Gender and the Information Technology Workforce

2011 ◽  
pp. 18-36 ◽  
Author(s):  
Eileen A. Trauth ◽  
Jeria L. Quesenberry
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Social Construction ◽  
Gender Gap ◽  
Representation Of Women ◽  
Social Construction Theory ◽  
Theoretical Perspectives ◽  
It Workforce ◽  
Managerial Implications ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Gender And It

Despite increases of women in the labor force, females are largely under-represented in the American IT workforce. Among the challenges that managers face in addressing the under representation of women in the IT workforce is the identification of an appropriate theory as a basis for understanding data about gender and IT in order to reverse the gender imbalance. Hence, the purpose of this chapter is to demonstrate the managerial implications of theory choice when addressing the under representation of women in the IT workforce. We provide an overview of the three main theoretical perspectives, the essentialist theory, the social construction theory, and the individual differences theory of gender and IT, which are used to understand and investigate the IT gender gap. We then make the argument that the essentialist and social construction theories do not provide the analytical robustness required to pay attention to more nuanced managerial recommendations. Finally, we demonstrate how the individual differences theory of gender and IT can significantly contribute to the reconfiguration of analytical knowledge of the IT gender gap and spur innovative management policies.

Female Retention in Post-Secondary IT Education

2011 ◽  
pp. 317-322
Author(s):  
Jeria L. Quesenberry
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Gender Gap ◽  
Levels Of Analysis ◽  
Post Secondary ◽  
It Workforce ◽  
It Education ◽  
Underrepresentation Of Women ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Secondary Information ◽  
Gender And It

The historical gender stratification in technical disciplines has been an area of study for many years and researchers have concluded that women are alarmingly under-enrolled in post-secondary information technology (IT) education (e.g., Camp, 1997; Teague, 2002; von Hellens, Nielsen, Greenhill, & Pringle, 1997). One challenge facing the IT gender gap discourse is the application of theories that focus on a variety of levels of analysis (Korpela, Mursu, & Soriyan, 2001; Walsham, 2000). Recently, the Individual Differences Theory of Gender and IT has been proposed by Trauth (Trauth, 2002; Trauth, Huang, Morgan, Quesenberry, & Yeo, 2006; Trauth & Quesenberry, 2006, 2005; Trauth, Quesenberry, & Morgan, 2004) to explain the underrepresentation of women in the IT workforce at both the societal and individual levels of analysis. To date, the majority of the Individual Differences Theory of Gender and IT research has focused on improving our understanding of the underrepresentation of women in the IT workforce.1 Hence, in an attempt to build on the theoretical foundation, this article reports on a literature survey of the influences on American women’s retention in post-secondary IT education.

Female Retention in Post-Secondary IT Education

2011 ◽  
pp. 3176-3182
Author(s):  
J. L. Quesenberry
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Gender Gap ◽  
Levels Of Analysis ◽  
Post Secondary ◽  
It Workforce ◽  
It Education ◽  
Underrepresentation Of Women ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Secondary Information ◽  
Gender And It

The historical gender stratification in technical disciplines has been an area of study for many years and researchers have concluded that women are alarmingly under-enrolled in post-secondary information technology (IT) education (e.g., Camp, 1997; Teague, 2002; von Hellens, Nielsen, Greenhill, & Pringle, 1997). One challenge facing the IT gender gap discourse is the application of theories that focus on a variety of levels of analysis (Korpela, Mursu, & Soriyan, 2001; Walsham, 2000). Recently, the Individual Differences Theory of Gender and IT has been proposed by Trauth (Trauth, 2002; Trauth, Huang, Morgan, Quesenberry, & Yeo, 2006; Trauth & Quesenberry, 2006, 2005; Trauth, Quesenberry, & Morgan, 2004) to explain the underrepresentation of women in the IT workforce at both the societal and individual levels of analysis. To date, the majority of the Individual Differences Theory of Gender and IT research has focused on improving our understanding of the underrepresentation of women in the IT workforce.1 Hence, in an attempt to build on the theoretical foundation, this article reports on a literature survey of the influences on American women’s retention in post-secondary IT education.

Factors Influencing Career Choice for Women in the Global Information Technology Workforce

2010 ◽  
pp. 23-48
Author(s):  
Eileen M. Trauth ◽  
Jeria L. Quesenberry ◽  
Haiyan Huang
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Career Choices ◽  
Cultural Influences ◽  
Cultural Factors ◽  
Cultural Attitudes ◽  
Representation Of Women ◽  
Factors Influencing ◽  
It Workforce ◽  
And Gender ◽  
Gender And It

