Exploration of Intersectionality and Computer Science Demographics

Abstract

Although computing occupations have some of the greatest projected growth rates, there remains a deficit of graduates in these fields. The struggle to engage enough students to meet demands is particularly pronounced for groups already underrepresented in computing, specifically, individuals that self-identify as a woman, or as Black, Hispanic/Latinx, or Native American. Prior studies have begun to examine issues surrounding engagement and retention, but more understanding is needed to close the gap, and to broaden participation. In this research, we provide quantitative evidence from the Multiple-Institution Database for Investigating Engineering Longitudinal Development—a longitudinal, multi-institutional database to describe participation trends of marginalized groups in computer science. Using descriptive statistics, we present the enrollment and graduation rates for those situated at the intersection of race/ethnicity and gender between 1987 and 2018. In this work, we observed periods of significant flux for Black men and women, and White women in particular, and consistently low participation of Hispanic/Latinx and Native American men and women, and Asian women. To provide framing for the evident peaks and valleys in participation, we applied historical context analysis to describe the political, economic, and social factors and events that may have impacted each group. These results put a spotlight on populations largely overlooked in statistical work and have the potential to inform educators, administrators, and researchers about how enrollments and graduation rates have changed over time in computing fields. In addition, they offer insight into potential causes for the vicissitudes, to encourage more equal access for all students going forward.

Intersectionality in Computer Science: A Systematic Literature Review

“…S05, S07, and S09 support that the pandemic was an important factor that decreased the sense of belonging in CS, but also highlighted how marginalised people continuously have had a lesser sense of belonging in CS from being students and into their professional careers [32] [33] [23]. Furthermore, S07, S02, and S03 state that the resurgence of the Black Lives Matter movement placed intersectionality on the agenda through a call to action from the CS community to be an active leader of change for equity, which further proved that oppression and ignorance had enabled CS to hide behind the false narrative of being a meritocracy [33] [20] [26].…”

“…These networks could be in the form of a peer community since this simultaneously creates a CS network and a social network, presented in S14 [35]. Having a social network in CS was found critical in increasing the probability of choosing CS in higher education [35] [33] [25] [26]. Moreover, the academic/professional CS network was essential in building career confidence and technical skills [35] [21] [16] [36] [27] [32]; further supporting retention in CS.…”

Degree Attainment in Computing: Intersectional Switching Trends

“…Despite ongoing efforts to broaden participation, there continues to be a minoritization of women, Black, Hispanic or Latinx, and Indigenous students in computing fields [1]. While women may represent 50.5% of the population in the United States (U.S.) [2], only 22.3% of bachelor's degrees in computer science (CS) are awarded to women, as of the 2022 Taulbee report [3].…”

Software Guild: A Workshop to Introduce Women and Non-Binary Undergraduate Students from other Majors to Computing

“…While decades of efforts have sought to broaden participation in computing, women and non-binary students remain minoritized in the discipline [1,2]. The lack of gender parity poses an ongoing challenge for post-secondary academic institutions in the United States (U.S.).…”

“…Women have continued to be minoritized in computing fields in the U.S. over multiple decades [1]. Data from the Cooperative Institutional Research Program (CIRP) Freshmen Survey revealed that while the percentage of men planning to major in computing in post-secondary institutions rose from 3.3% to 9.3% over a ten-year period ending in 2000, the corresponding rise for women was only from 1.5% to 1.9%.…”