Neil Anderson research

This page provides a summary of the ongoing research into identifying and interpreting factors associated with low female participation rates in Information and Communications Technology (ICT) education pathways and professional level careers. The current study was funded through the Australian Research Council's (ARC) Linkage Grants Scheme and involves a partnership betweenTechnology One, ThoughtWare and the academic research team at James Cook University: Professor Neil Anderson, Professor Colin Lankshear and Senior Researcher Officer Lyn Courtney.

Girls and Information Communication Technology (ICT) Career Pathways: Tackling the Upper Middle School “Turn Off”

In Australasia, Europe and North America there exists a well-documented, and widely recognised, problem of under-representation of females in Information and Communication (ICT) academic subjects, which lead to professional level ICT careers (Georgiou, 2005). Australian figures indicated that female participation in tertiary ICT courses fell from 26.2% in 1989 to 19% in 2000, with female representation in jobs involving ICT at 20% (Newmarch, Taylor-Steele & Cumpston, 2000). The situation has worsened significantly since 2000. In 2004, the Australian Bureau of Statistics reported the proportion of women workers within the ICT industry as 16%, with only 3% of electronic and communication technicians being women. According to the Department of Communications, Information Technology and the Arts (2006), boys outnumbered girls in post school study in ICT by more than six to one.

This project aims to continue the “Girls and ICT” research conducted by Professor Neil Anderson and Professor Colin Lankshear, which was funded through an Australian Research Council (ARC) Linkage Grant, completed in 2006. Findings from that study, high school girls perceptions of ICT, strongly suggested that it was in the upper middle school years that girls became “turned off” to ICT (Anderson, Timms, Courtney & Lankshear, 2008). In 2008, this research team was awarded an ARC Linkage Grant to investigate upper middle school girls' experiences and perceptions of ICT as well as feedback from their parents/guardians and ICT teachers/Head of Departments (HOSs). This project aims to develop an evidence-based strategic response to factors associated with girls forming such negative perceptions of ICT during their upper middle school years that they overwhelmingly reject ICT as an option for advanced study and future careers.

The study will collect data by extensive surveying and interviewing Queensland upper middle school girls, their parents/guardians, ICT teachers and HODs. The intention is to work collaboratively with all stakeholders to develop a strategic model for responding, at the school level, to those factors identified in the study findings as contributing to “turning girls off ICT”.

Stage 1 (currently underway) - will consist of identifying potential Government and Non Government schools in Queensland to participate. Care will be taken to achieve a representative sample of urban, rural, regional and remote schools across the state. Stage 1 will also comprise a pilot study of the survey instrument to ensure that the questions are readily understood by targeted participants.

Stage 2 (early 2009) - will consist of contacting principals of selected schools by telephone, mail or email to ask for their approval to conduct this research at their school. Upon school approval, information sheets and consent forms will be supplied to participating schools. Once consent forms have been returned, the upper middle school girls' questionnaires/surveys will be supplied to participating schools to be administered in each school by the appropriate teachers. Completed questionnaires/surveys will be collected and posted back to the researchers. Data will be analyzed.

Stage 3 (late 2009/early 2010) - will consist of the focus groups/interviews of students, parents/caregivers and ICT teachers/ICT HODs. All focus group/interview participants will be given an Information Sheet and Consent Form at the time of the focus group/interviews. Student participants will be supplied with Information Sheets and Consent form to be completed by their parent/guardian. The focus groups and interviews will take approximately 45 minutes (1 hour maximum). Parents/guardians and ICT teachers/ICT HODs will also be given a short questionnaire (primarily demographic) to complete before the focus group/interview begins. Focus groups/interviews will be audio recorded and the recordings will be transcribed and analysed.

Stage 4 (late 2009/2010) - will consist of the SRDG meetings, which will be comprised of small groups of students, parents/guardians, ICT teachers/ICT HODs, and women in ICT professions. These participants will be provided with Information Sheets and Consent Forms (additional consent will be obtained from parents/guardians of students) and they will meet in two to three face-to-face or electronic meetings to comprise no more than two (2) hours total time. Meetings will be audio recorded and recordings will be transcribed and analyzed.