The increased cultural diversity emanating from the globalization of the IT sector presents challenges for gender research in the IT field. In an effort to address these challenges, this chapter presents an analysis of cultural factors influencing the career choices of women in the IT workforce. A review of the literature on cultural factors suggests the need for both greater analysis of cultural influences on women in the IT workforce and more nuanced theorizing about gender and IT. Hence, the authors employ the individual differences theory of gender and IT as a theoretical lens for examining, in greater detail, the variation in ways that perceptions of women’s roles are embedded in a culture. The chapter then documents the influence of these perceptions on female IT career choices. Finally, the authors show how socio-cultural factors moderate these influences. The data employed in this chapter draws from a qualitative data set of interviews with 200 women from four separate studies of women in the IT workforces in Australia, Ireland, New Zealand and the United States. The themes that emerged from this analysis speak to the influence of cultural attitudes about maternity, childcare, parental care and working outside the home on a woman’s choice of an IT career. The authors also saw evidence that other socio-cultural factors add further variation to gendered cultural influences: gendered career norms, social class, economic opportunity, and gender stereotypes about aptitude. These results lend empirical support to the emergent individual differences theory of gender and IT that theorizes within-gender variation with respect to issues related to gender and IT. They also point to areas where educational and workplace interventions can be enacted to address the under representation of women in the IT field.

Understanding the "Mommy Tracks"

2011 ◽  
pp. 164-181
Author(s):  
Jeria L. Quesenberry ◽  
Eileen M. Trauth ◽  
Allison J. Morgan
Keyword(s):  
Career Decisions ◽  
Theoretical Argument ◽  
Personal Lives ◽  
Family Balance ◽  
It Workforce ◽  
Family Issues ◽  
Geographical Regions ◽  
Work Family ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Gender And It

Despite the recent growth in the number of women in the American labor force, women are still underrepresented in the IT workforce. Key among the factors that account for this under-representation is balancing work-family issues. This article presents a framework for analyzing work-family balance from a field study of women employed in the American IT workforce. The findings are examined through the lens of the individual differences theory of gender and IT to show the range of ways in which work-family considerations influence women’s IT career decisions. The framework is used to support the theoretical argument that women exhibit a range of decisions regarding career and parenthood: the non-parent, the working parent, the back-on-track parent, and the off-the-track parent. These findings illustrate an identifiable theme that crosses geographical regions and timeframes; societal messages are complex and difficult to digest and are processed in different ways by different women, yet they contribute to the decisions women make about their professional and personal lives.

Understanding the Mommy Tracks in the IT Workforce

2011 ◽  
pp. 1178-1183
Author(s):  
Jeria L. Quesenberry ◽  
Eileen M. Trauth
Keyword(s):  
Maternity Leave ◽  
Family Balance ◽  
Women's Participation ◽  
It Workforce ◽  
Family Issues ◽  
Work Family Balance ◽  
Work Family ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Female Responses ◽  
Gender And It

Despite the recent growth in the number of women in the American labor force, women are under represented in the IT workforce. Key among the factors that account for this under representation is balancing work-family issues. Some researchers have speculated that IT work is not an ideal fit for working mothers because of long work hours, increased conflicts with family responsibilities, and the difficulty of returning after maternity leave to an industry with ever evolving technologies (Kuosa, 2000; Webster, 1996). This article reports on an empirical study that explored the influence of work-family balance on American women’s participation in the IT workforce by using the Individual Differences Theory of Gender and IT (Trauth, 2002; Trauth, Quesenberry, & Morgan, 2004; Trauth, Huang, Morgan, Quesenberry, & Yeo, 2006). In doing so, we summarize a work-family balance study presented in greater detail in Quesenberry, Morgan, and Trauth (2004) and Quesenberry, Trauth, and Morgan (2006) that articulates the ways in which individual and environmental factors influence female responses to issues of work-family balance.

Environmental Context and Women in the IT Workforce

2011 ◽  
pp. 276-281
Author(s):  
Eileen M. Trauth ◽  
Jeria L. Quesenberry ◽  
Benjamin Yeo
Keyword(s):  
Environmental Context ◽  
Contractual Arrangements ◽  
Self Employment ◽  
It Workforce ◽  
Time Work ◽  
Part Time ◽  
Information Work ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Gender And It ◽  
Part Time Work

The rise of the network society involves a transformation of employment, in which power relations shift with the flow of capital, leading to downsizing, subcontracting and networking of labor. These processes facilitate flexibility and individualization of contractual arrangements in information work. As a whole, there is an increase in self-employment, temporary work, and part-time work, particularly for women (Castells, 1996). This transformation of employment brings heightened consideration about the characteristics of the labor force. Thus, one need is to examine environmental context and the possible connections between economic and cultural factors of a region and the experience of women in the IT workforce. This article summarizes an empirical study presented in greater detail in Trauth, Quesenberry, and Yeo (2005) that explored the influence of environmental context on women in the IT workforce by using the Individual Differences Theory of Gender and IT (Trauth, 2002; Trauth, Huang, Morgan, Quesenberry, & Yeo, 2006; Trauth, Quesenberry, & Morgan, 2004).

