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Do Female Motives for Enrolling Vary According to STEM Profile?
Abstract
Contribution: Stereotypes and immediate environment are the reasons for low enrollment of women in STEM studies. Background: The low number of women in STEM degree courses has been the subject of much research, which has found that the lack of female enrollment is not evenly distributed across all STEM studies. In some areas, such as computing, communications, and electrical and electronic engineering (CCEEE), not only has the number of women not increased, it has even fallen. Research Questions: Is there a stereotype for women taking STEM studies? Is this stereotype different between women taking CCEEE and non-CCEEE degrees? What are the main reasons that lead women to enroll in STEM studies? Methodology: A survey was sent to 3699 female students and STEM graduates belonging to the authors' university in six schools with a lowest level of enrollment, and 1060 replies were received. A qualitative study based on data analysis triangulation was performed. Findings: The women surveyed consider social stereotypes (31.47%) and the immediate environment (14.5%) as the main reasons for the low enrollment of women in STEM studies. Surprisingly, the third reason (11.03%) is that women do not like engineering. New knowledge concerning what motivates female students to enroll in STEM studies, what stereotypes they must struggle against, and the existence of possible differences between CCEEE and STEM but non-CCEEE female students could help policy makers and academia to improve female enrollment in STEM and, in particular, in CCEEE studies.
... Systemic barriers, like social stereotypes, informal interactions amongst peers, everyday sexism and patriarchal organizational culture also obstruct the advancement of women (Olmedo-Torre et al., 2018;Seron, Silbey, Cech, & Rubineau, 2016). Such barriers may undermine women's confidence, especially in visibly male-dominated fields like engineering and science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), propelling them to seek other professional opportunities, leading to loss of talent (Chaffee, Lou, Noels, & Katz, 2020;Van Veelen & Derks, 2022). ...
... Likewise, women often feel less confident about fitting into STEM, due to its predominantly male culture (Seron et al., 2016). Factors like unfriendly environments, heavy workloads, fewer role models, social stereotypes about the "image of an engineer" may lead to women may discourage them from pursuing STEM careers (Gonz� alez-P� erez, Mart� ınez-Mart� ınez, Rey-Paredes, & Cifre, 2022;Olmedo-Torre et al., 2018). Thus, gender stereotypes continue to shape career choices, which needs to be addressed on an urgent basis. ...
... Cluster 3: The impact of stereotypes on women's STEM careers. Women experience greater discrimination in STEM fields, compared to social sciences, reflecting an underlying perception that women are not "natural" scientists (Moss-Racusin, Pietri, van der Toorn, & Ashburn-Nardo, 2021;Olmedo-Torre et al., 2018). STEM is traditionally associated with male traits like concentration, logical reasoning, mental toughness and dedication (Zawistowska, 2017), while women are likened to people-oriented fields like arts and humanities (Cheung & Halpern, 2010). ...
Purpose: The study aims to provide a comprehensive understanding of the existing literature on women’s leadership in academia by identifying the existing challenges for their underrepresentation, and proposing a new-age leadership interventions to address the inherent systemic biases and develop foster an equitable academic climate.
Design/methodology/approach: The study employed bibliometric analysis to map the literature by investigating publication and geographical trends. Techniques like citation, co-citation, bibliographic coupling and co-word analysis identified seminal research and emerging themes, providing insights into research developments and facilitating the identification of avenues for future research.
Findings: Our study highlights how social, organizational and individual barriers disadvantage women academic leaders. Existing enablers for women in leadership, like mentorship, leadership development and family-friendly policies, focus on bringing change within the prevailing academic culture, reinforcing the notion “women need support”, overlooking the influence of systemic barriers. Such interventions are often ineffective in bringing sustainable change. We propose integrating AI/machine learning (ML) technologies in leadership selection to reduce bias arising from subjectivity.
Research limitations/implications: This study contributes to the discourse on gender inequality in academic leadership by offering a robust understanding of the research topic and informing avenues for future research.
Practical implications: Policymakers and higher education institutions can use the findings of the study to aid the formulation of policies, initiatives and institutional procedures to mitigate the prevalent gender bias in academia and cultivate an inclusive culture for the growth of women.
Originality/value: The paper analyses women’s under-representation as academic leaders and proposes a novel data-driven intervention using gamification, AI and ML, aiming to reshape gender dynamics in academic leadership.
Keywords: Women, Academic leadership, Gender inequality, Bibliometric analysis, SDG 5
Paper type: Research paper
... Concerning what might be the elements that influence the existence of the gender gap in the STEM education sector, Olmedo-Torre et al. (2018) [9] concluded that girls may be encouraged by their family, school, and friends to pursue studies other than STEM because of the tendency towards the reproduction of gender roles. Likewise, Ceci et al. (2009) [10] highlight that boys and girls are not educated in the same way as girls are educated for motherhood. ...
... According to other studies, some of the gender roles and stereotypes that occur around STEM studies are based on the belief that it is mainly men who work in the field of computer science [12], as well as in science and mathematics [13]; and the belief that in the social and health sciences there should be a women predominance [9]. Along with these false beliefs, another casuistry is revealed, linked to interests. ...
... Regarding family factors and peer group influence, the connotation of the family has historically been perpetuated as a woman's caring space [9,21]. Also, authors such as Ceci et al. (2009) [10] and Weisgram & Diekman (2015) [11] point out that the connotation above of family leads women to assume family care roles [17,21]. ...
Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) degrees represent a future employment scenario with low unemployment rates due to the high demand for qualified personnel. However, the STEM sector also represents an educational field marked by horizontal segregation and the gender gap. Different factors play a role in deciding which higher education studies to pursue. From a theoretical and empirical approach, this study aims to identify which factors are associated with the gender gap in the STEM higher education sector. Furthermore, as a research question, it is proposed: are the factors identified at a theoretical and empirical level associated with the gender gap in the STEM higher education sector the same? The empirically validated questionnaire “Questionnaire with university students on STEM studies in Higher Education” (QSTEMHE) was applied to the student community of public and private universities in Spain in 2021, using simple random probability sampling to answer the research question and objective. A final sample of 2101 participants of different genders belonging to different branches of knowledge was obtained. The data analysis was carried out using qualitative methodology and the phenomenological method, following different stages. Firstly, a theoretical conceptual map of the main factors identified in the literature and their authors was composed. Secondly, an empirical conceptual map has been designed with the factors identified in the narratives of the study participants. Finally, these maps were complemented with a SWOT analysis based on the participants' discourses. As a result, it has been observed that there are extrinsic and intrinsic factors and that social constructs and gender stereotypes strongly influence the perception of men, women, and professions and the masculinisation and feminisation of these. Outreach interventions should be proposed from the institutional educational spheres to alleviate existing biases about studies and professions.
... But in addition, we will also focus on analysing teachers' perceptions, beliefs and training on STEM and gender. To achieve these objectives, a set of specific topics will be addressed, taking into account all previous research on STEM and gender among teachers and students (Henriksen et al., 2015;Mainhard et al., 2018;Menacho et al., 2021;Palmer et al., 2017;Salmi et al., 2016;Vennix et al., 2018;Gil-Quintana et al., 2020;Cheng et al., 2020;Dasgupta and Shout, 2014;Ahmed and Mudrey, 2019;Diekman et al., 2010;Olmedo-Torre et al., 2018;Starr, 2018;Bloodhart et al., 2020). Thus, we will focus on questions of gender inequality in relation to their present and past hobbies and tastes, participation in outof-school STEM activities and whether they are highly motivated and supported by their parents and teachers. ...
... Furthermore, other research studies support the positive impact of science and technology outreach activities to improve perception of STEM (Henriksen et al., 2015;Palmer et al., 2017). Finally, the study by Olmedo-Torre et al., (2018) claims that girls consider social stereotypes and immediate environment as the main reasons for low female enrolment in STEM. This idea of preconceived and distorted stereotypes in STEM was also analysed in (Starr, 2018;Bloodhart et al., 2020). ...
... In fact, according to Diekman et al., (2010) girls tend to opt for studies in which they can help others, and there is a stereotype that with STEM this goal will not be met. Similarly, the study by Olmedo-Torre et al., (2018) explains that there are many stereotypes regarding STEM professions that influence women's dislike of STEM studies. In this regard, some studies (Dasgupta and Shout, 2014;Ahmed and Mudrey, 2019) conclude that girls are more interested in mathematics and STEM subjects when they are taught from an applied, hands-on perspective. ...
Societies are becoming fully digitalised, and technology is one of the most important business niches, but today there is a great shortage of STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) specialists. For this reason, a descriptive and quantitative design has been carried out on 1562 secondary school students to help describe their preferences and motivations towards STEM studies and to understand the current reality on this subject. The questionnaire is divided into several blocks: questions related to tastes and background, out-of-school activities, teacher/parental support, personal goals and values towards STEM and finally role models in STEM. The results show that more boys (32%) than girls (12%) believe that toys are different according to gender. Regarding hobbies, boys are more likely to play video games, but girls prefer listening to music and going out with friends. Moreover, boys show a clear preference for STEM subjects (70%) compared to girls (55%) and the study finds important gender differences in their future careers, their motivation towards STEM studies and involvement in out-of-school activities. Finally, the study reveals the need to raise awareness of STEM role models, particularly women, as well as to promote science channels and youtubers.KeywordsSecondary studentsdecline technological vocationsgender gapsciencetechnologyengineeringmathematics
... Motivation. In the study by Olmedo-Torre et al. [37], the relationship between the motivation of female STEM students and other constructs, such as family and social context and attraction to engineering, is studied. They indicate that stereotypes and the family and social context are reasons for the low enrolment of women in STEM studies. ...
... They indicate that stereotypes and the family and social context are reasons for the low enrolment of women in STEM studies. Also, the study by Salmi et al. [38] addresses constructs such as motivation, attitudes towards science and future educational plans, combining elements addressed by Andrews et al., Kang et al., and Olmedo-Torre et al. [35,37,39]. ...
... Stereotypes about STEM are also influential, especially in computer science, communications, and electrical and electronic engineering (CCEEE). As Olmedo-Torre et al. [37] point out, as a result of stereotypes, not only has the number of women in these areas not increased, but it has decreased. ...
Besides providing the consulted publication’s findings, the literature review can offer information through metadata. Computer-Assisted Qualitative Data Analysis Software (CAQDAS) can support visualising bibliometric metadata through RIS files. The usefulness is to provide an interactive image of the reality and actuality of scientific production. This article presents a case study to exemplify how metadata can be analysed and visualised using CAQDAS. The topic for the case study is the gender gap in STEM studies in higher education. The study aims to identify the value and usefulness of data visualisation in representing bibliometric data to support literature review processes. The phenomenon of the gender gap in the STEM education sector is used as a case study. The research questions addressed by the study are: (1) What does CAQDAS contribute to the results obtained?; (2) What are the possible causes of the gender gap? The analysis concludes that the cultural, social, educational, family, and peer group environment generates positive and negative force fields when deciding which studies to pursue; some people follow the patterns expected of them according to their gender. Finally, data visualisation helps understand the scientific evolution of a phenomenon and supports the research on a particular topic.KeywordsGenderSTEM educationStereotypesVisualisationQualitative researchLiterature review
... But in addition, we will also focus on analysing teachers' perceptions, beliefs and training on STEM and gender. To achieve these objectives, a set of specific topics will be addressed, taking into account all previous research on STEM and gender among teachers and students (Henriksen et al., 2015;Mainhard et al., 2018;Menacho et al., 2021;Palmer et al., 2017;Salmi et al., 2016;Vennix et al., 2018;Gil-Quintana et al., 2020;Cheng et al., 2020;Dasgupta and Shout, 2014;Ahmed and Mudrey, 2019;Diekman et al., 2010;Olmedo-Torre et al., 2018;Starr, 2018;Bloodhart et al., 2020). Thus, we will focus on questions of gender inequality in relation to their present and past hobbies and tastes, participation in outof-school STEM activities and whether they are highly motivated and supported by their parents and teachers. ...
... Furthermore, other research studies support the positive impact of science and technology outreach activities to improve perception of STEM (Henriksen et al., 2015;Palmer et al., 2017). Finally, the study by Olmedo-Torre et al., (2018) claims that girls consider social stereotypes and immediate environment as the main reasons for low female enrolment in STEM. This idea of preconceived and distorted stereotypes in STEM was also analysed in (Starr, 2018;Bloodhart et al., 2020). ...
... In fact, according to Diekman et al., (2010) girls tend to opt for studies in which they can help others, and there is a stereotype that with STEM this goal will not be met. Similarly, the study by Olmedo-Torre et al., (2018) explains that there are many stereotypes regarding STEM professions that influence women's dislike of STEM studies. In this regard, some studies (Dasgupta and Shout, 2014;Ahmed and Mudrey, 2019) conclude that girls are more interested in mathematics and STEM subjects when they are taught from an applied, hands-on perspective. ...
Society is more digitised than ever and there is an urgent need to train people in these sectors, where women are still under-represented. A quantitative descriptive, correlational and explanatory descriptive design was used to identify barriers, supports and gender gaps in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics in Secondary Education by analysing the interest and perception of 1562 students and 432 teachers. Descriptive statistics, Chi-square and Lambda test and Crame’s V or Phi test were performed together with a qualitative analysis. The results show that fewer female students want to pursue STEM studies, with girls preferring health and education professions and boys preferring engineering and computer science. Indeed, their motivation is different since we found correlations between being a girl and choosing STEM for helping people and society, while earning money is important for boys. Girls believe more necessary than boys to have qualities to study STEM and less often perceive themselves as intelligent and courageous. Our study revealed that families and teachers encourage more boys than girls towards STEM activities. Teachers believe that girls are influence by preconceived ideas, lack of STEM knowledge and lower self-esteem. Regarding gender equality, almost half state that no objectives are included in the curricula, 43.85% do not include it in subjects and only 30% received training. Consequently, female vocations need to be promoted by teaching how STEM solves real-life problems, fostering creativity, increasing self-confidence, promoting STEM activities and making female role models visible. Teachers should receive more gender training and promote gender-sensitive STEM education.
... However, for the engineering factor, boys' attitudes were significantly more positive than girls'. Motivations are also explored in the study by Olmedo-Torre et al. (2018). In this case, they study the differences between the motivations of female STEM students, forming two groups: (1) Computing, Communications, and Electrical and Electronic Engineering studies (CCEEE women), and (2) other STEM studies (non-CCEEE women). ...
... Olmedo -Torre et al. (2018) insist on the relevance of the perception of the immediate environment. It is important to involve families and teachers in the search for a solution. ...
... According to the literature, the methodologies and methods that can be applied in gender gap studies in the STEM education sector may differ. Mixed models (Herman et al., 2019;Padwick et al., 2016) and multi-method approaches (Borsotti, 2018;Brauner et al., 2018;Ertl et al., 2017b;Finzel et al., 2018;Henriksen et al., 2015;Olmedo-Torre et al., 2018) can be used. Quantitative studies (Cantley et al., 2017;Cincera et al., 2017;G€ orlitz and Gravert, 2018;Kang et al., 2019;Reich-Stiebert and Eyssel, 2017;Salmi et al., 2016;Stoeger et al., 2017;Stoeger et al., 2017;Sullivan et al., 2015;Wulff et al., 2018), or qualitative studies (Botella et al., 2019;Martinho et al., 2015) can also be applied. ...
The development of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) requires more qualified professionals in these fields. However, gender segregation in higher education in this sector is creating a gender gap that means that for some disciplines female representation does not even reach 30% of the total. In order to propose measures to address the phenomenon, it is necessary to understand the possible causes of this issue.
A systematic literature review and mapping were carried out for the study, following the PRISMA guidelines and flowchart. The research questions to be answered were (RQ1) What studies exist on the gender gap in relation to the choice of higher education in the STEM field; and (RQ2) How do gender roles and stereotypes influence decision-making related to higher education? The review of peer-reviewed scientific articles, conferences texts, books and book chapters on the European education area was applied. A total of 4571 initial results were obtained and, after the process marked by the PRISMA flowchart, the final results were reduced to 26. The results revealed that gender stereotypes are strong drivers of the gender gap in general, and the Leaky Pipeline and Stereotype Threat in particular. To narrow the gender gap, it is necessary to focus on influences from the family, the educational environment, and the peer group, as well as from the culture itself. Positive self-concept, self-efficacy, self-confidence, and self-perception need to be fostered, so that the individual chooses their studies according to their goals.
... Los resultados revelaron dos perfiles diferenciados en hombres y mujeres respecto a los intereses, motivaciones y creencias de autoeficacia. Las mujeres muestran un mayor interés por las disciplinas relacionadas con la salud, expresan una mayor motivación de Desde el ámbito de la psicología vocacional, estas diferencias en las elecciones académicoprofesionales han sido, en gran medida, explicadas en base a las diferencias de género en los intereses vocacionales (Hernández, 2004a;Olmedo-Torre et al., 2018;Su et al., 2009). Estos intereses revelan las preferencias de atracción y rechazo de los individuos hacia determinadas ocupaciones y son indicadores clave del desarrollo vocacional (Rodríguez-Martínez et al., 2017). ...
... Cuando se trata de identificar qué factores explican este desequilibrio, encontramos que el interés académico-profesional ha sido la variable más descrita en la literatura (Hernández, 2004a;Olmedo-Torre et al., 2018;Rodríguez-Martínez et al., 2017). Se ha constatado que, de forma general, hombres y mujeres expresan diferencias en sus intereses vocacionales. ...
... Los debates críticos sobre esta realidad permitirán identificar y reducir los estereotipos (Miller et al., 2015) y potenciar las creencias de autoeficacia en las alumnas, al aumentarse los modelos de referencia en estos ámbitos (Rocha y van Praag, 2020). En la misma línea, se considera pertinente establecer tutorías entre las estudiantes de secundaria y las estudiantes universitarias de disciplinas STEM (Olmedo-Torre et al., 2018). ...
Las diferencias encontradas entre hombres y mujeres en la elección del área de estudio, que derivan en una posterior segregación ocupacional, preocupan a las instituciones tanto por sus consecuencias a nivel personal como por su impacto en el mercado de trabajo. Las principales teorías que explican estas diferencias han puesto el énfasis en los intereses vocacionales y en las variables asociadas a los mismos, especialmente la autoeficacia. La literatura ha constatado que los estereotipos de género condicionan la formación de estos intereses y explican, en gran medida, la segregación ocupacional actual. El objetivo principal del presente estudio fue identificar diferencias entre hombres y mujeres en las variables que conforman la elección académico-profesional. Se ha tratado de conocer, también, la posible persistencia de estereotipos vinculados a la actividad profesional en los estudiantes. Se aplicó el Cuestionario de Áreas de Intereses Básicos Académico Profesionales (CIBAP) y un cuestionario ad hoc a una muestra de 112 alumnos de secundaria. Los resultados revelaron dos perfiles diferenciados en hombres y mujeres respecto a los intereses, motivaciones y creencias de autoeficacia. Las mujeres muestran un mayor interés por las disciplinas relacionadas con la salud, expresan una mayor motivación de ayuda a los demás y manifiestan creencias de autoeficacia más bajas, especialmente en áreas vocacionales con fuerte presencia masculina. Además, los resultados apuntan a la persistencia de ciertos estereotipos de género en los jóvenes. Se plantea una intervención activa y dialógica desde la orientación académico-profesional dirigida a toda la comunidad educativa.
... Recently, authors, such as Bencheva and Kostadinow in [28], have again stressed the importance of changing the perception that girls and, above all, their parents have about STEM careers, since they are the main guide in career choice. Furthermore, Olmedo-Torres et al. in [29] concluded that the immediate environment, together with social stereotypes, are the primary reasons for the low presence of girls in STEM studies, relegating preferences to third place. ...
... However, the problem is not equally serious in all STEM fields. In this sense, Olmedo-Torres et al. in [29] highlighted that, in some areas, such as computing, not only are women far fewer in number than men, but, in recent years, they have been decreasing. ...
... In many cases, those responsible for computer science studies blame girls' lack of interest in these studies on the mistaken perception of the goals that can be achieved through this profession or on gender stereotypes. However, in line with [29], the results of this study indicate there are no significant differences in these issues. Secondary school students, both boys and girls, have no doubt that pursuing a computer engineering career can help them make an important contribution to society. ...
In a setting that prioritises the achievement of Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), sustainable development cannot be achieved without the contribution of female talent. This paper is focused on studying the reasons for the gender gap and the offered strategies to reduce it. The debate on the reasons for the low enrolment rates of girls in technological degrees remains open in the literature. This study investigates the causes of why girls do not choose a computer engineering degree and makes a comparison between ex-ante (secondary school) and ex-post (higher education). Based on a survey of students from both secondary school (229) and higher education (171), a quantitative study on gender differences was performed. The chi-squared test was applied to compute the corresponding p-value. Gender significant differences concerning goals were found (such as, at secondary school, girls preferred to help people, whereas boys preferred to be rich or to have a lot of holidays), and degree preferences (secondary school girls showed great interest in degrees, such as psychology, criminology and medicine, while boys showed great interest in sports sciences and engineering). However, these differences cannot be attributed to the existence of gender stereotypes, to the poor social image of workers in that field, or to the goals to be achieved within this profession. Some proposals are offered to reduce the gap.
... Seven studies focused on high school students' attitudes towards STEM majors and careers [11][12][13][14][15][16][17], one study focused on women in community college [18], seven used longitudinal data [19][20][21][22][23][24][25] and the rest of the studies focused on undergraduate students [26][27][28][29][30][31][32][33][34][35][36][37][38]. Studies took place in 7 countries (i.e., the US, UK, South Korea, Chile, Turkey, Israel and the UAE). ...
... Studies with high school students in the US [1] and Turkey [5] found female students were more interested in science (e.g., biology, environmental engineering) and less interested in physics, math, and computer science. In a study focused on low-female enrollment engineering fields, [28] participants cited social stereotypes and the immediate environment, as well as lack of interest, as reasons for the low enrollment of women in these fields. It is important to understand both women's interest and lack of interest in specific STEM disciplines if the goal is to increase women's participation across all disciplines. ...
... Additionally, computing, communications, and electrical and electronic engineering (CCEEE) disciplines have particularly low enrollment of women. A study [28] found social stereotypes, environment, and interest as the three reasons for this low enrollment. The number of responses in the current study from mechanical, bioengineering, and environmental engineering suggest women at this university follow national trends in enrollment in engineering disciplines. ...
Although women earn about half of science and engineering bachelor’s degrees, and 44% of master’s degrees, women are underrepresented in certain areas of science and engineering [1]. According to the National Science Foundation, women received the highest amount of science degrees in psychology and biosciences, and the lowest in computer sciences and engineering [1]. Why are women entering the fields of psychology and biology and not engineering or computer sciences? Many research studies have aimed to answer this question in various ways, including examining women’s math and science identities [2], confidence and self-efficacy [3, 4], perceptions and experiences [5], and larger, structural issues [6]. This study aims to identify women’s main motivating factor to pursue an engineering undergraduate degree. We are interested to find out how women are influenced to choose this career path, and what influences them.
... Nevertheless, engineering is gendered profession (Lord et al., 2011) and according to Olmedo-Torre et al. (2018) the number of women in engineering has dropped through these years especially in the area of computing and electrical engineering. It has been found that electrical engineering especially has http://dx.doi.org/10.15405/epsbs.2019.01.20 Corresponding Author: Jeya Amantha Kumar Selection and peer-review under responsibility of the Organizing Committee of the conference eISSN: 201 the lowest percentage of women enrolment worldwide (Lord et al., 2011) and in research, the underrepresentation of women in engineering and female undergraduates has not changed much for decades (Blosser, 2017;Price et al., 2017). ...
... It has been found that electrical engineering especially has http://dx.doi.org/10.15405/epsbs.2019.01.20 Corresponding Author: Jeya Amantha Kumar Selection and peer-review under responsibility of the Organizing Committee of the conference eISSN: 201 the lowest percentage of women enrolment worldwide (Lord et al., 2011) and in research, the underrepresentation of women in engineering and female undergraduates has not changed much for decades (Blosser, 2017;Price et al., 2017). A study done by Olmedo-Torre et al., (2018) found that low enrolment of females in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) are usually due to the social stereotype of the profession. This is also apparent in Malaysia. ...
... Zhou (2010) also states that male engineering undergraduates were found to excel in personal skills whereas females in social skills. The disparity between gender in engineering and the underrepresentation of female engineering undergraduates in educational research have called for extensive research to identify motives, barriers (Lord et al., 2011;Olmedo-Torre et al., 2018) and factors influencing gender stereotyping in the engineering profession especially in the undergraduate level (Zhou, 2010). ...
... In fact, some studies point to the importance of outreach activities led by STEM professionals to boost young people's motivation [63,72,85,56]. It, therefore, confirms that gender biases related to women's skills and qualifications in STEM jobs are no longer as widespread as they were years ago [17,61,74]. ...
... It is very remarkable that female students perceive more than male students the need for women professionals in these sectors, with differences of almost one point. The same tendency is observed for men are better prepared than women or gender equality is an important issue that needs to be addressed at all levels, although it has been demonstrated that educational institutions [14,17,18,29] as well as families [4,61] and government policies [76] are being effective in achieving gender equality in STEM. Regarding STEM jobs, female students perceive that they have more problems than men in finding STEM jobs or that they do not receive the same pay, which is a reality as recent statistics reveal that fewer women than men work in STEM sectors [29,30,54,89] and that there is a large pay gap [7,27,76]. ...
Digital societies require professionals in the Technology and Engineering sectors, but their lack, particularly of women, requires a thorough understanding of this gender gap. This research analyzes the beliefs and opinions of university engineering students about the gender gap in their professional fields by means of a community detection algorithm to identify groups of students with similar belief patterns. This study leverages a community detection algorithm to analyze the beliefs of 590 engineering students regarding the gender gap in their field, together with a correlational and explanatory design using a quantitative paradigm. A validated questionnaire focusing on the professional dimension was used. The algorithm identified three student communities, two gender‐sensitive and one gender‐insensitive. The study uncovered a concerning lack of awareness regarding the gender gap among engineering students. Many participants did not recognize the importance of increasing the representation of professional women, maintained the belief that the gender gap affects only women, and assumed that men and women are equally paid. However, women show a higher level of awareness, while men perceive the gender gap as a passing trend, which is worrying. Students recognize the importance of integrating a gender perspective into university and engineering curricula. It is worrying that many students doubt the existence of the gender gap and that both genders lack knowledge about gender gap issues. Finally, community detection algorithms could efficiently and automatically analyze gender gap issues or other unrelated topics.
... In the literature, studies have been found that investigate the gender gap in STEM and identify what motivates women to enroll in STEM [6]. Other studies explored female underrepresentation in open-source [7], gender bias while merging pull requests in open-source [8], less female engagement in stack-overflow community [9]. ...
... Olmedo-Torre et al. [6] conducted a survey to find out if female motivations for enrolling in STEM varied. More than a thousand STEM female graduate students participated in the survey. ...