The 2004 – 2006 Australian Research Council (ARC) Linkage Grant “Girls & ICT” investigated declining female participation rates of high school girls in advanced level Information and Communication Technology (ICT) subjects leading to professional ICT career pathways. This project involved a partnership between the research team at James Cook University (JCU) Cairns , Technology One (one of major information and technology companies in Queensland ) and Education Queensland (EQ). It highlighted the critical need for identifying factors that dissuade girls from participating in ICT subjects and to provide recommendations to redress this trend.

As in other modern Western societies, Australian businesses, financial institutions, industries and governments have become increasingly reliant on ICT's capacity to provide effective, operational and cost effective solutions across a rapidly growing array of applications. In spite of very attractive earning capacities within the industry (Clayton, 2006), computer science is not attracting female students at the tertiary level (De Palma, 2005) at anywhere near the number required by industry in order to sustain consumer demand needs. According to the Department of Communications, Information Technology and the Arts (DICTA) (2006), boys outnumbered girls in post school study in ICT by more than six to one. A recent Department of Education, Science and Training (DEST) (2006) report noted that only 6.4% of all university enrolments were in ICT. Female ICT students are even scarcer, since within that figure are 2.4% of all female university enrolments. The Australian Bureau of Statistics (ABS) (2004) reported that the proportion of women workers within the ICT industry was 16%, with only 3% of electronic and communications technicians being women.

With the aim of investigating the declining rates of girls in ICT career pathways, a review of the literature indicated that it was in the secondary school years that girls' participation rates in ICT subjects was noticeably low. According to Margolis and Fisher (2003), “girls are rarely inspired by computers and when they are it is only to have the interest extinguished during the school experience” (p. 3). Cohoon (2003) suggested that girls' interest in computers tend to develop later than that of boys and consequently boys enjoy a head start in computer awareness, which then becomes assumed knowledge within high school curricula. This explanation would seem to account for widely reported lack of interest reported by high school girls when provided with the opportunity to choose technical computer subjects (Millar & Jagger, 2001).

The JCU research team has taken a leading role in studying low female participation rates in ICT career pathways. The 2004 – 2006 ARC research investigated Year 11 and 12 girl's experiences and perceptions of ICT. In order to gain further insight into factors associated with low participation rates of females in ICT, a national survey of women in ICT professional careers was also undertaken, which investigated women's current attitudes of ICT careers and retrospective experiences of ICT career pathways in their high school years.

To obtain a rich and extensive Queensland data set for female students at Years 11 and 12; at the point of entry to university study, pertaining to their views and decisions about ICT programs and careers.

To develop a comprehensive Queensland data set for female employees within professional level jobs in the ICT industry pertaining to their retrospective and current views and decisions about ICT programs and careers.

To analyse this data in ways that incorporate participant perspectives (e.g., by means of member checks and focus group discussions of preliminary analyses).

To undertake ‘applied interpretation' of results by means that involves and reflects the perspectives of Education Queensland and ICT industry personnel (by asking what the results of data analyses might imply at the level of practical response within their respective domains).

To identify possibilities and priorities for co-operative, informed, cross-sector responses to the issues of low rates of female participation in ICT.

To offer strategic, evidence based recommendations that might lead to increasing female participation rates in ICT.

This research project consisted of multiple data collection phases involving survey and interview methods with different populations. After an initial pilot survey, that was used to help identify factors influencing senior high school girls' decisions to avoid subjects leading to professional ICT career pathways, the research consisted of three phases.

In Phase One, a survey instrument was constructed by refining and expanding the questions used in the pilot study. The revised questionnaire was administered to purposively selected samples of Year 11 and 12 girls enrolled in Queensland high schools. Schools were selected approximating to ‘typicality' by socio-economic status, location and school type (single/mixed gender schools; government (state) schools/non-government (private) schools. The questionnaire was administered from August through November 2005. A total of 1,453 senior high school girls responded to the survey. Comparisons were drawn between Takers of advance level/ senior ICT subjects ( n = 1322) and Non Takers ( n = 131) of these subjects.

