Female economists interrupted more often than male counterparts #Habits

The New York Times reports this week a study is out showing that women economists get interrupted with 12% more questions when they're giving presentations at conferences that men do and that the questions are often rude. I have no doubt this is true. And yes, there is sexism. I just want to give you some tips in case this happens to you. If you're interrupted giving a presentation, my first reaction is great. That means someone is actually listening. It also means that if I answer their question, I know I'm saying something interesting to them and possibly others too. The third thing is you get credit for being spontaneous and thinking on your feet when you can answer someone's question. So I'm not excusing offensive or sexist behavior, but if you're giving a presentation, someone asking you questions challenging you can be the best thing ever. Because the biggest problem of all with most presentations is they're so boring, everybody forgets what you said.