Who Belongs in Computer Science?

Abstract

Women's participation rates in the Computer Science (CS) field are alarmingly lower than men's in K-12 and higher education as well as in the workforce. Research has been done to explore when young women's potential interest in the field typically develops, but these studies primarily target the high school and undergraduate levels. This mixed methods study examined middle school students' perceptions of computer scientists' looks and character traits, students' sense of belonging in the CS community, and the relationship between stereotype adoption, gender, and sense of belonging. Ninety-five (95) participants depicted computer scientists through drawing and a written explanation of their depiction. A subset of participants also had their sense of belonging in CS measured through the CS Sense of Belongingness Scale. A 2 (gender) x 2 (stereotype adoption) ANOVA was used to examine the relationships between students' perceptions, their sense of belonging, and gender. Results from the study suggest that there were significant differences between girls' and boys' perceptions of computer scientists' appearance; however, there were no differences in their perceptions of computer scientists' character traits. There were also no differences in students' sense of belonging based on the stereotype adoption levels and gender. Despite its limited sample size, this study provides insights on how middle school students think about computer scientists and the stereotypes they hold.

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