Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men
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- Create Date：2021-04-06 13:51:21
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Caroline Criado Pérez
- ISBN：1419735217
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Summary
Data is fundamental to the modern world。 From economic development， to healthcare， to education and public policy， we rely on numbers to allocate resources and make crucial decisions。 But because so much data fails to take into account gender， because it treats men as the default and women as atypical， bias and discrimination are baked into our systems。 And women pay tremendous costs for this bias， in time， money， and often with their lives。
Celebrated feminist advocate Caroline Criado Perez investigates the shocking root cause of gender inequality and research in Invisible Women， diving into women’s lives at home， the workplace， the public square， the doctor’s office， and more。 Built on hundreds of studies in the US， the UK， and around the world， and written with energy， wit， and sparkling intelligence， this is a groundbreaking， unforgettable exposé that will change the way you look at the world。
Celebrated feminist advocate Caroline Criado Perez investigates the shocking root cause of gender inequality and research in Invisible Women， diving into women’s lives at home， the workplace， the public square， the doctor’s office， and more。 Built on hundreds of studies in the US， the UK， and around the world， and written with energy， wit， and sparkling intelligence， this is a groundbreaking， unforgettable exposé that will change the way you look at the world。
Reviews
Manoj Chandrashekar
，
An damning revelation about how much women and data about women are excluded in so many fields from city planning， politics to even medicine and research。 Caroline touches on so many points about how this is done many times because of ignorance， but mostly because of overwhelming institutional sexism。Definitely a book that makes you think。
Daniel Frank
，
Invisible Women raises awareness to a tremendously important issue and is directionally true。Policy makers often fail to think about/observe/analyze how policies/products/things actually affect people， especially those with different traits。 Policies/products/things are often created based on an ideal average that is not reflective of the broader population。 Policies/products/things are often created based on data that is biased and not reflective of the population。 What gets created/talked abou Invisible Women raises awareness to a tremendously important issue and is directionally true。Policy makers often fail to think about/observe/analyze how policies/products/things actually affect people， especially those with different traits。 Policies/products/things are often created based on an ideal average that is not reflective of the broader population。 Policies/products/things are often created based on data that is biased and not reflective of the population。 What gets created/talked about is greatly influenced by the demographics of people in various power structures。The failure to adequately recognize and grasp this problem makes the world a worse place for everyone。 This sucks！ Which makes me feel sad that this book doesn't actually try to grapple with this issue at all。 For posterity's sake， I am writing this review in 2021。 Caroline Criado Pérez is a sex realist and views gender as a descriptive categorization resulting in many people calling her a TERF and to be boycotted。 I am curious to check back in the future to see how this internal feminism-trans schism plays out。 。。。more
Amanda
，
This book was so interesting！ It really went into a lot of interesting subjects that I've always just taken at face value and thought nothing of （such as "Why is the line for the women's bathroom always so long？"）。 I wouldn't say I'm a feminist looking for a conspiracy theory to fight the patriarchy with， rather just someone who is interested in research and thinking about the world。 And this book was a fantastic way to learn about things。 I listened to the audiobook， but also got a hard copy to This book was so interesting！ It really went into a lot of interesting subjects that I've always just taken at face value and thought nothing of （such as "Why is the line for the women's bathroom always so long？"）。 I wouldn't say I'm a feminist looking for a conspiracy theory to fight the patriarchy with， rather just someone who is interested in research and thinking about the world。 And this book was a fantastic way to learn about things。 I listened to the audiobook， but also got a hard copy to re-read because there were so many factoids I wanted to write down but I was often listening while doing my 'unpaid labour' （something the book really gets into depth about）。 Highly recommend for anyone。 。。。more
Amanda
，
The goodreads synopsis for this book is spot on。 This isn’t conspiracy theory or angry feminism。 It is about the appalling gaps in our knowledge that affect women in shocking ways， but also about ways we can remedy this and why it’s so important to do so。
Zachary Machardy
，
