Women and Men in Computer Science

2014 ◽  
pp. 18-35
Author(s):  
Jill Denner ◽  
Eloy Ortiz ◽  
Linda Werner
Keyword(s):  
Computer Science ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Introductory Computer Science ◽  
The Us ◽  
Game Features ◽  
Game Console ◽  
Puzzle Games ◽  
Survey Responses ◽  
Gaming Motivations

Playing digital games is described as a pathway to computer science (CS) classes and majors, but not all gamers want to study CS. The goal of this chapter is to explore which gaming motivations and practices are most strongly related to an interest in studying computer science, and whether the connection between gaming and computer science is similar for men and women. The data are from 545 male and female gamers taking an introductory computer science class at one of 15 community colleges in the US. Survey responses were analyzed to provide a picture of what, how often, and why they play, and interviews from 39 of the most avid gamers were analyzed for why and how they play. The results show that, on average, men play more frequently than women, and there are gender differences in the type of games they like to play and why they play them. However, playing more frequently was not associated with greater interest in studying CS for either gender. Interest in CS was highest among men who were motivated to play in order to increase skills, be with friends, connect with the game features, and by the art or graphics. However, CS interest was highest among women who consider themselves to be more serious gamers, play racing and puzzle games, play on a game console, and are motivated by fun, relaxation and social interaction. The results can inform efforts to increase the number of women that pursue computer science. The chapter concludes with recommendations for future research on how game play and interest in CS are related.

Women and Men in Computer Science

Gamification ◽  
2015 ◽  
pp. 1830-1847
Author(s):  
Jill Denner ◽  
Eloy Ortiz ◽  
Linda Werner
Keyword(s):  
Computer Science ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Introductory Computer Science ◽  
The Us ◽  
Game Features ◽  
Game Console ◽  
Puzzle Games ◽  
Survey Responses ◽  
Gaming Motivations

Playing digital games is described as a pathway to computer science (CS) classes and majors, but not all gamers want to study CS. The goal of this chapter is to explore which gaming motivations and practices are most strongly related to an interest in studying computer science, and whether the connection between gaming and computer science is similar for men and women. The data are from 545 male and female gamers taking an introductory computer science class at one of 15 community colleges in the US. Survey responses were analyzed to provide a picture of what, how often, and why they play, and interviews from 39 of the most avid gamers were analyzed for why and how they play. The results show that, on average, men play more frequently than women, and there are gender differences in the type of games they like to play and why they play them. However, playing more frequently was not associated with greater interest in studying CS for either gender. Interest in CS was highest among men who were motivated to play in order to increase skills, be with friends, connect with the game features, and by the art or graphics. However, CS interest was highest among women who consider themselves to be more serious gamers, play racing and puzzle games, play on a game console, and are motivated by fun, relaxation and social interaction. The results can inform efforts to increase the number of women that pursue computer science. The chapter concludes with recommendations for future research on how game play and interest in CS are related.

Schema Disjunction Among Computer Science Students

2011 ◽  
pp. 1087-1091
Author(s):  
Rebecca L. Crane ◽  
Liane Pedersen-Gallegos ◽  
Sandra Laursen ◽  
Elaine Seymour ◽  
Richard Donohue
Keyword(s):  
Computer Science ◽  
Science Careers ◽  
Science Students ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Adult Behavior ◽  
Introductory Computer Science ◽  
The People ◽  
Computer Scientists ◽  
And Behavior ◽  
Looking Glass