The Influences and Responses of Women in IT Education

2011 ◽  
pp. 3293-3298
Author(s):  
K. J. Maser
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Sociocultural Factors ◽  
American University ◽  
Women In It ◽  
The Social ◽  
It Department ◽  
It Education ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Female Responses ◽  
Gender And It

This article highlights findings from an empirical study that explores the nature of female underrepresentation in information technology. Specifically, this research focuses on (a) identifying key sociocultural factors that can facilitate the pursuit of IT at the undergraduate level, and (b) testing Trauth’s (2002) Individual Differences Theory of Gender and IT through a comparison of female responses to the social construction of IT. To answer the author’s research questions, interviews were conducted with 10 female seniors in an IT department at an American university in the mid-Atlantic region (MAU).1 Although experiences with social factors vary, comparing the stories of women who have successfully navigated their way into and through an IT undergraduate degree program reveals common influences and motivations. In addition, though some common factors may facilitate female entry into the field, the Individual Differences Theory of Gender and IT explains that women will react differently to the social constructions of gender and IT. By gaining a better understanding of the gender imbalance, applying appropriate theories to explain the problem, and uncovering the challenges that women of our society face in their entry to the field of IT, collegiate programs can more effectively implement strategies that will improve the recruitment and retention of female students.

scholarly journals Individual Differences in Language Learning and Teaching: a Complex/Dynamic/Socio-Ecological/Holistic View

2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Carol Griffiths ◽  
Adem Soruç
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Language Learning ◽  
Individual Difference ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Complex Dynamic ◽  
Holistic View ◽  
Learning And Teaching ◽  
Theoretical Perspectives ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Teachers Perspectives

AbstractThis article begins by outlining the development of the individual difference concept, considering what should be included as an individual difference, and suggesting a definition. The authors then suggest 11 individual differences which occur regularly in the literature and which they have found to be salient features in their own classrooms. A brief overview of these 11 factors is provided, along with theoretical perspectives relevant to the individual differences issue. The article concludes with a small-scale investigation of teachers’ perspectives of the importance of individual differences in language learning. According to the results, teachers consider motivation and strategy use the most important variables, but that all 11 factors are at least somewhat important. This conclusion emphasizes the need for a holistic view of these complex/dynamic, socio-ecologically influenced phenomena.

Women and Social Capital Networks in the IT Workforce

2011 ◽  
pp. 1245-1251 ◽  
Author(s):  
Allison J. Morgan ◽  
Eileen M. Trauth
Keyword(s):  
Social Capital ◽  
Gender Gap ◽  
Information Resources ◽  
It Industry ◽  
Representation Of Women ◽  
Women's Participation ◽  
Women In It ◽  
It Workforce ◽  
Organizational Chart ◽  
Experiences Of Women

Currently, the IT industry is experiencing explosive growth. As the need for more skilled IT workers increases, the focus on the diversity of individuals participating in IT jobs is highlighted. The under represented populations of women and minorities are being evaluated to determine ways to increase their lasting participation in the technology workforce. Although initiatives and programs have been established to recruit a more diverse labor force, the under representation persists. In an effort to address the problem of under represented populations in the IT workforce, it is necessary to evaluate the situation from a variety of angles and views. Specifically, we seek to better understand the “gender gap” in the IT workforce and the effect of social capital networks in the organization on women. Social capital can be defined as “an instantiated informal norm that promotes cooperation between two or more individuals” (Fukuyama, 1999, p. 1). Social capital among workers in the organization has been attributed to career success due to increased access to information, resources, and sponsorship (Seibert, Kraimer, & Liden, 2001). One of the ways that social capital can be gained is through participation in networks. Overall, the benefits or advantages gained through the networking process are attributed to an increase in access to and sharing of information. In this article, we consider social capital networks in the IT workforce and whether the existence of these networks assists in explaining the under representation of women in IT. Our research highlights the experiences of women practitioners and academics currently working in the IT field. Our aim is to uncover the story behind the organizational chart. In doing so, we summarize a study on women’s participation with social networks in the IT workforce presented in Morgan, Quesenberry, and Trauth (2004).

The Influences and Responses of Women in IT Education

2011 ◽  
pp. 808-812
Author(s):  
Kathryn J. Maser
Keyword(s):  
Individual Differences ◽  
Sociocultural Factors ◽  
American University ◽  
Women In It ◽  
The Social ◽  
It Department ◽  
It Education ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Female Responses ◽  
Gender And It

This article highlights findings from an empirical study that explores the nature of female underrepresentation in information technology. Specifically, this research focuses on (a) identifying key sociocultural factors that can facilitate the pursuit of IT at the undergraduate level, and (b) testing Trauth’s (2002) Individual Differences Theory of Gender and IT through a comparison of female responses to the social construction of IT. To answer the author’s research questions, interviews were conducted with 10 female seniors in an IT department at an American university in the mid-Atlantic region (MAU).1 Although experiences with social factors vary, comparing the stories of women who have successfully navigated their way into and through an IT undergraduate degree program reveals common influences and motivations. In addition, though some common factors may facilitate female entry into the field, the Individual Differences Theory of Gender and IT explains that women will react differently to the social constructions of gender and IT. By gaining a better understanding of the gender imbalance, applying appropriate theories to explain the problem, and uncovering the challenges that women of our society face in their entry to the field of IT, collegiate programs can more effectively implement strategies that will improve the recruitment and retention of female students.

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