Definitely worth the read - chock-full of great analysis on the systematic underrepresentation of women in data and decision making in fields as far ranging as civil engineering， politics， health， and tech， among other things。My only caveat is that I listened to this on audiobook， and it wasn't a great fit for me。 It's narrated by the author， and she does a great job， but trying to balance running or housework with listening to the book left me a bit overwhelmed by the wealth of anecdotes and st Definitely worth the read - chock-full of great analysis on the systematic underrepresentation of women in data and decision making in fields as far ranging as civil engineering， politics， health， and tech， among other things。My only caveat is that I listened to this on audiobook， and it wasn't a great fit for me。 It's narrated by the author， and she does a great job， but trying to balance running or housework with listening to the book left me a bit overwhelmed by the wealth of anecdotes and statistics in every chapter - if you are on the fence， I'd recommend picking this up in print or as an ebook to help some of the finer details stick。 。。。more
Christian
，
There’s no denying the data。 Or rather， an overwhelming lack of data is the authors central thesis: that there is a gender data gap in all aspects of modern life。 Medicine， science， and working and professional life are all serious offenders， of course， which Perez addresses throughout。 I found the less well known （see， ignored） areas where this gender gap exists to be the most interesting。 Technology， economics， politics， civil society， engineering are equally to blame。
Ana Maria
，
One the most interesting books I've read this year。 I had no idea about a lot of the facts in the book。 It is sad that still "men" features are considered by default in many domains。I think it's a book that should be read by everyone not only by women。Totally recommend it One the most interesting books I've read this year。 I had no idea about a lot of the facts in the book。 It is sad that still "men" features are considered by default in many domains。I think it's a book that should be read by everyone not only by women。Totally recommend it 。。。more
R
，
This book made me so angry before bed because it is that good
Vishnu Rajanikanth
，
If according to you a just and progressive world that empowers every human reach her/his full potential and prosper is worthy purpose for our society。。 read this book to see how far away we are from such a state。。 And if you are a man be prepared for several uncomfortable truths about how we are systematically excluding & relegating our women and girls to a secondary status that delivers such bad outcomes for them。 Yet somehow they motor along keeping humanity afloat。。。You can't help but be amaz If according to you a just and progressive world that empowers every human reach her/his full potential and prosper is worthy purpose for our society。。 read this book to see how far away we are from such a state。。 And if you are a man be prepared for several uncomfortable truths about how we are systematically excluding & relegating our women and girls to a secondary status that delivers such bad outcomes for them。 Yet somehow they motor along keeping humanity afloat。。。You can't help but be amazed at the work（ intellectual and emotional） that must have gone into putting this together。。 hats off to Caroline Perez。。 。。。more
Sara Handrigan
，
Was a very good read related to gender equality。
Megan Gafvert
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Important info and some really infuriating stats， but felt a bit repetitive
Anbu Manoharan
，
This was a heavy book。 There are so many topics covered， a lot of them I did not know about。 I partially wish that I was still ignorant， I could be blissfully assuming that I have an almost fair life。 For example， I wish I did not know that clinical trials are mostly done on men （the initial eligibility questionnaire generally filters out a lot of women）。 Even if there are women， the results are not gender dis-aggregated to see if there are noticeable patterns based on gender。 The dosage and eff This was a heavy book。 There are so many topics covered， a lot of them I did not know about。 I partially wish that I was still ignorant， I could be blissfully assuming that I have an almost fair life。 For example， I wish I did not know that clinical trials are mostly done on men （the initial eligibility questionnaire generally filters out a lot of women）。 Even if there are women， the results are not gender dis-aggregated to see if there are noticeable patterns based on gender。 The dosage and effects on women are rarely considered before approval for every one。Looking forward to some light reading for a while！ 。。。more
Carol Chen
，