In her book Why So Slow?: The Advancement of Women, Virginia Valian describes a schema as “a set of implicit, or nonconscious, hypotheses about … differences.” (Valian, 1998). Individuals use schemas about particular social groups to guide their interpretations of and behavior toward members of those groups. However, problems can arise when multiple conflicting schemas are applied to the same person. This phenomenon, schema disjunction, is particularly well illustrated by the situation of female undergraduate computer science majors. Extensive interviews with introductory computer science students of both genders reveal a significant discontinuity between their schema of women and their schema of successful computer scientists. Despite professing conscious egalitarian beliefs about the ability of women to do computer science, many students unconsciously hold disjunct schemas that help facilitate an environment hostile to novice women and may deter them from pursuing computer science careers (Pedersen-Gallegos, Laursen, Seymour, Donahue, Crane, DeAntoni, et al., 2004). Valian argues that, starting in childhood, we acquire schemas through observation of adult behavior toward others. Schemas are generally more inclusive than stereotypes and carry fewer negative connotations: They are not necessarily unfair or pejorative. In fact, schemas are a normal way that humans use categorization to negotiate our environments. However, Valian also explains that schemas can become unjustly misrepresentative of individuals due to errors that creep in during their development. These errors are then reinforced during maintenance and application of those erroneous schemas. These generalized beliefs about certain types of people are often unarticulated, and may be even consciously disavowed by those who hold them. Yet people can still operate unconsciously on the basis of ingrained schemas while remaining unaware of them. Because schemas color our interpretations of people we interact with, they also shape how we behave towards those people. We treat each other, and ourselves, in accordance with our schematic expectations. When these expectations are unfairly pejorative, they can have a damaging impact on the self-concepts and lives of the people to whom they are applied, often resulting in a self-fulfilling prophecy. Echoing Cooley’s (1902) classic notion of the “looking-glass self,” Valian describes this phenomenon with a focus on gender schemas: All of us—boys and girls, men and women—become in part what others expect us to become, thereby confirming hypotheses about the different nature of males and females. While no one is infinitely malleable, no one is completely indifferent to others. One way we learn who we are is through others’ responses to us. As men and women, we also develop expectations for our own behavior, based on characteristics we believe we possess. We then explain our successes and failures in terms of those abilities and traits. (Valian, 1998)

Continuity in Any Language

2014 ◽  
Vol 96 (2) ◽  
pp. 141-171
Author(s):  
Travis E. Ross
Keyword(s):  
Ethnic Origin ◽  
Home Rule ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Creation Myths ◽  
Alta California ◽  
The Us

This article analyzes the memories of pre-1848 Alta California recounted in the 1870s to Hubert Howe Bancroft’s agent Thomas Savage by a multiethnic group of men and women. The narrators, regardless of ethnic origin, overwhelmingly told stories that insisted on continuity between Alta California in the 1830s and 1840s and the US state birthed in the late 1840s. Even if they had been on opposing sides of political upheavals, they all insisted that their altruistic efforts had helped to transition California peacefully from Mexican rule to home rule and from home rule to US control while preserving both California’s people and California’s culture. This multicultural memory of continuity was later supplanted by rupture-based Anglo Californian creation myths.

Reaching Spanish-Speakers in Self-Administered Surveys

2019 ◽  
Vol 3 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
J Michael Brick ◽  
Andrew Caporaso ◽  
Douglas Williams ◽  
David Cantor
Keyword(s):  
Single Phase ◽  
Spanish Language ◽  
Spanish Speakers ◽  
English Speakers ◽  
Future Research ◽  
The Internet ◽  
English Only ◽  
Eligible Population ◽  
The Us ◽  
Survey Estimates

Decisions on public policy can be affected if important segments of the population are systematically excluded from the data used to drive the decisions. In the US, Spanishspeakers make up an important subgroup that surveys conducted in English-only underrepresent. This subgroup differs in a variety of characteristics and they are less likely to respond to surveys in English-only. These factors lead to nonresponse biases that are problematic for survey estimates. For surveys conducted by mail, one solution is to include both English and Spanish materials in the survey package. For addresses in the US where Spanish-speakers are likely to be living, this approach is effective, but it still may omit some non-English-speakers. Traditionally, including both English and Spanish materials for addresses not identified as likely to have Spanish-speakers was considered problematic due to concerns of a backlash effect. The backlash effect is that predominantly English-speakers might respond at a lower rate because of the inclusion of Spanish materials. Prior research found no evidence of a backlash, but used a twophase approach with a short screener questionnaire to identify the eligible population for an education survey. In this paper, we report on experiments in two surveys that extend the previous research to criminal victimization and health communication single-phase surveys. These experiments test the effect of the inclusion of Spanish language materials for addresses not identified as likely to have Spanish-speakers. Our findings confirm most results of the previous research; however we find no substantial increase in Spanish-only participation when the materials are offered in both languages for addresses that are not likely to have Spanish-speakers. We offer some thoughts on these results and directions for future research, especially with respect to collecting data by the Internet.

