ECR Core Research: Investigating Computer Science Departmental Diversity Efforts to Identify Levers for Change

这项研究解决了在计算机科学（CS）领域学习和工作的人之间缺乏多样性的长期问题。描述那些获得CS学位的人的性别和种族/民族的统计数据讲述了一个学科变化缓慢的故事。近二十年来，女性获得CS本科学位的比例几乎没有上升。在过去的几十年里，西班牙裔、非洲裔美国人和美洲原住民学生在计算机领域的代表性不足甚至更令人担忧。然而，许多CS部门已经采取了各种各样的努力，以扩大参与计算（BPC）。虽然已经研究了BPC的努力，但到目前为止，这项研究还没有研究一个有助于或阻碍进步的关键杠杆：教师对多样性的态度和他们部门的BPC努力。该项目将寻求更多地了解这些教师的态度，支持和障碍，以提供基于研究的建议，那些希望多样化的学生毕业与计算机学位。这种多样化是很重要的，因为今天的学生是社会的未来技术专家，所以他们应该反映他们即将服务的社会。本研究将采取一种现象学的定性方法，探讨教师的态度，概念和信念，扩大参与计算（BPC）的举措。研究人员将从美国排名前25位的计算机科学本科生中选出三个不同计算机科学系的教师和管理人员收集采访数据。抽样中的每个机构都在部门一级大力参与多样性工作，取得了一些成功，但在某些领域明显缺乏成功。这项研究的主要研究问题将是：什么组织条件支持或阻碍教师摄取BPC的努力，在高本科生学位生产计算部门？由于教师工作的组织系统，帮助或阻碍他们的能力，以产生和维持其部门的变化，这项研究借鉴了新制度理论。这一理论有助于澄清教师的信念和行动在响应和共同创造部门文化，包括促进非多数人口的包容性部门气候中发挥的作用。这项研究的目标是建立一个知识库，什么支持和阻碍部门的多样性努力，以及什么样的组织条件是必要的变化采取。这个知识库可以导致新的干预措施相对于BPC和CS教师，以及在其他学科或其他高等教育机构类型的相关研究。这个项目是由NSF的EHR核心研究（ECR）计划的支持。ECR计划强调基础STEM教育研究，产生该领域的基础知识。投资是在关键领域是必不可少的，广泛的，持久的：干学习和干学习环境，扩大参与干，干劳动力发展。该计划支持积累强有力的证据，为理解、建立理论解释和建议干预措施和创新以解决持久性问题提供信息。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的知识价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This study addresses the longstanding problem of the lack of diversity among persons studying and working in the field of computer science (CS). The statistics describing the gender and race/ethnicity of those who earn CS degrees tell a story of a discipline that has been slow to change. The percentage of CS undergraduate degrees that have been earned by women has barely risen in nearly two decades. The lack of representation of Hispanic, African American, and Native American students in computing over the past few decades is even direr. And yet many CS departments have undertaken a wide variety of efforts to broaden participation in computing (BPC). While BPC efforts have been studied, the research until now has not examined a key lever that helps or hinders progress: faculty members’ attitudes toward diversity and their department’s BPC efforts. This project will seek to understand more about these faculty attitudes, supports, and obstacles to provide research-based recommendations to those who wish to diversify the students graduating with computing degrees. This diversification is important because today’s students are society’s future technologists, so they should reflect the society they will soon serve.This research study will take a phenomenological qualitative approach to explore faculty attitudes, conceptions, and beliefs about broadening participation in computing (BPC) initiatives. The researchers will collect interview data from faculty and administrators in three different computer science departments chosen from among the top 25 undergraduate CS degree producers in the US. Each institution in the sample has been significantly involved in diversity efforts at the departmental level, with some successes, but with a notable lack of success in certain areas. The study’s main research question will be: What organizational conditions support or hinder faculty uptake of BPC efforts in high undergraduate-degree producing computing departments? Because faculty work within organizational systems that help or hinder their ability to produce and sustain change in their departments, the study draws upon neo-institutional theory. This theory helps clarify the role that faculty beliefs and actions play in responding to and co-creating departmental culture, including fostering inclusive departmental climates for non-majority populations. The study’s goal is to build a knowledge base of what supports and hinders departmental diversity efforts, and what organizational conditions are necessary for change to take hold. This knowledge base can lead to new interventions relative to BPC and CS faculty, as well as related research in other disciplines or other higher education institution types.This project is supported by NSF's EHR Core Research (ECR) program. The ECR program emphasizes fundamental STEM education research that generates foundational knowledge in the field. Investments are made in critical areas that are essential, broad, and enduring: STEM learning and STEM learning environments, broadening participation in STEM, and STEM workforce development. The program supports the accumulation of robust evidence to inform efforts to understand, build theory to explain, and suggest interventions and innovations to address persistence.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.