I give books five stars unless they fundamentally change my perception of the world in some way。 This book is so important that I want to scream from a rooftop for everyone to read it。 It details all the aspects of our society that is designed by male-centric thinking， resulting from a lack of data （and a further lack of willingness to collect the data） on women。 This includes all the expected aspects of male-default thinking， like rigid workplace rules and gendered expectations of caretaking， b I give books five stars unless they fundamentally change my perception of the world in some way。 This book is so important that I want to scream from a rooftop for everyone to read it。 It details all the aspects of our society that is designed by male-centric thinking， resulting from a lack of data （and a further lack of willingness to collect the data） on women。 This includes all the expected aspects of male-default thinking， like rigid workplace rules and gendered expectations of caretaking， but this also sheds light on many unexpected aspects， like how snow-shoveling routes and security on public transports disadvantage women。 Some of these facts， like how women had to risk sexual assault to travel at night because the bus stops are not equipped with lights， makes me genuinely rage。 I had always brushed aside advice to be careful in some countries/cities/areas because I thought I was "brave" and "an independent modern woman who is not constrained by stereotypes"， but what I have ignored that this is simply statistically sound advice for many women。 I just had the privilege of growing up in safe countries and even when I travel to lesser safe ones （Medellín or Marakkesh or Mexico City）， I tend to stay within the tourist zones， which are the safest。 So， it is not so much about my bravery or my independence， but really just about the areas that I travelled in。 This is not an individual issue， but a societal one。What really surprised me， and angered me， was how much， in every country， women take on more unpaid care-taking tasks than men。 And how this unpaid labour gap makes women poorer， less healthy， and less valued in society - because this labour is not even recognized。 While I have read the basic feminist theories - Beauvoir， Irigaray and Hanisch， and thus was familiar with the fact that male was the default subject， this book illustrated this claim in a concrete and undeniable way。 I am definitely going to seek out more feminist literature！ 。。。more
Josie
，
Everyone needs to read this book。It’s so eye opening and affirming。 It’s a book that raises your blood pressure and makes the feminist continue to be angry and wanting to bring about equality。As society we need to increase women’s visibility and inclusion。 We need to create a society where 50% of us are taken into actual consideration without bias。 This isn’t just about money， it’s about every element of life。
Enhee Tsoodol
，
Асуудлыг “хялбарчлах” нэрийдлээр халхавчилж эмэгтэйчүүдийг аливаа шийдвэрийн гадна үлдээсээр байгаад харамсаж байна。 It is a pity women still excluded from many of the decisions in the interest of simplicity。 Lets refuse to accept that data pertaining to women are just too complicated to measure。 #exposingthegenderdatagap
Filipa Machado
，
Um livro importantíssimo para todos。 Leva-mos a olhar o mundo de outras perspectivas， a pensar se tem “que ser assim”。 Além dos gritantes “atropelos” que as mulheres sofrem em várias áreas， levou-me a pensar que tantas vezes achamos que outros países são mais “desenvolvidos” que o nosso （Portugal） e ficou claro que em algumas áreas somos melhores。
K。
，
A must-read for the message this data-driven， thoroughly researched and thought-provoking book provides （though it's not always the easiest to wade through， it's worth sticking with it）: if the data used in research and design included women more consistently， the world might look a lot different， better， and more equitable for women。 Here's just part of one example:"On the face of it， it may seem fair and equitable to accord male and female public toilets the same amount of floor space -- and h A must-read for the message this data-driven， thoroughly researched and thought-provoking book provides （though it's not always the easiest to wade through， it's worth sticking with it）: if the data used in research and design included women more consistently， the world might look a lot different， better， and more equitable for women。 Here's just part of one example:"On the face of it， it may seem fair and equitable to accord male and female public toilets the same amount of floor space -- and historically， this is the way it has been done。 50/50 division of floor space has even been formalized in plumbing codes。 However， if a male toilet has both cubicles and urinals， the number of people who can relieve themselves at once is far higher per square foot of floors space in the male bathroom than in the female bathroom。 Suddenly， equal floor space isn't so equal。But even if male and female toilets had an equal number of stalls， the issue wouldn't be resolved， because women take up to 2。3 times as long as men to use the toilet。 Women make up the majority of the elderly and disabled， two groups that will tend to need more time in the toilet。 Women are also more likely to be accompanied by children， as well as disabled and older people。 Then there's the 20-25% of women of childbearing age who may be on their period at any one time， and therefore needing to change a tampon or sanitary pad。 Women may also in any case require more trips to the bathroom than men: pregnancy significantly reduces bladder capacity， and women are eight times more likely to suffer from urinary-tract infections than men， which again increases the frequency with which a toilet visit is needed。It gets a lot worse。。。 according to the UN， one in three women lack access to safe toilets and WaterAid reports that girls and women collectively spend 97 billion hours a year finding a safe place to relieve themselves。。。 This affects women's paid labor。。。 [for] women [who] work as market vendors， no public toilets means they have nowhere to go during the day。。。" 。。。more