Abstract— For a long time, the global software industry has
been attempting to address the issue of female underrepresentation. Several studies have looked into the barriers that women face when entering the industry. However, none of the studies investigated women’s undergrad experiences from the
perspective of cognitive distance, which is the distance faced
by peers from different backgrounds. This study addresses this
gap through an interview and survey-based approach in the
context of Bangladesh. It demonstrates the impact of cognitive
distance on female participation in software engineering. It also
demonstrates how the intensity of this distance varies throughout
the undergraduate years. It also identifies the barriers to cognitive
distance mitigation. This study confirms that a good internship
experience can help to reduce the cognitive distance felt and
increase inclusion. Finally, this study proposes six strategies for
creating a more inclusive environment for women in software
engineering, such as increasing awareness, cooperation, the
intervention of the authority, and other intervention programs
such as internships.
Index Terms—cognitive distance, female inclusion, diversity,
community smell, empirical study
... Social influences are another vital factor. The lack of women in science means that girls and adolescents do not choose a scientific career because they do not have role models to see themselves reflected (Olmedo-Torre et al., 2018). Female students exposed to a higher proportion of female STEM teachers during secondary education are more likely to enrol in tertiary STEM programmes (Dulce-Salcedo et al., 2022). ...
... Regarding this finding, there is no consensus in the literature. According to Dulce-Salcedo et al. (2022) and Olmedo-Torre et al. (2018), the lack of scientific women occurs because girls and adolescents do not have references in which to see themselves reflected; however, for de las Cuevas et al. (2022), the absence of models is not decisive in this choice. ...
... Before making choices about their study, girls often maintain stereotypical perceptions about STEM subjects being difficult (for their gender), and assume that they will not perform as well as male students in those disciplines (Shillabeer and Jackson 2013). Using a large-scale survey with over a thousand STEM and non-STEM female students in combination with a qualitative study at six different schools in Spain, Olmedo-Torre et al. (2018) revealed that social stereotypes were referred to as the most common barriers to low enrolment of women in STEM degrees (cited by nearly a third or 31.47% of their respondents), followed by their "immediate environment" (such as the number and gender of respondent's siblings and their order of birth) which were mentioned by 14.5% of respondents. Findings from the qualitative component further illustrated the existence of social stereotypes. ...
... Similarly, Google's study (2014) mentioned earlier noted that how a young woman perceived computer science as a career accounted for 27.5% of her decision to choose the field. Vocation-related reasons were also noted in a recent large-scale European study mentioned earlier (Olmedo-Torre et al. 2018). Specifically, female students widely ascribed their choice of STEM studies to the possibility of finding employment, which was cited by 75% of the respondents participating in that survey. ...
This report presents findings from the current body of peer-reviewed research regarding initiatives, strategies and programs that have been found to influence girls’ and women's engagement and decisions to study STEM at secondary and higher education, with a focus on IT and CS fields and degrees. We draw on research published since 2000 that we collected from two academic databases (Scopus and ProQuest). Further, this report includes evidence from grey literature (reports, websites etc.) of research and interventions that have been implemented and achieved positive results in increasing the representation of girls and women in both international and Australian education settings.
... The latest studies show that the number of female students enrolled in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) related disciplines have been decreasing over the last twenty years. Unfortunately, the number of women resigning from technological job positions also remains unacceptably high [15][16][17]. Furthermore, recent diversity reports demonstrate a large gap between the percentage of women holding computing jobs compared to the percentage of men [18]. ...
... In a survey conducted by Olmedo-Torre et al. [17] with over a thousand STEM female graduate students, social stereotypes and immediate environment were the main reasons pointed out for low enrollment of women in STEM. ...
Computer science is a predominantly male field of study. Women face barriers while trying to insert themselves in the study of computer science. Those barriers extend to when women are exposed to the professional area of computer science. Despite decades of social fights for gender equity in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education and in computer science in general, few women participate in computer science, and some of the reasons include gender bias and lack of support for women when choosing a computer science career. Open source software development has been increasingly used by companies seeking the competitive advantages gained by team diversity. This diversification of the characteristics of team members includes, for example, the age of the participants, the level of experience, education and knowledge in the area, and their gender. In open source software projects women are underrepresented and a series of biases are involved in their participation. This paper conducts a systematic literature review with the objective of finding factors that could assist in increasing women’s interest in contributing to open source communities and software development projects. The main contributions of this paper are: (i) identification of factors that cause women’s lack of interest (engagement), (ii) possible solutions to increase the engagement of this public, (iii) to outline the profile of professional women who are participating in open source software projects and software development projects. The main findings of this research reveal that women are underrepresented in software development projects and in open source software projects. They represent less than 10% of the total developers and the main causes of this underrepresentation may be associated with their workplace conditions, which reflect male gender bias.
... Uno de los factores más mencionados en la literatura es el sociocultural, donde los padres y profesores deben motivar a las niñas a ser autosuficientes e independientes para el desarrollo de habilidades analíticas [3], [4] . El estudio presentado en [5] menciona también a los estereotipos sociales y el entorno inmediato como factores considerados por las mujeres para permanecer en las áreas de STEM. Finalmente, la UNESCO expone que las niñas no identifican y no cuentan con modelos femeninos a seguir y por ello no encuentran una motivación para estudiar una rama de STEM. ...
Este trabajo complementa el manual de comunicación con enfoque de género de STEP UP mediante el desarrollo de una rúbrica complementaria. Esta rúbrica continúa el abordaje de los aspectos de comunicación delimitados en el manual y cuantifica a estos mismos mediante niveles de logro. Este enfoque no se ha propuesto en ningún trabajo relacionado con STEP UP anteriormente. Esta rúbrica y el manual de comunicación se recomiendan como herramientas de capacitación de comunicación con enfoque de género en el aula de física.
... Till this date, the research community has worked to address a general case [11], a very few studies have looked into the matter in a localized manner [12] [2]. In literature, several studies have investigated the context of gender gap in STEM , and also proposed possible solutions to diminish the gap [13]. Some studies shed light on women having less participation in open source [14], imbalanced participation in merging pull requests in open source [15] and stack overflow community [16]. ...
Despite the notable contribution of Bangladesh to the software landscape, underlying issues persist in human resource management. The current system stratifies software professionals into hierarchical prestige layers based on their roles, ultimately leading to imbalances in gender-based role distribution. This issue is similar to the elephant-in-the-room phenomenon, where disparities exist but are rarely acknowledged , often being overlooked as a topic of discussion. To find the underlying causes of these imbalances, we conducted a localized qualitative study based on in-depth interviews and focus group discussions. Based on the industry professionals' experiences regarding current industrial practices where societal codes and beliefs prevail, our study found several significant factors contributing to these imbalances, including hesitation towards complex technical environments, societal responsibilities, psychological and neurological differences, peer influence and mentoring, socioeconomic structures, recruiter biases, and employment opportunities. Improvement recommendations from the software professionals were also synthesized to present significant insights into reformation strategies and address the potential disparities. The findings also provide a foundation for developing more equitable practices and policies in the sector as well as serve as a valuable reference point for future researchers seeking to further explore and resolve these imbalances in the technology sector.
... In most cases, the decision about the future career direction is due not to one predictor alone but to their combination. According to the literature studied (Makarova et al., 2016;Olmedo-Torre et al., 2018;Salmi et al., 2016;Simon et al., 2017), girls choose STEM specialties based on the assessment of their abilities in mathematical sciences (made by them or others) (Ayuso et al., 2021;Ellis et al., 2016), the popularity of the program and possible prospects, or how relevant and complex the program is. In addition, an essential factor in planning was the presence of an "example" or someone who has already worked or is working in the professional technical field (Cheryan et al., 2015). ...
Solving global and local challenges efficiently requires as many diverse, educated, and knowledge-based viewpoints as possible. Regarding diversity in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM), especially in the Information and Communications Technology (ICT) sector, men have dominated the field for decades. Even nowadays, when the study contents have highly diversified, a more significant share of men join STEM studies paths than women. Based on a literature review, we explore and analyze reasons explaining why women choose or do not choose ICT studies at higher education institutions and what challenges they face in this path. The study collected current research-based views and extended the existing views on improving gender diversity in ICT studies. When choosing a future specialization, the society in which the child grew up, the family in which they were brought up, and the traditions they invested in are much more important than their gender. We have analysed the challenges and difficulties faced by women during the STEM pipeline based on the modern academic literature. Our recommendations can be considered and implemented in university and school organizing strategies and implementation models to achieve better gender balance. Researchers, universities, and organizations involved in ICT and STEM can apply our findings to future-proof their efforts to develop more efficient all-gender supportive operational models.
... Research by Cvencek et al. (2011) andOlmedo-Torre et al. (2018) has emphasized that the masculine narrative and perception surrounding STEM contribute significantly to the gender roles and stereotypes associated with STEM studies. Kirkland (2023) observed that individuals in STEM education and careers are commonly perceived by society as nerdy and masculine. ...
This chapter explores the integration of Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG 4) in Nigeria, specifically focusing on the challenges and opportunities for females' involvement in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM). Recognizing the pivotal role of gender equality in achieving SDG 4's objectives of inclusive and equitable quality education, the chapter examines the barriers hindering females' participation in STEM and identifies potential avenues for enhancement. Through a comprehensive analysis of institutional, socio-cultural, and educational factors, the chapter elucidates the complexities surrounding females' engagement in STEM in the Nigerian context. Furthermore, it explores strategies to promote females' enrollment and retention in STEM education and careers. By shedding light on both challenges and opportunities, this chapter contributes to the
... Several studies have concluded that the absence of women role models is one of the reasons why girls and female teenagers do not choose careers in engineering as life options (Oliveros et al., 2016;Bello, 2020;Olmedo-Torre et al., 2018;Dulce-Salcedo et al., 2022). Thereupon, this article seeks to provide visibility to the historical participation and contribution of women to the Faculty of Engineering's growth and development, acknowledging their contributions by name in order to honor their struggles and victories in support of women's rights in the country. ...
