Hidden in Plain Sight: A Meta-Analysis of the Gender-Innovation Relationship

Are gender and gender diversity related to innovation, and if so, how? Prior research does not offer clear-cut answers to this question. To address it, we theorize several hypotheses and perform a comprehensive meta-analysis. We show that while women appear to be disadvantaged when it comes to innovation, gender diverse teams outperform homogenous teams in innovation outcomes. We also show that gender diversity is particularly beneficial when it comes to green innovations. By contrast, gender diversity is not significantly associated with innovation inputs.