Women remain underrepresented in academic medicine, particularly in leadership roles. In neurology, women account for approximately 39% of authors but only 29% of senior authors — a disparity that has been well described, yet insufficiently explored within subspecialties such as Movement Disorders.
In this context, the Women in Movement Disorders SIG, together with colleagues Dr. Divyani Garg, Dr. Manon Auffret, and Dr. Zakiya Aldaajani, sought to better understand how trends in gender authorship might inform future initiatives to improve equity, mentorship, and leadership progression in movement disorders field. The study has been highlighted internationally through the presentation at the American Academy of Neurology meeting in Chicago, and coverage in Neurology Today reflecting the growing global attention to equity in neurology research.
We conducted a cross-sectional analysis of Movement Disorders publications from 20 high-impact neurology journals, alongside Movement Disorders and Movement Disorders Clinical Practice, comparing data from 2014 and 2024. In total, 1,666 articles comprising 14,953 authors were analyzed.
Our findings show that progress in gender representation in Movement Disorders research is real, but slow, uneven, and insufficient.
Women now represent approximately 41% of all authors and have achieved parity in first and second authorship positions (42%). Yet this momentum does not translate into leadership, where women represent only 25% of senior authors in 2024. While there has been some improvement over time, the gap remains striking, particularly in high-impact journals, where female senior authorship often falls below 30%. This pattern points to a persistent “leaky pipeline,” but more accurately, a failure of progression. Women are entering and contributing to the field in substantial numbers, yet are not advancing proportionately into senior, decision-making roles. The attrition between first and senior authorship remains a critical and under-addressed challenge.
Strengthening mentorship is important, but active sponsorship by senior academics, ensuring women are promoted into senior and corresponding author roles may help bridge this gap. Mid-career stages, where attrition appears most pronounced, represent a key opportunity for action.
Journals and academic institutions also play an important role in shaping more equitable environments. In our analysis, only 5 of 16 journals (30%) had a woman as Editor-in-Chief. Promoting diversity within editorial boards, ensuring fair and transparent peer review processes, and improving transparency in authorship data are important steps toward more inclusive practices.
At the same time, disparities in access to high-impact research opportunities should be addressed. Although we saw a modest increase in female senior authorship (25% in 2014 to 29% in 2024) over time, women remain underrepresented in high-impact outputs such as clinical trials and original research, limiting pathways to academic recognition. Invited articles, such as editorials and reviews, remain dominated by men. Women accounted for only 18% of senior authors in editorials in 2024 (19% in 2014), and representation in review articles has declined over the past decade, from 30% in 2014 to 24% in 2024.
While ensuring equitable access to funding, principal investigator roles, and leadership in multicentre studies are critical steps toward meaningful change, career progression for women may remain fraught with challenges unless academic career pathways provide flexibility for factors such as family and caregiving responsibilities.
Initiatives such as the MDS LEAP program or efforts led by the Women in Movement Disorders Special Interest Group can help drive change. By fostering networks, advocating for equity, and promoting leadership opportunities, such initiatives can help reshape the academic landscape.
Overall, while progress is evident, it remains uneven. Moving forward, the focus should shift to implementing actionable strategies that support progression from contributor to leader. The opportunity now is not only to recognize the gap, but to close it.
References
- https://neurologytoday.aan.com/doi/10.1212/netod-blogs.10000024
- Garg D, Aldaajani Z, Auffret M, Capato T, Picillo M, Trenkwalder C, Ali L, Armstrong MJ, Bruno M, Bruno V, Minakawa EN, Kamel WA, Fox S, Olszewska DA. Gender Gap in Movement Disorders Research: A Decade of Uneven Progress in Academic Authorship, abstract number 3052, AAN meeting, Chicago, USA, 2026
- D. Garg, Z. Aldaajani, M. Auffret, T. Capato, M. Picillo, C. Trenkwalder, L. Ali, M. Armstrong, M. Bruno, V. Bruno, E. Minakawa, W. Kamel, S. Fox, D. Olszewska. A Cross-sectional Gender Gap Meta-analysis in Movement Disorders Publishing Field [abstract]. Mov Disord. 2025; 40 (suppl 1). https://www.mdsabstracts.org/abstract/a-cross-sectional-gender-gap-meta-analysis-in-movement-disorders-publishing-field/. Accessed May 11, 2026.
Read more Moving Along: