Examining Women-in-Computer-Science Groups as a Means for Diversifying STEM:  A Cross-Level Analysis

Wu, Jue

doi:https://doi.org/10.21985/n2-7dge-5932

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Examining Women-in-Computer-Science Groups as a Means for Diversifying STEM: A Cross-Level Analysis

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The gender imbalance in computer science is getting worse, with computer science being the only Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) field in which women’s representation has steadily declined throughout the past few decades. Rectifying this gender imbalance is an urgent need, both because of fundamental issues of equity and because leaving most women out of the labor market in computer-related industries dramatically lowers the number of American workers to fill these roles. Although many efforts have proved to be effective in increasing women’s participation in computer science, many of those may be difficult to replicate on a large scale, as they relied on a great deal of investment of time and money from high-level administrators. Therefore, it is worthwhile to consider alternatives.My dissertation focuses on one attempt to redress the lack of women in computer science—Women-in-Computer-Science (Women-in-CS) or Women-in-Computing (WiC) college clubs. Drawing on organizational change theories, I ask: What are some characteristics of the Women-in-CS clubs and how do students engage them? Do they engender changes? If so, how? I explored these research questions through two theoretically connected but methodologically different studies, using thematic network analysis and ethnography respectively. Through a cross-level analysis, I argue that Women-in-CS clubs’ mission statements and practices directly speak to the challenges of gender inequality in computer science. For students, Women-in-CS club is an identity, a community, a safe space, and the beginning of a career-long practice of mentoring future women in computer science. Moreover, changes driven by such clubs have brought impacts to both the individual level female computer science students and the organizational level computer science departments. Both top-down and bottom-up leadership approaches have been used by these clubs to overcome resistance and obstacles related to social cognition and cultural and institutional theories of change. Furthermore, design principles have been derived and identified to shed light on best practices for college clubs with similar goals. This dissertation offers a new perspective on applying organizational change theories in the context of college clubs and contributes to the broader research community on diversity, equity, and inclusion in higher education.

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