The Faculty of Engineering of Universidad Nacional de Colombia (UNAL) has a rich and complex history, which is inexorably linked to the convulsed history of Colombia. This article seeks to give visibility to the participation and historical contributions of women in the growth and development of the Department of Engineering throughout its 161 years of existence, as well as to recognize their contributions with the names of their protagonists, in order to honor their struggles and achievements in favor of women's rights in the country. This article also shows data and testimonials that reflect the significant gender gaps that still persist in the Faculty, it characterizes the women who are part of the academic community in their roles as students, professors, researchers, and directors, it lists the actions undertaken as institutional policies for closing gender gaps, and it proposes future measures to be implemented.
... Among the issues deterring gender equality in economic activities identified in the literature was the emphasis on the role of women in domestic responsibilities, restrictions of work after marriage, social norms and stereotypes, lack of protective laws, and limited access to finance and capital, among others. Indeed, the push of females by family and the wider society towards non-STEM domains by merit to perceived gender differences was highlighted by Olmedo-Torre et al. [14], where Ceci et al. [15] purported the fundamental differences in education between males and females, whereby the education of females is geared towards more domestic roles. ...
Gender equality is a concept that is synonymous with debates towards economic and societal advancement, as manifested through the United Nation’s Sustainable Development Goal 5. This study sets out to identify the key indicators driving gender equality in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) education and employment in Jordan. This area is both critical and timely in light of emerging challenges facing technological advancement, progressive economies, and wider societal inclusion strategies within the professional environment. This study predominantly employs a quantitative methodology, utilising a survey to evaluate and rank a comprehensive set of indicators/challenges associated with gender equality in the published literature. Feedback is gathered from both male and female participants. The findings of this study reveal certain categories and indicators that are highly ranked compared with others, with practical aspects such as workplace conditions and professional treatment, societal norms and gender stereotypes, and professional perceptions and underlying gender bias being more predominant in Jordan. This study also revealed differing challenges facing gender equality in employment compared with the ones faced in education. This finding resonates with the historical trajectory of academic progress in STEM fields in Jordan, and its divergence emphasises the need for a nuanced exploration to advance gender equality in STEM effectively.
... In the field of students, it is common that the concern about women in university education does not reside in their access to these studies, but rather shifts to other issues (multiple authors, 2010). The concern is that there are still degrees or studies that women do not choose, and where they are enrolled in a much lower proportion than men, as is the case of engineering, in particular, or technical degrees, in general (Oliveira, Unbehaum and Gava, 2019;Olmedo et al., 2018). 2. Gender studies focused on the employment of women in the teaching profession, where women are under-represented (Guil and Flecha, 2015;Pérez, 2005). ...
Spanish universities have transformed over the last four decades. The growing access of women has been a significant process within these social changes, although it has not led to greater equality in gender distribution, but rather to growing inequality, this time to the detriment of male university students. This article describes the evolution of the presence of men in the university system, taking into account undergraduate and postgraduate enrolment, as well as data on graduates. Secondary data provided by the Ministry of Education and Vocational Training are used from the 1985-1986 academic year to 2021-2022. The results indicate that males became progressively less prominent in undergraduate enrolments, a finding accentuated among graduates. According to the branch of knowledge, there is a majority of women in four of the five branches, Engineering and Architecture being the only area in which there is a majority of men.
... AA., 2010). La inquietud es que siguen existiendo grados o estudios que las mujeres no eligen, y donde se encuentran en una proporción muy inferior a los varones, como es el caso de las ingenierías, en particular, o de las carreras técnicas, en general (Oliveira, Unbehaum y Gava, 2019;Olmedo et al., 2018). 2. Los estudios de género centrados en la ocupación femenina en el profesorado, donde la mujer se encuentra subrepresentada (Guil y Flecha, 2015;Pérez, 2005). ...
La Universidad española se ha transformado profundamente en las últimas tres décadas. Dentro de estos cambios sociales, el acceso creciente de las mujeres a la Universidad ha sido significativo. Sin embargo, este acceso ha conllevado distintas consecuencias no visibilizadas. El trabajo analiza la evolución de la presencia masculina en el sistema universitario, desde la entrada en grados a la lectura de tesis doctorales. Se analizan las matriculaciones y los egresados de cada curso. La fuente de datos utilizada son los datos aportados por el Ministerio de Educación y Formación Profesional, por lo que se dispone de las características de toda la población universitaria. El periodo de tiempo abarca desde 1985-1986 a 2021-2022. Los resultados indican una progresiva pérdida de peso de los varones en las matriculaciones en grados, que se acentúa entre los egresados. Los datos por rama de conocimiento registran una mayoría de mujeres en cuatro de las cinco ramas, únicamente la rama de Ingenierías y Arquitectura tiene mayoría masculina. En Master las diferencias continúan, pero prácticamente se igualan en la matriculación de Doctorado. Se concluye con la necesidad de generar una auténtica perspectiva de igualdad que tenga en cuenta las desigualdades en sí mismas, con independencia de estereotipos.
... Lack of financial resources (funding or scholarships) [123] The family does not have enough budget to cover desired education in the STEM field. 8 Expectations from females to take care of children [118] In a traditional division of chores, a female is seen as a housekeeper. ...
Background and context: Even when the modern world is transitioning quickly into the digital age, the gender gap continues to be more acute. Social scientists note the low number of women in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Maths (STEM) as a scientific, creative, economic, and innovative potential loss. The importance of women's participation in technical sciences and technical production is also recognized as a factor for stable social development. Objective and method: A scoping review has been conducted to study females' reasonings and society-based explanations for females to choose STEM studies at the Higher Education Institutions (HEI) level. The goal is to understand the reasons for the low number of females in STEM careers related to education in STEM and to reveal the underlying phenomenon. Results: The gender attitudes and stereotypes inherent in boy and girl children's spare time and school life narrow the children's possibilities from what specific education and career direction they can choose. But only a few genetics and physical differences could postulate and explain this status quo. Humans have formed a particular social framework; in the process, we have socialized childhood and education. When choosing a future specialization, the society in which the child grew up, the family that brought him up, and what traditions they invested in are much more important than his gender. Implications: Based on our results, we summarise the scattered knowledge base and utilize the analyzed summary for recommendations to further the development of HEI programs to make them more fitting for both genders and help reduce the gender gap. The universities should cover the achievements of females, more often in their media channels, related to the previously mentioned interest in STEM, based on the presence of a role model. When choosing a university, girls can see a real example and be inspired to study STEM majors.
... In the case of Computer Science degrees, the most frequently studied factor is career prospects (factor 3.1.1.2). The possibility of obtaining quality employment in a field is one of the main reasons why students decide to choose a specific university degree [26,27]. There is a surprising discrepancy between the importance of this motivational factor and the insufficient demand in STEM degrees. ...
STEM disciplines are considered essential for human development, and they are associated with low unemployment rates and good economic prospects. However, many countries are faced with the problem of too few STEM graduates, which raises the question of why more students do not choose STEM majors. This study presents a systematic mapping of studies published prior to 2021 in Web of Science or Scopus in order to examine the research trends on the factors that cause students to choose a career in Computer Science, or more generically, in the STEM fields. These factors have been identified and classified in 3 categories: Environmental factors, Social influencers and Personal factors. The categories are made up of 4 levels of subcategories. We analyzed (1) the countries in which the study was conducted, (2) the characteristics of the study and (3) the frameworks used. The results show that the bulk of the studies were conducted in developed countries, mainly in North America and Europe. The frameworks most commonly used in the studies are Expectancy-Value Theory and Social Cognitive Career Theory, and consequently, the most commonly studied factors for STEM degrees are those related to personal psychological factors. For Computer Science degrees, the most frequently studied factor is career prospects. On the other hand, a small number of studies on the impact of social media on the choice of studies in the technology field were detected. Among the studies analyzed, there is great interest in determining the factors that specifically affect women and the differences between men and women, especially in studies dealing with the Computer Sciences. Furthermore, there are few studies that analyze the effect of informal educational experiences among women. Given that this kind of experiences has become very popular in recent years among women, future research should analyze their impact on the choice of STEM studies. Taking into account the current relevance of the social media, additional research on their impact on the choice of studies should be conducted. It would also be necessary to analyze the situation in underdeveloped countries, especially among women, given that this field is currently a driver of economic development.
... In turn, the incorporation of female models of reference, both in the figure of the monitor and in the invited scientists, appears to have influenced the self-concept of the girls. As various authors have pointed out [42,43], one of the main reasons for female disinterest and the low representation of women in STEM areas is rooted in the absence of female models with which to identify, implying a masculine prototype. ...
