信息技术职业保留性别差距社会障碍结构性障碍

ABSTRACT

Thepurposeofthisstudywastoinvestigatethegender-gapwithintheITindustryandunderstandthebasisbehindthedecliningnumbersofwomenintheITfield.Thestudyhypothesisfocusedonhowperceptionsofsocialexpectations,genderstereotypes,work-familyconflict,occupationalcultureandlackofrolemodelsaffectedcareerretentionofbothentry-levelmaleandfemaleITprofessionalsintheindustry.Themethodologywasofaquantitiveapproach,thusthedatawascollectedfromsurveysusingLikertscalemeasurements.DataanalysisindicatedstrongpositiverelationshipsbetweensocialandstructuralbarriersandcareerretentionintheITfieldexisted.Theanalysisconcludesthatoverall,bothgendersvaluedsocialandstructuralbarriersdifferently;withfemalesbeinglikelytoleavetheircareersinITthanmales.Theindicationofstrongpositiverelationshipsbetweensocialandstructuralbarriersandcareerretentioninthisstudyservesasafoundationforrecommendations.Tobetterhelpmanagersadoptmorefemale-friendlypracticesandincreasesupportforwomeninthefield,inthehopetoincreasenotjusttherecruitmentofwomen,butretentionofvaluableskilledITprofessionalsotherwiselostfromtheindustry.

Keywords:InformationTechnology;CareerRetention;Gendergap;SocialBarriers;StructuralBarriers

CHAPTERI:INTRODUCTION

ThereisaneedtorecruitandretainmorewomenaswomenareleavingtheITindustryinlargenumbers(Margolisetal,2002).Thefieldofinformationtechnologyisanindustrywell-knowntobedominatedbymenthesedays,yetintriguinglywomenwereinfactthepioneersofcomputersciencefromwhichtheindustryisbuiltupon.In1842thefirstconceptualprogrammerwasAdaLovelace,amathematicianwhoaidedCharlesBabbageinthedevelopmentofthe‘DifferenceEngine’,whichlaterbecamethetheoreticalfoundationformoderncomputers.AroundthetimeofWorldWarII,GraceHopperroseasapioneerincomputerprogrammingwhilethemenwereatwar.Shewentontobecomethethirdprogrammerontheworld’sfirstdigitalcomputer;developingaprogrampowerfulenoughtotranslateEnglishintocomputercode.Yetwithsuchwomenofhighmathematicandprogrammingcaliberwhoworkedhardtobuildonthefoundationsofcomputerscience,inthemoderneratimeshavedrasticallychangedforwomenintechnology.Womenarenownolongerthepioneersoftechnology,andthosewhochoosetopursuesuchacareerareoftenleftunder-represented,dissatisfiedwiththeircareers;andleavingthetechnologyindustryindroves.Despitetherebeingasubstantialamountofresearchintotheissue,includinganumberofprogramsthataimedtoreducetheunder-representationofwomeninIT,thenumbershavestillcontinuedtodecrease.Previousstudieshaveyettofocusontherelationshipsbetweenattitudestowardssocialandstructuralbarriersandthelikelihoodtoleavetheindustryinfemales.

Thepurposeofthisstudyistoexploreandidentifythekeyperceptionsoffactorswithentry-levelworkers,sothatprogramsaimingtoemploymorewomenwithintheITfieldmayhaveabetterunderstandingoftheattitudesthatfemaleshavetowardscertainkeyissues.ThegeographicalareasthatwerecoveredinthisstudyweretheITentry-levelworkersbasedintheUnitedStatesandtheUnitedKingdom.TheperiodofinvestigationtheresearchcoversisfromDecember2019tillMarch2020,withthekeydemographiccommunitybeingentry-levelITworkerswhohadbeenworkingintheindustryforlessthan2years.ThisisakeypointwithintheITcareerpipelineandhasshownfrompreviousliteraturetobearelevantsourceofleakageforfemaleworkers,andthusthetargetdemographicholdsmuchrelevancetotheproblemandshouldbeinvestigated.Previousstudieshaveworkedextensivelyonstudent(recruitmentlevel)andmanagementpopulations(persistencelevel)intheITcareerpipelinetodeterminekeysourcesofleakagewithwomenemployeesAccenture(2016),McCarthy(2004).Retentionlevelwithafocusonentry-levelwasagapintheresearchliteraturethatcouldpotentiallybettergainmoreinsightintothephenomenon.

