GENDER DIFFERENCES AND INTRAGENDER DIFFERENCES IN COMPUTER SCIENCE STUDENTS: ARE FEMALE CS MAJORS MORE SIMILAR TO MALE CS MAJORS OR FEMALE NONMAJORS?

Abstract

This paper presents the findings of a study investigating a) intragender differences, i.e., differences between female computer science (CS) majors and female nonmajors; and b) gender differences in CS students. To this end, we compared female CS majors, female nonmajors, male CS majors, and male nonmajors. We found evidence for substantial gender differences on social psychological variables such as values, interests, and computer self-efficacy. However, we also found that in many respects (e.g., attitudes towards CS, CS careers, and work-life balance) female majors were more similar to male majors than to female nonmajors. We discuss the implications of these findings for women's underrepresentation in CS.