Women in optometry face greater job stress and lower satisfaction
Female optometrists in the United States report significantly worse professional well-being than their male colleagues, particularly in areas like stress, burnout, and workload control, even after accounting for differences in demographics and practice characteristics, according to a study.
Researchers used a modified 10-question Mini-Z survey to assess job satisfaction, stress, burnout, and related factors. The survey was completed by 1,424 optometrists, of whom 65% identified as female.
Compared to male optometrists, female optometrists were less likely to:
- Be White
- Be married
- Have children
- Earn more than $200,000 annually
- Own their practice
- Perform laser procedures
- Be in mid- to late-career stages
Even after adjusting for these differences, women were more likely to report:
- Higher job stress
- Greater burnout
- Less control over workload
- Inadequate time for documentation
- Value misalignment with leadership
- Lower team efficiency
- More time spent on electronic health records at home
Reference
Auer E, Marx K, Kaufman J, et al. Exploring gender differences in professional well-being among U.S. optometrists. Optom Vis Sci. 2025;doi: 10.1097/OPX.0000000000002270. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 40505036.
