Male dominance in the engineering field is not something intrinsic to the profession itself, on the contrary, it is a socio-cultural phenomenon

but: there are always more boys than girls studying sciences and mathematics in secondary schools and universities (Craker (2006) )
- because: males are better at subjects like physics and mathematics, which are crucial to success in the engineering field, than females
  - because: men have better attitudes toward science than women, and that men are more apt to continue studying science (Weinburgh (1998) )
    - but: it is nothing natural nor inevitable to the study of sciences and engineering
      - because: attitudes toward science change with exposure to science, which may be related to the quality of that exposure (Gogolin (1992) )
  - but: comparing to men, women are generally discouraged from pursuing engineering profession as a career (Phipps (2002) )
    - because: women graduate students are often dissuaded from pursuing certain areas of science, such as mathematical, theoretical investigations or experimental works (Wilson (1992) )
      - because: engineering is generally regarded as a masculine activity, a form of employment that strips women of their feminine qualities (Phipps (2002) )
        because: general public always mis-conceive engineering as activity involving manual labor, which indeed is more about using one's intelligent (Phipps (2002) )
    - because: the pre-dominance of the old boy's network within the industry poses a great disadvantage to women in pursuing a career in engineering
      - because: there is often lack of female role model in institutes of engineering and technology, as more female professors will lead to more female students
because: the perception of engineering as "male-identified" contributes to the female minority in the field (Phipps (2002) )
- because: the perception of male-dominance in the engineering field further re-enforces itself - a vicious circle
  - because: female finds it deeply unattractive to devote to a field which is dominated by male
but: men have natural advantage over women favoring them in pursuing a successful career in engineering
- because: engineering makes extraordinary demands on availability in time & location, raises conflicts with the family responsibilities that is borne by women (Matyas (1992) )
  - because: e.g. the period when successful engineering careers are usually forged corresponds to the period of childbearing (Matyas (1992) )
    - but: women's role as housewives in a family is not a necessary conclusion of male/female biological differences, but a cultural contingency
but: male is generally more interested in engineering related subjects such as computer, science and technology by nature
- but: boys are often better acquainted with computers than girls (technolog.it.umn.edu)
  - because: many children familiarize themselves with computers, regarding themes such as combat, war, and male oriented sports, which are more appealing to boys (technolog.it.umn.edu)

Craker, Dana E. (2006). "Attitudes toward Science of Students Enrolled in Introductory Level Science Courses at UW-La Crosse" in UW-L Journal of Undergraduate Research IX (http://www.uwlax.edu/urc/JUR-online/PDF/2006/craker.pdf)

Gogolin, L. and Swartz, F. (1992). A quantitative and qualitative inquiry into the attitudes toward science of non science college students. Journal of Research in Science Teaching 29 (5), 487–504.

Matyas, M. Lakes, et. al. (1992). Science and Engineering Programs: On Target for Women? National Academic Press: Washington, D.C.

Phipps, Alison. (2002). "Engineering Women: The 'Gendering' of Professional Identities" in The International Journal of Engineering Education, Vol. 18, no. 4, pp. 409-414. (http://www.ijee.dit.ie/articles/Vol18-4/IJEE1290.pdf)

Weinburgh, M. (1998). Gender, Ethnicity, and Grade Level as Predictors of Middle School Students’ Attitudes Toward Science. Georgia State University. (www.ed.psu.edu/CI/Journals/1998AETS/s5_1_weinburgh.rtf)

Wilson, Linda S. (1992). "Testimony during the Oversight Hearing on Sexual Harassment in Non-Traditional Occupations", United States House of Representatives, Committee on Education and Labor, Washington, DC, June 25.