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13 J. Paralegal Educ. & Prac. 21 (1997)
Gender Issues in the Paralegal Profession and in Paralegal Education

handle is hein.journals/jpep13 and id is 29 raw text is: Gender Issues in the Paralegal Profession and in Paralegal Education LYNNE D. DAHLBORG* I. INTRODUCTION The paralegal profession, approximately thirty years old, has established itself as a new and growing profession that primarily attracts women.' This fact gives rise to the three issues that will be explored in this article. First, what are the implications of this profession being dominated by females? Because the paralegal profession is a relatively new field, there has been little research with regard to this question. However, sociologists have conducted extensive research related to other female-dominated professions, women working within male-dominated professions, and to women coming to dominate professions once dominated by men. The medical and legal professions, which include doctors, nurses, and lawyers, have provided insights into the dynamics of women in professions with varying attraction for men and women. The second issue focuses on what attracts women and men to the paralegal profession. What are the ramifications of the choice of profession for each gender, particularly for women? This issue is important to educators because paralegal educators, as one of the first sources of professional information about paralegals, can help students perceive their chosen career in a broader social and economic context. This perception may also help the paralegal career mature into a profession that is respected. Finally, what are the implications for classroom instruction when educators teach classes filled with women who will join a female- dominated profession? Some of the research into classroom dynamics and its implications for paralegal educators is explored below. * Lynne D. Dahlborg is an associate professor and program director in the Paralegal Studies Program, Department of Education and Human Services at Suffolk University in Boston, Massachusetts. She received her J.D. from Suffolk University. The author wishes to express her appreciation to the editors of this article, whose help was invaluable. 1 In this article, the terms paralegal and legal assistant are used interchangeably, with paralegal being the most frequent term. Although legal assistant is the term that has been preferred by the American Bar Association, the author believes that paralegal is the more commonly used term.

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