The gender gap in STEM areas is still a reality that constitutes a global concern. Many initiatives have sought to strengthen the scientific-technological aspirations of girls, among them extracurricular programs such as the one we present here. Its design is based on the available scientific evidence to promote female interest and self-concept in those areas. In this study, we analyze the impact of the extracurricular activities on the development of competencies and perceptive self-evaluation skills among eight girls aged between 8 and 11 years old regarding science and technology. The results showed the effectiveness of the extracurricular activities both for the development of skills and for the improvement of levels of self-concept, interest, and participation, which leads us to highlight the need to promote initiatives of this sort in order to overcome gender stereotypes and to achieve equality.
... Also, the study by Olmedo-Torre et al. (2018) analyses the influences on female STEM students. The authors divided women into two groups, those studying Computing, Communications, and Electrical and Electronic Engineering (CCEEE women) and those studying other non-CEEE degrees. ...
Differences in the representation of diversity in higher education, emphasising the gender gap in some areas, are issues addressed from different research domains. Socially, gender roles have been constructed and are also related to professions. In this context, the Social Cognitive Career Theory explores the possible causes of segregation. This segregation is evident in Europe and Spain, as indicated by the European Institute for Gender Equality. This paper describes the design and validation process of an instrument to find out what opinions university students have about higher education studies in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM), according to gender. After drafting the questionnaire, it was piloted in a non-experimental quantitative design in Spain. Subsequently, a validity and reliability study was applied to validate the items and construct their dimensionality. The process was implemented using Reliability Analysis and Exploratory Factor Analysis. Also, the dimensionality consists of five scales: Gender Ideology, Perception and Self-perception, Expectations about Science, Attitudes and Interests. Based on the results, it is concluded that the opinion about STEM studies is conditioned by personal elements, such as motivations, educational background and family and social influences, such as people who judged their decision, were their references or studied STEM programs. Finally, it is essential to pay socio-educational attention to the modulating components of decisions about which higher education studies to pursue. Awareness of the factors involved in the decision helps the educational community to establish mechanisms to prevent horizontal gender segregation. The instrument designed, validated and presented in this study provides a glimpse of possible causes for the gender gap in STEM higher education.
... Therefore, and in line with the objective of finding out students' perception of STEM disciplines, one of the most important reasons given by students is that they do not see themselves as being able to complete higher education in these disciplines. This idea, together with the fact that some of the students do not understand what engineers/technologists do and a higher number do not like what they do, (also proven by other research studies [32], [33]) makes it essential to bring technology closer to the education system so that they feel empowered. In this regard, this study has found that there is a weak association between being a teacher of ICT, robotics, technology, programming and orientation toward STEM studies. ...
Contribution: There is a significant decline in technological vocations despite a huge increase in labor demand for professionals in these sectors. This technology-related problem has become a major concern for governments, organizations, and education systems. Students’ motivation toward Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) may be due to the influence of their immediate environment, known role models and the involvement of families and teachers, as well as the search for more positive and inclusive perceptions of science and technology in our lives. The present study shows the perception and motivation of secondary students and teachers toward STEM and its importance in society. Background: The low presence of students in STEM could be explained by the perception and knowledge of students and teachers toward technology. Studies show that students largely lose interest in STEM during secondary school education, and this leads to a decline in technological vocations that carries over to university and the labor market. Due to the economic and social impact of this loss, institutions are launching initiatives to support education and the development of digital competences, with special emphasis on the awakening technological vocations. Research Questions: What is the motivation and perspective of students for STEM studies? Are teachers aware of students’ perceptions? What are the actions taken by teachers to encourage secondary students toward STEM? Methodology: This study follows a descriptive correlational design based on surveys (1562 students and 430 teachers) regarding issues that influence the perceptions of students and teachers toward STEM. Findings: This study demonstrates a divergence between teachers’ and students’ perceptions of STEM-related skills and abilities. Indeed, teachers and parents/guardians need to encourage more young people to engage in STEM activities because of the great influence they have on their decisions. The search for new STEM referents that young people can identify with is another important finding. Furthermore, this study also reveals that technology should be linked to our daily lives and emphasize its role as a social good for society. Finally, integrating STEM subjects into the curriculum and encouraging technological vocations at all stages of education are of utmost importance.
... A quantitative analysis of female students' motivations to undertake a STEM career showed that women in STEM studies had a different profile, tending toward an individualistic personality, who finds intellectual stimulation very satisfying [18]. Participation in academic or professional activities was considered another vital difference between STEM and non-STEM students. ...
One characteristic of recent decades is the growing awareness of education's importance as a force of change in our countries, the gaps in gender equality, and the lesser presence of women in STEM areas. Mentoring programs have stood out among the initiatives to close these gaps for their impact and continuous presence, both formally and informally. This research aimed to identify why a woman professor/ researcher or undergraduate student becomes a mentor to identify an ideal mentor profile for female students interested in STEM areas. The qualitative methodology of this study had three stages: (1) Design of the study to identify the motives, (2) Definition of the qualitative instruments and the sample of women mentors, and (3) Analysis of the data and conclusions. The findings of why a woman professor, researcher, or undergraduate student becomes a mentor are: (a) empathy for the mentee's life and experiences in comparison to what she lived at her age, (b) desire to share the passion for her discipline and her experiences as a woman in the professional field, (c) motivation to foster resilience in women in STEM areas, (d) desire to transcend her life by impacting other lives, (e) the yearning to contribute and give back what she has received, (f) the need to make the gender gap visible and improve the current conditions of the countries where the mentors live, among other reasons.)
... Women have entered many other fields where previously there were no considerable female representativeness, including other STEM fields, but not computer science and engineering [12]. Amplifying women interest in STEM, specifically CS, is an important aim for universities, national and local governments, and society as a whole [30]. ...
This work presents a comprehensive research about the participationof men and women in the area of Information and CommunicationsTechnology (ICT) through data extracted from the last foureditions of Google Summer of Code (GSoC). The goal of this workis to find Association Rules between gender characteristics andcoding using the Apriori Algorithm. A total of 61 association ruleswere generated through the aforementioned algorithm, being 22 ofthem found only in the data set with the women, 24 found only withthe men, and 15 applicable to both sets. We can cite as one of themain findings of this work the fact that the representativeness ofwomen in GSoC is decreasing in the last few years. Despite this, therepresentativeness of women in GSoC is above average, accordingto what has been reported in other studies in the literature in whichwomen are underrepresented. When it comes to the most utilizedtechnologies, we have “Python", “Java", “C++", “C" and “JavaScript"in the top. Analyzing technologies, it’s possible to realize that themain utilized technologies for men and women are similar, but, ingeneral, men are more likely linked to programming languages.The most common project topics are: “Event Management", “Web",“Web Development", “Data Science" and “Cloud" in the top. Thiscan represent how diverse the project topics of the database are,but not necessarily has something related to gender.
... En este artículo se presenta una parte del análisis de resultados realizado a partir de las respuestas de las encuestadas. Un análisis más completo, incluyendo resultados cualitativos, puede encontrarse en [13]. ...
El bajo porcentaje de matriculación de mujeres en los grados universitarios STEM ha sido y es objeto de investigación. Además, es también conocido que la presencia femenina no se distribuye de manera uniforme en todos los estudios STEM. En determina-das áreas, como las ingenierías en Informática, Telecomunicaciones, Eléctrica y Electrónica (que denominaremos ITEE), la presencia de mujeres no crece a pesar de las campañas para captar talento femenino y aumentar los datos de matriculación. Los objetivos de este trabajo son identificar las principa-les razones por las cuales las mujeres STEM se han decidido a realizar estos estudios, determinar si hay un estereotipo de mujer STEM y detectar si existen diferencias entre las mujeres que se decantan por estudios ITEE y las que se decantan por estudios STEM no ITEE. Para alcanzar estos objetivos, se envió una encuesta a 3699 alumnas y egresadas (Alumni) de la Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya - BarcelonaTech, de la que se recibieron 1060 respues-tas. Los resultados revelan un perfil diferente entre las mujeres que cursan estudios ITEE y las que cursan estudios STEM no ITEE. Comprender las causas que motivan a las estudiantes a inscribirse en estudios STEM, e identificar contra qué estereotipos deben luchar, así como la existencia de posibles diferencias entre perfiles ITEE y STEM no ITEE, podría ayudar a los responsables de políticas aca-démicas de promoción y captación de talento a aumentar la inscripción femenina en estudios ITEE y STEM en general.
... The vast majority of engineering students and graduates are male, so there is a considerable amount of research focused on determining the possible factors or causes that make this phenomenon to happen (Marra et al. 2012;Álvarez-Lires et al. 2014;Stanko et al. 2014;Kori et al. 2016;Lee et al. 2017;Oo et al. 2018;Olmedo-Torre et al. 2018). In the study of Álvarez-Lires et al. (2014), the authors analyzed the reasons of students' disinterest or aversion to engineering careers in Galicia, Spain, through the use of questionnaires, interviews and discussion groups; they found in the results, as in the works of Marra et al. (2012), that there are mainly problems of teaching science and technology subjects, causing them to avoid choosing engineering careers. ...