Linnea Holmberg
，
Ögonöppnande och blodtryckshöjande。
Kayleigh
，
Loved/hated this book。 Whether you think we don’t need feminism， that women these days have it easy。。。 or you don’t， this book is for you。
Deepa
，
Brilliant and insightful book。
Meghan
，
Infuriating。 Criado Perez writes very compellingly with all of her evidence of data gaps in all areas of life。 What is appalling is that so many governments now have this information but are unwilling to do anything with it。 In architecture， politics， safety standards， medicine and academia， men are the default with even lab rats being exclusively male。 All we have to do is listen to women and include them in decision making discussions。 Representation is so important—to stop killing women and c Infuriating。 Criado Perez writes very compellingly with all of her evidence of data gaps in all areas of life。 What is appalling is that so many governments now have this information but are unwilling to do anything with it。 In architecture， politics， safety standards， medicine and academia， men are the default with even lab rats being exclusively male。 All we have to do is listen to women and include them in decision making discussions。 Representation is so important—to stop killing women and children due to bad data。 Women’s rights are human rights。 Every CEO， leader and policy maker should be required to read this book to see the world differently and to change the “default” from male。 。。。more
Kat
，
Incredibly well researched and eye opening。 I was enthralled， while screaming inside at all the injustice and plain stupidity。I’d love to see an analysis of the COVID pandemic by her。
David Gilani
，
I wasn't sure whether a book just about missing data was going to keep my attention， even for a maths nerd like myself， but this is an absolutely superb read。 When we say 'human' we don't mean 'human' we mean 'man'。 The default status that men are privileged to enjoy is depicted more clearly in this book than any other book about feminism that I've read so far。 It's also just so wonderfully diverse in the topics of inequality that it covers。 I have a new found appreciation for the societal purpo I wasn't sure whether a book just about missing data was going to keep my attention， even for a maths nerd like myself， but this is an absolutely superb read。 When we say 'human' we don't mean 'human' we mean 'man'。 The default status that men are privileged to enjoy is depicted more clearly in this book than any other book about feminism that I've read so far。 It's also just so wonderfully diverse in the topics of inequality that it covers。 I have a new found appreciation for the societal purpose of pavements， public toilets， ovens， safe cars， democracy。 And a new found scepticism that they are working for all of us in society。 。。。more
Arianna
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 "Basta chiedere alle donne。"È questa la frase finale del libro， che racchiude perfettamente il suo messaggio。Il gender data gap nel 2020 non è più accettabile， perché le lacune informative che ne conseguono， causano a loro volta ingiustizie in qualsiasi ambito， da quello familiare a quello lavorativo， da quello medico a quello politico， solo per citarne alcuni。Perché "il mondo che è stato creato è un mondo a cui le donne non sono granché adatte"， perché il mondo è davvero costruito a misura di m "Basta chiedere alle donne。"È questa la frase finale del libro， che racchiude perfettamente il suo messaggio。Il gender data gap nel 2020 non è più accettabile， perché le lacune informative che ne conseguono， causano a loro volta ingiustizie in qualsiasi ambito， da quello familiare a quello lavorativo， da quello medico a quello politico， solo per citarne alcuni。Perché "il mondo che è stato creato è un mondo a cui le donne non sono granché adatte"， perché il mondo è davvero costruito a misura di maschio， uomo bianco normodotato eterosessuale。E proprio gli uomini in primis farebbero bene a leggerlo。Perché per noi donne è frustrante vedere nero su bianco ciò che ci succede tutti i giorni， ma per gli uomini sarebbe davvero illuminante。 。。。more
Amparo
，
Based on the assumption that there are exactly two genders and two sexes， this book provides overwhelming evidence for the ways in which nearly every society on earth privileges men （the default） over women （the other）。The book touches lightly on other factors that harm women as well， including racial minority status and socioeconomic status。 But a glaring omission--indeed， it is erasure--is any discussion of transgender women and men， as well as nonbinary/other genders， intersex people， and any Based on the assumption that there are exactly two genders and two sexes， this book provides overwhelming evidence for the ways in which nearly every society on earth privileges men （the default） over women （the other）。The book touches lightly on other factors that harm women as well， including racial minority status and socioeconomic status。 