Collaborative learning in an introductory computer science course

1994 ◽  
Vol 26 (1) ◽  
pp. 304-308 ◽  
Author(s):  
Roberta Evans Sabin ◽  
Edward P. Sabin
Keyword(s):  
Collaborative Learning ◽  
Computer Science ◽  
Introductory Computer Science

Whether, How, and Why Networks Influence Men’s and Women’s Career Success: Review and Research Agenda

2020 ◽  
Vol 47 (1) ◽  
pp. 207-236
Author(s):  
Meredith L. Woehler ◽  
Kristin L. Cullen-Lester ◽  
Caitlin M. Porter ◽  
Katherine A. Frear
Keyword(s):  
Research Agenda ◽  
Career Success ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Network Characteristics ◽  
Integrative Framework ◽  
Relative Status ◽  
Same Gender ◽  
Professional Contexts ◽  
Women's Networks

Substantial research has documented challenges women experience building and benefiting from networks to achieve career success. Yet fundamental questions remain regarding which aspects of men’s and women’s networks differ and how differences impact their careers. To spur future research to address these questions, we present an integrative framework to clarify how and why gender and networks—in concert—may explain career inequality. We delineate two distinct, complementary explanations: (1) unequal network characteristics (UNC) asserts that men and women have different network characteristics, which account for differences in career success; (2) unequal network returns (UNR) asserts that even when men and women have the same network characteristics, they yield different degrees of career success. Further, we explain why UNC and UNR emerge by identifying mechanisms related to professional contexts, actors, and contacts. Using this framework, we review evidence of UNC and UNR for specific network characteristics. We found that men’s and women’s networks are similar in structure (i.e., size, openness, closeness, contacts’ average and structural status) but differ in composition (i.e., proportion of men, same-gender, and kin contacts). Many differences mattered for career success. We identified evidence of UNC only (same-gender contacts), UNR only (actors’ and contacts’ network openness, contacts’ relative status), neither UNC nor UNR (size), and both UNC and UNR (proportion of men contacts). Based on these initial findings, we offer guidance to organizations aiming to address inequality resulting from gender differences in network creation and utilization, and we present a research agenda for scholars to advance these efforts.

scholarly journals Elucidating the Relationship Between Insomnia, Sex, and Cardiovascular Disease

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 ◽  
pp. 247028972098001
Author(s):  
Rebecca Leeds ◽  
Ari Shechter ◽  
Carmela Alcantara ◽  
Brooke Aggarwal ◽  
John Usseglio ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cardiovascular Disease ◽  
Sex Differences ◽  
Cardiovascular Health ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Sex And Gender ◽  
Men And Women ◽  
Sex Research ◽  
And Gender ◽  
The Relationship ◽  
Cvd Mortality

Sex differences in cardiovascular disease (CVD) mortality have been attributed to differences in pathophysiology between men and women and to disparities in CVD management that disproportionately affect women compared to men. Similarly, there has been investigation of differences in the prevalence and presentation of insomnia attributable to sex. Few studies have examined how sex and insomnia interact to influence CVD outcomes, however. In this review, we summarize the literature on sex-specific differences in the prevalence and presentation of insomnia as well as existing research regarding the relationship between insomnia and CVD outcomes as it pertains to sex. Research to date indicate that women are more likely to have insomnia than men, and there appear to be differential associations in the relation between insomnia and CVD by sex. We posit potential mechanisms of the relationship between sex, insomnia and CVD, discuss gaps in the existing literature, and provide commentary on future research needed in this area. Unraveling the complex relations between sex, insomnia, and CVD may help to explain sex-specific differences in CVD, and identify sex-specific strategies for promotion of cardiovascular health. Throughout this review, terms “men” and “women” are used as they are in the source literature, which does not differentiate between sex and gender. The implications of this are also discussed.

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