In Phase Two, focus group interviews were conducted from March to May, 2006 at eight schools; two large regional state high schools; two capital city state schools and two regional centre schools (one state school and one private school). The participants comprised 48 Year 11 and 12 girls (76%, n = 31) were Takers of advance ICT subjects and (24%, n = 17) were Non Takers of these subjects.

Finally, Phase Three consisted of a national on-line survey that was conducted from May through October, 2006, which targeted women employed in professional level careers in the ICT industry. There were 272 participants representing all Australian states and territories. The on-line survey consisted of both forced response and open-ended questions that elicited information on two themes: 1) respondents' retrospective perceptions and experiences of ICT during high school and 2) their experiences of ICT as a career and current attitudes toward their career.

There were eight principal findings from Phase One: “Girls and ICT Survey”. These have been divided into findings from the Takers of advanced level ICT subjects and Non Takers of these subjects:

Takers of advanced level ICT subjects reported that they were interested in computers and that computer subjects were interesting.

Rural/Remote Takers were more likely to disagree with the statement “The subjects are interesting” than were Metropolitan/Provincial City Takers.

These girls considered advanced level ICT subjects irrelevant to their future careers.

These girls commented that ICT subjects suited their timetable; however, they chose not to take ICT subjects.

These girls disagreed with some of the ‘usual suspects' in the literature for female disinterest in ICT (e.g., there are too many boys in these subjects, I am worried about what friends would think, or I was discouraged from taking ICT by family, friends, teachers or counselors).

Rural/Remote Takers were more likely to agree with the statement “I don't have a computer at home” than were Metropolitan/Provincial City Takers.

Three major themes emerged from content analysis of the open-ended survey questions answered by Non Takers: computers were boring, computers were not perceived as central to the students' future career, and that these subjects were too hard or too technical for serious consideration as an option for girls to study in high school. Conversely, comments from the Takers of advanced ICT subjects reported: ICT subjects have intrinsic interest and computers were central to their future career aspirations. The emerging themes were used to inform the questions used in the focus groups. The main findings of the focus groups included:

Takers reported that ICT was fun and they enjoyed developing their skills in this area. Many girls referred to game development and programming as absorbing and creative. These girls also perceived ICT as important to their future success.

Non Takers appeared not to appreciate the extent, variety and potential of jobs in ICT. Most Non Takers reflected a view that:

ICT careers were solitary, sedentary and consisted of low level tasks, which required the individual to interact with a computer rather than people. For example, “I would rather spend time with people than a machine.”

Computers were perceived as boring or non-creative. For example, “I wish to follow a more creative career path that involves me moving around and thinking more.”

Many girls reported that they were “just not interested in computers”. For example, “I don't enjoy it, not my type of subject. Not interested. Geeky.”

Most girls were poorly informed about the relevance of ICT to future career choices. For example, “It just wasn't needed for my chosen career path in science/medical studies”.

Computer studies were perceived as too difficult. For example, “I believe they [the classes] get too technical, which scares people/girls away from the class.”

Teacher expertise was also mentioned as a problem associated with disinterest in taking ICT subjects. For example, “When you get a bug in the system and the teachers just say, “Oh, I don't know” and then your whole assignment goes down the drain because you can't work out this bug and then the teacher says, “Hey, hold on, it is just a mystery”, that really puts you off.” It was noted that teacher familiarity, and fluency with technology, was what these girls found inspiring.

Subject choices in the face of tertiary entrance imperatives was noted as another source of girls' aversion to taking advanced level ICT subjects as at the point of choosing senior high school subject, students are frequently advised by teacher and counselors to choose subjects that will not compromise their chances of achieving the best possible Overall Position (OP) score. The spirit of this advice was reflected in a number of responses, such as, “I chose other subjects that I'm better at to improve my chances of a good OP score.

