Is the information systems profession gendered?: characterization of IS professionals and IS career

In spite of a more "feminine" nature of the information systems (IS) discipline due to its greater perceived social component, stereotypes and educational prejudices that are prevalent in the computer science discipline are assumed to exist in the information systems field. The objective of this study is to test the validity of this assumption by uncovering the perceptions of college students toward IS professionals and the IS profession. Our study reveals that stereotypes found to be associated with computer science also seem to permeate the IS field. However, after students are exposed to IS careers, they appear to grasp the unique nature of IS. In other words, while describing an IS professional and the IS profession, men and women were cognizant that the IS profession is a blend of technical, systems, social, and managerial components. This study also sheds some light on the question - Is the IS profession perceived to be gendered? Based on the study's results, we conclude that the students' perceptions of IS careers are to some extent gendered with a greater emphasis on masculine than feminine or gender neutral traits and abilities.

[1]  Eileen M. Trauth,et al.  Explaining the IT Gender Gap: Australian Stories for the New Millenium , 2003, J. Res. Pract. Inf. Technol..

[2]  Annemieke Craig,et al.  A gendered view of computer professionals: preliminary results of a survey , 2002, SGCS.

[3]  Joy Teague,et al.  Women in computing: what brings them to it, what keeps them in it? , 2002, SGCS.

[4]  Tracy Camp,et al.  An ACM-W literature review on women in computing , 2002, SGCS.

[5]  Eileen M. Trauth,et al.  Odd girl out: an individual differences perspective on women in the IT profession , 2002, Inf. Technol. People.

[6]  Allan Fisher,et al.  Unlocking the clubhouse: the Carnegie Mellon experience , 2002, SGCS.

[7]  Eric Roberts,et al.  Unlocking the clubhouse: women in computing , 2001, SIGCSE.

[8]  Susan H. Nielsen,et al.  Australian women in IT0 , 2001, CACM.

[9]  K. D. Joshi,et al.  Gender differences in IS career choice: examine the role of attitudes and social norms in selecting IS profession , 2001, SIGCPR '01.

[10]  Eileen Moore Trauth,et al.  The Culture of an Information Economy: Influences and Impacts in the Republic of Ireland , 2000 .

[11]  Bunny J. Tjaden,et al.  A worldwide, web-based study of the attitudes of college freshmen toward computing , 2000, ITiCSE '00.

[12]  A. Eagly,et al.  Gender-Stereotypic Images of Occupations Correspond to the Sex Segregation of Employment , 1999 .

[13]  Joanne McGrath Cohoon,et al.  Departmental differences can point the way to improving female retention in computer science , 1999, SIGCSE '99.

[14]  Tony Greening,et al.  Gender stereotyping in a computer science course , 1999, SIGCSE '99.

[15]  G. Joy Teague,et al.  A structured review of reasons for the underrepresentation of women in computing , 1997, ACSE '97.

[16]  Valerie A. Clarke,et al.  Characterizations of computing careers: Students and professionals disagree , 1996, Comput. Educ..

[17]  Eileen M. Trauth,et al.  Critical Skills and Knowledge Requirements of IS Professionals: A Joint Academic/Industry Investigation , 1995, MIS Q..

[18]  Manju K. Ahuja.  Information technology and the gender factor , 1995, SIGCPR '95.

[19]  James D. McKeen,et al.  The Evolution of IS Job Skills: A Content Analysis of IS Job Advertisements from 1970 to 1990 , 1995, MIS Q..

[20]  Karen A. Frenkel,et al.  Women and computing , 1990, CACM.

[21]  Judith D. Wilson,et al.  Psychological differences in university computer student populations , 1985, SIGCSE '85.

[22]  Susan Hilary Nielsen,et al.  Australian Women in IT , 2001 .

[23]  William Aspray,et al.  The Supply of Information Technology Workers in the United States. , 1999 .

[24]  Hugh Whitemore,et al.  Breaking the Code , 1986 .