But a glaring omission--indeed， it is erasure--is any discussion of transgender women and men， as well as nonbinary/other genders， intersex people， and any other person who is not a "man，" that is， a cis man。 While it's true that societies largely do operate on a gender/sex binary， the oppression that this results in does not only fall on cis women。 I am dismayed that a book like this would be published in 2019 without a full discussion of intersectionality。This is a problem with the book's premise， that improving the availability of data on women's experiences can lead to better policy and thereby more equitable outcomes。 While that's true in some of the examples cited by the author， is the lack of data really the big problem？ I fear that even if we were swimming in data showing that "the other" were disadvantaged in every way， policy would not change so long as "the default" were in charge， because the source of the unwillingness to collect and use the data in the first place is misogyny， transphobia， etc。 Why bother to make women's lives better if you hate women？ if you hate anyone who is not a "man"--someone who presents as male and performs sufficient masculinity？ It's easy to throw out the rational comfort of data with this irrational attitude。 。。。more
Claire Baxter
，
This is an incredibly frustrating book， but everyone needs to read it。 Unfortunately part of the frustration is that the people who need to read it the most probably won't because it is just about "women's issues" which they think don't affect them。 But they actually do。 Anyone involved in decision-making， whether at a government level or research or company or product design should be made to read this and also reflect on what other data gaps there might be （disability for example）。 This is an incredibly frustrating book， but everyone needs to read it。 Unfortunately part of the frustration is that the people who need to read it the most probably won't because it is just about "women's issues" which they think don't affect them。 But they actually do。 Anyone involved in decision-making， whether at a government level or research or company or product design should be made to read this and also reflect on what other data gaps there might be （disability for example）。 。。。more
Marta
，
I really really wish more men would read this
Manik Patil
，
Caroline Criado Pérez has a well-researched， thought provoking， data-driven investigation on unconscious bias in Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men。Great lessons for leading companies and their CEOs （and leaders） to ensure that they have processes/systems in place to avoid the bias。 Examples are set by trailblazers such as Google to deliver on Gender equality。 From 2012 onwards， Google has delivered a Gender Pay Gap Report。 Find all about it here。 Other large companies （esp i Caroline Criado Pérez has a well-researched， thought provoking， data-driven investigation on unconscious bias in Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men。Great lessons for leading companies and their CEOs （and leaders） to ensure that they have processes/systems in place to avoid the bias。 Examples are set by trailblazers such as Google to deliver on Gender equality。 From 2012 onwards， Google has delivered a Gender Pay Gap Report。 Find all about it here。 Other large companies （esp in Industrial， Utilities and Financial Services companies） must follow suit。 Product design teams in Consumer Staples and Consumer Discretionary sectors have already taken into consideration the gender difference in their data。 Now， it is the time for rest of the world。 。。。more
Jowita Mazurkiewicz
，
W pracy Caroline Criado Pérez cenię przekrojowość， zarówno pod względem tematów， jak i miejsc， sprawne poruszanie się w obszarach， o których na co dzień nawet bym nie pomyślała， a które tworzą rzeczywistość wokół nas。 Autorka postawiła przed sobą karkołomne zadanie - opisać to， czego nie ma， zamanifestować brak i jego ogromne konsekwencje。 To zakreślenie pola do działania， do dalszych poszukiwań， apel o większą uważność， o sluchanie， do jasnej cholery， kobiet。 Myślę， że jej się udało。To jedna z W pracy Caroline Criado Pérez cenię przekrojowość， zarówno pod względem tematów， jak i miejsc， sprawne poruszanie się w obszarach， o których na co dzień nawet bym nie pomyślała， a które tworzą rzeczywistość wokół nas。 Autorka postawiła przed sobą karkołomne zadanie - opisać to， czego nie ma， zamanifestować brak i jego ogromne konsekwencje。 To zakreślenie pola do działania， do dalszych poszukiwań， apel o większą uważność， o sluchanie， do jasnej cholery， kobiet。 Myślę， że jej się udało。To jedna z tych książek， które dają niezliczone argumenty w dyskusjach i warto ją przeczytać， mimo że jej forma nie jest szczególnie porywająca， a przywoływanie danych wydaje się niekiedy tendencyjne czy efektowne （zapewne nie jest to błąd autorki， tylko właśnie brak kompletnych danych）。Przy okazji lektury "Niewidzialnych kobiet" bardzo dużo myślało mi się o tym， że mężczyźni w moim otoczeniu rzadko czują potrzebę sięgania po taką literaturę - jakby biały przywilej czy klasowy przywilej były w jakiś sposób ważniejsze niż męski。 Chciałabym， żeby sprawa kobiet była sprawą ludzi。 I żeby feministyczne książki nie były tylko "women's drama"。 O to też apeluje Perez i chwała jej za to。 。。。more
Courtney
，