The focus group sessions revealed that it was in the middle school years that many girls lost interest in computers:

Frequently reported by both Takers and Non Takers of ICT subjects, was that the middle school subjects were highly structured, consisted of prescribed and uninspiring tasks which had no apparent purpose, or consisted primarily of learning keyboarding skills. For example, “They start with typing, that is really bad. I can see why you need to learn to type, but it is not a very good introduction. A lot of people don't get past that.”

Middle school computing subjects were reported to not reflect the more specialized, advanced computing subject available in senior high school. For example, “For me [middle school computer subjects] were really boring and I think most people are expecting senior to be the same, but it is not.”

However, some girls reported positive experiences in middle school. For example, “We just had to meet [the teacher] and she watched us work and then introduced us to designing and stuff and then she started using us to make things. She was good. She encouraged us.”

From these comments, it appears that the middle school years may be a crucial time in which opinions about computers are formed based on classroom experiences with ICT.

Finally, there were five main findings from Phase Three: “Professional ICT Women National Survey”

Overall, women working in professional level ICT careers reported that they entered the ICT profession with high expectations for job satisfaction and were extremely satisfied with their career choice overall.

Most respondents entered ICT careers via university studies with a sense of performing socially useful work and that they would experience job satisfaction, flexibility and that the ICT profession had a good social image. They generally agreed that a career in ICT was rewarding and provided challenges and opportunities.

Subtle gender discrimination was a main finding with a majority of women agreeing to the statement, “In my workplace there is a culture of women being held to a higher standard than their male peers; men can assume a seat at the table and women must earn a place”. Whereas blatant discrimination was not considered a major problem, the findings suggested that subtle discrimination and a ‘glass ceiling effect” in the ICT workplace continues to provide a source of job dissatisfaction for women in this industry.

A majority of the women reported that the ICT industry suffers from a negative stereotype or negative public imagine.

Cluster analysis revealed three discrete groupings (clusters) of female ICT professionals. Divergent opinions centred mainly on confidence in technical ability, whether they would encourage young women to enter the industry and industrial issues of equality and management approachability.

Cluster 1 (n = 96): “Enthusiastic Positives” were extremely satisfied with their ICT career choice and reported high levels of job satisfaction, enjoyed working in a flexible workplace and would recommend this career to young women/girls considering entering this field. Cluster 1 women were the most confident of their technical ability and reported fewer issues with equality and management approachability. Their take home message was: “ICT can take you anywhere, ICT IS everywhere”.

Cluster 2 (n = 127): “Temperate Positives” were only moderately satisfied women who reported that they experienced job satisfaction, enjoyed working in a flexible workplace and would recommend this career field to young women/girls considering entering this field. This cluster reported subtle discrimination. Despite a generally positive outlook on the ICT profession, this group's take home message was: “Be prepared to work your butt off, while others around you snooze. However if you work hard and make it visible you will be recognized.”

Cluster 3 (n = 49): “Somewhat Disaffected” expressed disaffection with their careers and gender discrimination was a source of most of the job dissatisfaction with this cluster; 35% of women reported blatant workplace discrimination and 82% reported subtle workplace discrimination. Almost half the Cluster 3 women agreed with the statement “In my workplace there is a culture of women being excluded from non-work socializing which is necessary for career advancement” and this group reported that management was not approachable when trying to redress problems, such as discrimination issues. The take home message from this cluster was: “Go away or be prepared to study harder and longer, work harder, be paid less, be treated in a generally condescending manner, be shouted down when trying to argue rationally and be asked to make coffee during a high level negotiation.”

• Extensive publications from 2005 through 2008 in regional, state, national and international peer reviewed journals, such as (Computers in Education, USA; Journal of Media, Technology and Lifelong Learning, Norway; Policy Futures in Education, UK; Information, Technology and People, USA/UK; Australian Educational Computing, Australia).