Despite the great need for computer-related career professionals, some universities that offer specialties to develop professionals with knowledge to cover the mention need, present a decrease in enrollment, which can cause a wide variety of problems. That is why in this paper we set out to investigate what the main factors that directly or indirectly affect student enrollment in computer-related careers are, to establish a literature-based starting point, and to help select the best possible strategy to improve enrollment. To reach this goal, we did a documentary research, categorizing each one of the factors with its respective analysis. In the results, we explain several challenges that educators face, due to the evolution of society needs, two of them are: teaching-learning models and technology; besides, it became evident that the relevance of this academic programs remain available since there is a high demand for these professionals in Mexico, as well as in the world; finally, we showed some intrinsic and extrinsic motivational factors that have an essential relevance at the time that a student chooses the career to study. On the other hand, we reflected that the perception of everything that involves the study of a Computing-related career is a factor to be considered in the selection of an educational program of higher education. This study could be a reference for universities that are facing decreasing enrollment concerns. In conclusion, we analyzed and identified the main factors that have an impact on the demand for a career related to engineering, providing possible lines of action for increasing school enrollment.
In view of the above-mentioned problems, this paper is based on STEM education and constructs teaching aids for smart farms, allowing students to practice the teaching aids developed by this paper in the field. The teaching aids of this paper are mainly based on the detection of farm and honeycomb status. Determine whether there are any abnormalities between the farm and the activity status of bees, such as: crop growth, bee reproduction, etc. Students can increase their interest in IT practical learning through teaching aid assembly and program operation. In addition, students should correct the teaching aid parameters during actual operation. Improving the recognition accuracy will further arouse students’ interest in artificial intelligence theory learning and achieve STEM education concepts. This paper will mainly use traditional artificial intelligence practical teaching methods and the innovative teaching methods proposed by this paper for learning comparison. The teaching method will be evaluated through the T test method through front and back questionnaires, teaching evaluation and student achievement scores. Help show whether the teaching method of this paper has achieved the expected goal. This article aims to cultivate more talents through Artificial Intelligence of Things (AIoT) teaching aids, analyzing data using t-tests in Statistical Product and Service Solutions (SPSS). Therefore, the experimental results prove that the STEM 4.0 approach proposed in this study can enhance students’ learning performance and willingness.
Los estereotipos de género se encuentran en las diferentes esferas en las que se desarrolla un individuo. Existen presiones sociales, sesgos, patrones y roles, creencias estereotipadas, que condicionan el comportamiento y la autopercepción de la persona. Esto también sucede en el momento de decidir qué estudios superiores cursar. Si bien se trata de una decisión que se dirige al futuro profesional y que debería estar marcada por las perspectivas futuras de carrera, en ocasiones no es así. No existen evidencias de que la brecha de género en el sector de la ciencia, la tecnología, la ingeniería y las matemáticas (STEM) esté producida por razones biológicas, naturales o cognitivas. Sin embargo, sí existen evidencias de que el ambiente, la cultura y los contextos en los que se desenvuelve la persona condicionan esta decisión. El objetivo del trabajo es identificar las influencias sociales, familiares, educativas y del grupo de iguales que existen sobre la opinión que los universitarios tienen sobre los estudios STEM. Para ello se ha aplicado un cuestionario, a partir de un estudio piloto exploratorio. En el piloto han participado 115 personas, todas ellas estudiantes de universidad. El estudio ha seguido una metodología cuantitativa, a partir de la construcción de cinco dimensiones (Ideología de Género, Actitudes, Intereses, Percepción y Autopercepción, y Expectativas sobre la Ciencia) y contrastes de hipótesis, para el instrumento. Los resultados refuerzan la hipótesis de que los diferentes ambientes que rodean a la persona condicionan que esta tenga o no estereotipos de género sobre los estudios superiores STEM. Principalmente, se deben tener en cuenta los apoyos recibidos, los referentes y quiénes han juzgado su decisión sobre los estudios cursados.
Using social cognitive career theory (SCCT), we examined the career development of students in sex-typed postsecondary Vocational Technical Education (VTE) programs in the Chilean context. We assessed the moderating effects of students’ socioeconomic background, sex, membership to the sex-atypical group, and the intersection of these attributes across SCCT measures and the model’s predicted relationships. The results showed that students in sex-atypical careers, particularly low-income students, perceived supports and barriers differently, and that supports and barriers have different effects on self-efficacy and outcome beliefs. We also found differences between female and male students in these careers path, which suggests that the former face more challenges. However, we also found that their career development process unfolds similarly, suggesting that strategies designed to support these groups may be equally helpful for female and male students. We discuss the findings in light of prior literature and offer practical implications for VTE institutions.
Contribution: This article explores the factors favoring the enrollment in engineering studies in Spain, analyzing gender differences. Background: Understanding the motivation of choosing engineering studies is very important in order to strengthen this choice in future promotions in Spain, considering that it is well below the average of the European Union at the present time. Research Questions: What are the main factors that influence students to choose engineering studies? Are there any noticeable differences between those affecting male and female students? Methodology: Data were collected from a survey completed by 624 students and an exploratory study was performed extracting five components. Independent sample
T
-tests were used to determine significant differences between the answers of males and females. Findings: The factors found in the exploratory analysis were "Interest and development," "Career advice and previous contact," "Outcome expectations," "Social influences" and "Not preferred option." Significant differences between the answers given by males and females were also found. The outcome of this study is important for the development of new interventions aimed to increase interest, enrollment, and retention of engineering students, especially among females.
The need to incorporate the gender dimension in higher education is a central element of gender equality policies within the European Union (EU). When most institutions of higher education have already strengthened and consolidated their curricula, the next challenge is to include and ensure that all people have the same opportunities to progress in education. This study intends to incorporate the gender dimension in teaching through a guide providing recommendations for the introduction of changes that will allow its effective incorporation in STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) areas. It will take into account the administration in charge of formulating policies in the field of education, the students, and, mainly, the teaching staff. Its objective is to cover aspects related to the principles of equal opportunities and gender equality in STEM higher education disciplines. For this purpose, 41 volunteer teachers from 8 degrees and master’s degrees from the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya in Spain participated. To achieve the results of this study, aspects related to social and gender relevance of the subjects, inclusive methodology, classroom management and assessment were considered. As a preliminary step to the development of the guide of recommendations, a teacher’s self-assessment tool and a questionnaire for students to analyze the perception of the gender dimension were developed.
Today's society is facing new challenges and opportunities that demand professional profiles specialized in problem solving, with the ability to innovate and exploit the possibilities offered by information and communication technologies (ICTs). Far from being a novelty, the term STEM was coined in the mid-1990s. From then until now, there are a multitude of initiatives focusing on working STEM education with students. In recent years, the use of the arts as an enhancer of the educational experience has been incorporated into STEM education. There has also been a focus on involving the student in the educational process. Despite this, few experiences have been detected in which parents are involved in the educational process. Throughout this work, it is shown the pilot experience which has been developed to motivate parents to be part of the learning process in science, technology, engineering, art, and mathematics (STEAM) subjects.
Introducción. En multitud de países las mujeres están infrarrepresentadas en las diferentes áreas STEM (acrónimo, en inglés, de Ciencias, Tecnología, Ingeniería y Matemáticas) y, sin embargo, están sobrerrepresentadas en otros campos, tales como el de la salud, la psicología o la educación. La educación secundaria es considerada como una etapa crítica en la cual las chicas inician su distanciamiento de las ciencias y las matemáticas. Este estudio se propone, principalmente, profundizar en las relaciones entre la variable sexo, las expectativas de alumnos de 15 años de ejercer profesiones STEM y el rendimiento en Ciencias en España, y plantea finalmente algunas implicaciones para la educación científica. Métodos. Se ha establecido una distinción entre las expectativas profesionales relacionadas con las Ciencias en general y las propiamente STEM y se han efectuado análisis diferenciados, a partir de PISA 2015, sobre la relación entre esas expectativas en alumnos de 15 años edad, el rendimiento en Ciencias y la variable sexo, mediante análisis de covarianza, controlando la influencia del nivel socioeconómico y cultural (ISEC). Dichos análisis se han efectuado a nivel de España en su conjunto y de cada una de sus comunidades autónomas. Resultados. Los resultados obtenidos han permitido establecer empíricamente lo siguiente: una relativamente pequeña brecha de género en cuanto al rendimiento en Ciencias, una vez controlado el efecto del ISEC; una muy notable brecha de género en materia de expectativas profesionales STEM; la vinculación, particularmente en las chicas, entre vocaciones STEM y elevados rendimientos en Ciencias; y la diferente intensidad de la relación entre sexo y rendimiento por comunidad autónoma. Discusión. Dichos resultados se relacionan con evidencias anteriores, se presentan algunas de sus limitaciones y se efectúan recomendaciones en materia de enseñanza de las Ciencias en la educación secundaria.
