The In/authentic Experiences of Black Engineers

近年来，人们越来越关注计算机和信息技术行业的多样性。人口统计数据显示，这个行业缺乏多样性。即使来自代表性不足群体的工程师被这些公司聘用，他们也往往会离开。在有色人种中，40%的男性和36%的女性因不公平待遇而离职。这个问题的经济成本是巨大的。取代这些工人的成本每年超过160亿美元。缺乏多样性还会导致生产力和创新能力的丧失。提高科技行业劳动力的多样性需要一个热情和包容的工作场所。在这个项目中，我们试图了解黑人工程师的经验。从对这些工人的采访中得到的叙述被用来说明黑人工程师面临的独特问题。通过与行业领袖的对话，我们正在寻找让工作场所更加欢迎所有人的方法。本研究采访了40位科技行业的工程师。这些面试的目的是了解工作场所的氛围。面试的重点是他们与同事、主管和客户之间的经历。通过福克纳的“in/authenticity”，赫尔姆斯和派珀将种族认同理论与职业心理学相结合，以及肯迪的种族主义思想史这三个框架，运用叙事分析法对数据进行分析。结果是每个人的个人叙事案例研究。跨案例比较确定了工作场所文化的共性和差异、社会身份的影响以及对包容性的看法。通过会议，我们正在创建一个研究人员社区，专注于工程工作场所的多样性和包容性。此外，我们还直接与行业领导者分享研究结果和影响。该奖项反映了美国国家科学基金会的法定使命，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。

In recent years there has been increasing scrutiny on diversity in the computer and information technology industry. Data on demographics portray an industry that lacks diversity. Even when engineers from underrepresented groups are hired by these companies, they tend to leave. Among people of color 40% of the men and 36% of the women leave due to unfair treatment. The economic cost of this issue is enormous. The cost to replace these workers is over $16 billion annually. Lack of diversity also results in lost productivity and innovation. Improving the diversity of the technology industry workforce requires a welcoming and inclusive workplace. In this project we are seeking to understand the experiences of Black engineers. The narratives developed from interviews with these workers are being used to illustrate the unique problems faced by Black engineers. Through conversations with industry leaders we are identifying approaches to make the workplace more welcoming to all.This study involves interviews with 40 engineers in the technology industry. The goal of these interviews is to understand workplace climate. Interviews focus on the experiences they have had with their co-workers, supervisors, and customers. The data are being analyzed using narrative analysis, through the lens of three frameworks: Faulkner's in/authenticity, Helms and Piper's pairing of racial identity theory and vocational psychology, and Kendi's history of racist ideas. The result is individual narrative case studies for each person. Cross-case comparison identifies commonalities and differences in workplace culture, impact of social identity, and perceptions of inclusivity. Through conference sessions, we are creating a community of researchers focused on diversity and inclusion in the engineering workplace. Additionally, we are sharing findings and implications directly with industry leaders.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.