• A book chapter: Girls and Information Communication Technology (ICT). In N. Yelland, G. Neal & E. Dakich (Eds.), Research pedagogies, practice and learning with information and communication technology (ICT) in education (pp. 181-201). Rotterdam, The Netherlands, Sense Publishers (2008).

• The findings have been presented by Professor Anderson at invited keynotes and plenary in 2006 - Keynote Address at EDUCOM 2006, Nong Kai Thailand (Edith Cowan and Thai University), EIDOS research Congress Parliament House, Brisbane, Opening of the Global Management Institute at University of Shanghai, National ICT and Education Conference, Utah and in 2007: Videoconferenced address on the UN Millennium Goals, and upcoming address to the APEC Digital Economy Forum for Women in Port Douglas, 2007.

• Papers presented at numerous conferences (e.g., 10th Annual Women in Technology (AusWit) Conference, 2006; Australian Computers in Education Conference (ACEC) Conference, 2006; Quality and Impact of Qualitative Research, 3rd Annual QualIT Conference, 2006).

• This research was cited in policy documents produced by the State Government ICT taskforce and also in "Girls and ICT: Framework for Action 2007 and Beyond”.

• The editor of 'Teacher' magazine published by ACER, published a girls and ICT cover page and story in March 2007. The editor sent a copy along with a letter acknowledging that our work greatly informed the story.

• A major feature in the popular business magazine Business Review Weekly (BRW).

• Coverage in major newspapers (e.g., The Melbourne Age, The Melbourne mX, The Sydney Morning Herald, The Australian).

• Coverage in regional newspapers (e.g., Central Queensland News, Sunshine Coast Daily, Home Hill Observer, Gatton Lockyer Brisbane Valley Star).

• Extensive radio coverage and interviews (ABC Regional; ABC North Queensland).

• This research website that includes general information and a listing of publications, many of which are downloadable.

It is recommended that future research focus on girls in the middle school years in order to develop evidence-based strategies designed to retain and further enhance girls' interest in ICT.
ICT subjects in the middle and senior school years need to be engaging and relevant. It is recommended that more resources and Professional Development for teachers are needed.
It is recommended that ICT subjects be publicized and promoted in ways that help girls develop accurate perceptions of the content of these subjects.
It is recommended that girls be informed that the ICT industry involves a lot of interaction with people and has a strong creative element.
Bringing together university, industry and government staff to inform the data analysis could be a method more widely promoted in research training.

The extensive dissemination of findings has illuminated factors associated with low participation rates of females in ICT, which is expected to lead to better pathways for girls to participate in a highly skilled, well remunerated, challenging ICT career and to experience the status and satisfactions that come from career advancements in this field . Some of the key outcomes and impacts are noted below:

This research has uncovered ground breaking understandings about why there has been a decline in female participation in higher level ICT subjects in senior high school and also about barriers in the workplace culture in the Australian computer industry. The data show possible solutions to these problems. The editors of 'Computers in Education' - a top tier UK journal indexed in Science Online and ISI wrote "The description of the findings is very well-done and highlights some interesting new results different from previous research. I would characterize this research as extremely well-written and highly significant. It should have a major impact on how programs and courses aimed at attracting and retaining young women in ICT study are designed in the future."

The recommendations from this reseach have been instrumental in informing and developing curriculum change.

The findings from this research have alerted the industry about current practices that have a negative effect on the perceptions of ICT as an attractive career for women.

The findings were valuable discussion points for the Girls and ICT reference group and the researchers have continued participation in this reference group.

The various papers and chapters have been used by Education Queensland and kept on file for future use.

This project has informed policy, such as the “Girls and ICT: Framework for Action 2007 and Beyond”.

The JCU research team secured a new ARC Linkage Grant, with Technology One and ThoughtWare as industry partners) investigating girls and ICT in the middle school years. This project is now underway.

Want to know more?
Visit the Publications page for the list of recent articles, many of which can be downloaded directly from this site.