Information Technology Reference
In-Depth Information
experiences with computers affect women and ethnic minorities sig
nificantly more than white males. Although experiences of women
and men may be similar during elementary school in the United
States, the American Association of University Women (AAUW) re
ports in their study
TechSavy
that girls are often discouraged from
using technology during the middleschool years, and these experi
ences are compounded in the years that follow. Some issues involve
access; others include matters of selfimage, public images of com
puter professionals as “geeks,” antisocial behaviors of middle
school boys, perceptions of computing as “hacking,” and lack of
encouragement.
At the college level, Allan Fisher and Jane Margolis reported on
an indepth analysis of computer science majors in their study,
Unlocking the Clubhouse: The Carnegie Mellon Experience
, pub
lished in book form by MIT Press in 2002 and summarized in the
SIGCSE Bulletin inroads
in June 2002. In considering why some stu
dents leave a computer science major, the researchers reported that,
for women, a drop in selfconfidence often
precedes
a drop in inter
est. The researchers continue, “This drop in confidence is usually dri
ven not by low academic performance, but by students comparing
themselves unfavorably with others . . . .” Interestingly, these re
searchers discovered “women's exit statements that they are “just not
interested” to be a misleading endpoint to a complex process . . . .”
Although the complex social issues for women in computing ex
tend well beyond access to computing equipment and the Web, ac
cess can be a factor. Recall our case example in which the family's
computer was placed in their son's room. This type of subtle con
straint is certainly not uncommon. Although the placement of a
computer may reflect a long series of events and family dynamics
going back years, the end result adds a level of difficulty to the
daughter's computer access. She may feel that she has less access,
even if in principle she is supposed to have equal access with her
brother. Policies and practices like this one often may appear on the
surface as providing all groups with equal access, but the effects ul
timately give priority to one group over others.
One important consequence of such subtle circumstances re
garding access and social pressures arises in the context of who par
ticipates in computing degree programs and the computeroriented
workforce. Computing has a strong history as a wellpaying career
area that can fit nicely with various individual professional and per