Certain engineering majors attract more women than others, and this seems to be fairly universal. Bio-engineering, biomedical engineering, chemical engineering, civil/environmental engineering lead in the proportion of women enrolling and persisting, while mechanical and electrical and computer engineering have the lowest proportions. Engineering programs that have increased their proportion of women usually incorporate more of the former specializations, or have added in a new program of this kind. Little research has been done comparing differences between the women in these different kinds of majors. This paper contributes to filling this gap by addressing how the women in majors that are more commonly attracting women differ from women in majors with proportionately fewer women. The paper draws on data aggregated from surveys collected during the last six years from engineering students at Rowan University. It compares women in mechanical and electrical/computer engineering, to women in chemical and civil/environmental engineering, where the proportions of women are larger. Students are compared in terms of their academic and family backgrounds, whether they come in with different orientations to engineering (including engineering self-confidence and expectations from the engineering degree), and whether they exhibit different levels or types of satisfaction with the engineering major. Five hypotheses are offered; most of them are not supported by the data. Background differences, differences in general academic and math/science self-confidence, attributions of success, and expectations about the engineering degree do not result in the expected differences. Women do differ with respect to engineering self-confidence. Results are also compared to men in the respective majors.
There have been numerous studies examining the effects of social role theory on negative stereotyping of female managers, including low perceived likeability and unwillingness by subordinates to trust them. These attributions are particularly relevant in the context of “male-dominated” jobs, such as technical disciplines like engineering and project management. We investigated the specific setting of project manager job candidate selection, a professional discipline that has historically been male-dominated, but one that has seen a large rise in female project managers over the past decade. We examined the perceptions of respondents to differences in male and female job candidates based on the critical personal/managerial characteristics of trust and likeability. Using a scenario-based survey questionnaire, we sampled 312 project management personnel and tested subjects’ reactions to two candidates for a project management position, employing identical descriptions and language while only changing the candidate's name: Susan or Stan. Our results suggested that, contrary to expectations, respondents’ perceptions of the female candidate, Susan, were significantly higher across both managerial dimensions of likeability and trust. Implications of these findings and directions for future research are discussed.
This report presents a new way of investigating gender segregation by occupation. The analyses show conclusively that the nature of the occupation itself is important, above and beyond whether an occupation is male-dominated, female-dominated or mixed, and above and beyond whether an occupation is blue-collar or white-collar.
Exploiting a randomized natural experiment in India, we show that female leadership influences adolescent girls’ career aspirations
and educational attainment. A 1993 law reserved leadership positions for women in randomly selected village councils. Using
8453 surveys of adolescents aged 11 to 15 and their parents in 495 villages, we found that, relative to villages in which
such positions were never reserved, the gender gap in aspirations closed by 20% in parents and 32% in adolescents in villages
assigned a female leader for two election cycles. The gender gap in adolescent educational attainment was erased, and girls
spent less time on household chores. We found no evidence of changes in young women’s labor market opportunities, which suggests
that the impact of women leaders primarily reflects a role model effect.
In this paper we examined the differences and similarities in the human capitalvariables of male and female information system (IS) workers and the affect thesedifferences had on job outcomes. The human capital variables studied included: age,education, organization and job tenure, and number of years in the IS occupation. Wefound that, even when controlling for the differences in human capital, women in ISstill tended to be employed at lower levels of the organization, made less money, andhad greater intentions to leave the organization.
In the UK and elsewhere, progress and achievements in tackling theunder-representation of women in science, engineering and technology(SET) are far outweighed by the investment in this area in terms of both research and initiatives. The authors attempt to explain this by presenting a critical analysis of the development of research on women professionals in SET. This critique is structured around four approaches identified in the literature: essentialist constructions of science and gender; barriers facing women professionals in SET; the assimilation of women in SET; and the business case for change. It is argued that existing research in the field does not always offer practical solutions for change and has a tendency tosituate women as part of the problem. It concludes that future research and solutions must be multi-faceted, evidence-based and policy oriented if equality is to be perceived not only as a ‘women’s issue’ and real cultural change is to be instigated in the sector.
The preliminary results from a research project on the changing
position of women engineers worldwide are presented and discussed. These
results include data on women engineers in a number of different
countries for the period 1960-1997. They were obtained from a survey of
130 engineering institutions in 55 different countries. As an
introduction to the presentation of these results, some of the problems
facing women engineers in industry and education are considered. The
data are discussed in detail; a number of hypotheses to explain the data
are proposed, and further investigations and additional data
requirements to allow these hypotheses to be verified or disproved are
identified. These hypotheses include increases in the percentage of
women engineers resulting from the effects of changes in the political
system, convergence of the images of women and engineers, and generally
good conditions for women and their involvement in public life
The under-representation of women in engineering is an issue of concern for policy-makers. While much of the existing literature has focussed on understanding reasons for women's under-representation in engineering and related technical fields, there is a paucity of research that examines why women who are already in engineering persist. This study aims to answer the question, why do women engineers in academe persist in a discipline that is generally perceived to be inhospitable to women. Three main challenges, namely gender discrimination, lack of institutional and disciplinary support, and the rigid nature of the workplace, emerged as key impediments to women engineers in the private sector. In contrast, women engineers in the academy identified the flexibility offered by academic environments, the presence of personal support networks, and a passion for teaching and students as critical factors that influenced their decision to remain in academia.
Women's access to higher education in Spain began in the last third of the nineteenth century. However, the full incorporation of women into technical studies did not occur until a century later. This article presents the results of research into the access of the first women to do technical studies in Catalonia (northeast Spain). Data have been collected from 11 technical schools belonging to the Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya (UPC) with the aim of understanding the dynamics of the incorporation of women into these schools between 1851 (foundation of the first engineering school in Catalonia) and 1980. Interviews were conducted with 21 pioneer women who completed their technical studies. Their experiences show how technical schools had to adapt, both physically and culturally, to female students. Finally, the current status of female engineers in Catalonia is compared with the situation in other Western countries. Similarities are found that show the relevance of gender as a social structuring force.
Outreach activities, like mobile science exhibitions, give opportunities to hands-on experiences in an attractive learning environment. We analysed attitudes, motivation and learning during a science exhibition visit, their relations to gender and future educational plans in Finland, Estonia, Latvia and Belgium (N = 1210 sixth-graders). Pupils' performance in a knowledge test improved after the visit. Autonomous motivation and attitudes towards science predicted situation motivation awakened in the science exhibition. Interestingly, the scientist attitude and the societal attitude were clearly separate dimensions. The third dimension was manifested in the engineering attitude typical for boys, who were keener on working with appliances, designing computer games and animations. Scientist and societal attitudes correlated positively and engineering attitude correlated negatively with the future educational plans of choosing the academic track in secondary education. The societal perspective on science was connected to above average achievement. In the follow-up test, these attitudes showed to be quite stable.
This article considers how women in a gendered profession, engineering, construct their professional identity in response to workplace interpersonal interactions that marginalize it. Using data from interviews with women engineers, it also explores how these interactions influence the engineers' sense of self and belonging in engineering. The interpersonal interactions place professional identity on the periphery and can overly validate gender identity. I discuss two types of identity construction strategies employed by the participants in response to these marginalizing interactions: impression management tactics and coping strategies. Although the data demonstrate that participants may be left feeling devalued or ambivalent towards their identity or fit in engineering, some interactions are more validating and offer a sense of belonging. This article also reflects on how the engineers' actions may, in fact, represent forces for change in the gendered culture of engineering.
Electrical engineering (EE) is one of the largest engineering disciplines. Computer engineering (CpE) has a similar curriculum, but different demographics and student outcomes. Using a dataset from universities in the U.S. that includes over 70 000 students who majored in engineering, this paper describes the out comes for students matriculating in and migrating into EE and CpE so as to inform the decision making of faculty, department heads, and deans. Although men consistently outnumber women in EE and CpE, the rates of matriculation and six-year graduation vary by race and gender. EE is the most popular choice for Asian and Black students (males and females) at matriculation, but while Asians graduate at high rates, Blacks (particularly males) are not retained. Retention is higher in EE than in CpE despite the similarity of the curricula. Graduation rates are lower than expected for women of all races in CpE and for Hispanic women in EE. By the third semester, some students of all races and genders have left their matriculation major, but others have migrated in from other majors, compensating for some of this loss. CpE students are more likely than EE students to switch to another major. Trajectories of EE and CpE students are racialized and distinct. CpE loses more students and attracts fewer students than EE. These findings il lustrate the importance of disaggregating by engineering major as well as race and gender to improve recruitment and retention overall.
This paper explores both how male and female high school pupils (15-16 years old) perceive the engineering profession and their willingness to pursue a career in this area. A study was performed around a one-day outreach activity, Girls' Day, organized for the first time in Spain. During Girls' Day, students were exposed to specific activities developed for them in engineering research labs and companies, carried out by young female researchers and professionals. The study, based on two questionnaires answered before and after the activity, focuses on the differences between groups of female and male students having differing degrees of interest in studying engineering. The educational level of mothers, the presence of engineers in families, and perceived family support emerged as important factors influencing the probability of a young person's considering pursuing engineering studies. Nevertheless, the need to expose children to outreach activities at a younger age and to involve the students' families and teachers has become clear. If planned properly and thoughtfully, even a single day's experience can contribute to changing the perception of what an engineer is.
Women Active in the ICT Sector
European Commission. (2013). Women Active in the ICT Sector. 864
[Online]. Available: https://bookshop.europa.eu/en/women-active-in-the-865
ict-sector-pbKK0113432/
Gender differences across 834 engineering majors
- M Hartman
- H Hartman
- J Kadlowec
M. Hartman, H. Hartman, and J. Kadlowec, "Gender differences across
834
engineering majors," in Proc. ASEE Annu. Conf., Honolulu, HI, USA,
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