Thespecificaspectofthetopicfocusisthecurrentattitudestowardskeyproblemsthathavebeenidentifiedbypreviousresearchbybothmaleandfemaleentry-levelworkers,todeterminethedifferencesofperceptionintheircareers.Theadditionofnewempiricaldatafromthisstudytothecurrentresearchonthetopic,mayallowforprogramsormanagementtoadjustpoliciesforbetterpractice.Whileadditionallybeingabletobetterunderstandtheimpactattitudesentry-levelwomenhaveincomparisontoentry-levelmentowardskeyissues.Thecentralaimoftheresearchwastofocusonaparticularareathatseemedtobelackinginquantitivestudieswithafocusonattitudestowardssocialandstructuralbarriers.Thequantitivemethodsusedinthisstudywerebuiltuponpreviousmethodsusedbyresearchersintheresearchfield,aswithanalysisofthecurrentliteratureavailableinordertoidentifypatternsofkeyconsistentproblems.

Thisstudyaimedtotesthypothesisformulatedfrompreviousresearchinordertobuildamoreefficientresearchframework,whichcoulddirectlyidentifykeyrelationshipsbetweenvariablesthataffectedretentionofentry-levelITworkers.Thefollowingliteraturereviewwasconductedasanextensiveanalysisintotherelevantresearchwithinthefieldwiththeobjectiveofidentifyingkeypatternsofre-occurringproblems.Aftertheidentificationoftheproblemsandpatternsintheliteraturereview,thehypothesiswasthenbuiltwithpreviousresearchinmindtobetterfollowthemethodsusedbyotherresearchersinthefield,whilealsocontributingtorelevantgapsintheliterature.Previousresearchmethodologywascarefullyanalyzedtobettertheoveralldesignandapproachofthequantitiveresearchinthisstudy.Thefollowingresultsprovedtoshowsignificanceinidentifyingtherelationshipsbetweenattitudestowardsbarriersfacedbyentry-levelworkersandtheresultinglikelihoodtoeitherpursueacareerinIT,orleavetheindustryaltogether.

CHAPTERII:LITERATUREREVIEW

2.1.1Projectsummery

An

evaluation

oftheliteratureindicatedthatlittlequantitive

research

hasbeenperformedonattitudestowardskeybarriersthatdeterwomenfrompursuingtheircareersinIT,althoughforotherkeypointsinthepipelinethiswasnotheldtrueasextensivequantitiveandqualitiveresearchwasfocusedonrecruitmentandpersistencelevel.Furthermore,afteranalyzingmuchoftheavailableliteratureitbecameapparentthatthe

majorityoftheinformationandresearchavailable

isanecdotal.Several

studies

have

focusedonbroaderareasof

females

inamorebroadsensebyfocusingonwomeninsciencerelatedfields(STEM)asawhole.Moreover,recentstudiesintowomenin

Information

technology

are

notoften

separatedoutas

aspecific

area

ofstudy,

inalllikelihood

because

itis

a

particularly

new

discipline.It’sworthmentioningthatthereareextensive

studies

ofcollegestudentsmovingintotheITindustry,butfewerfocusingoffactorsofwhywomendecidetonotpursuetheircareerafterentry.Mostempiricaldatawithintheliteratureregardingthistopic

ismostly

tohavetakenplace

aroundtheearly1990’stomid

2000’s.Consequently,thismeansthat

thereare

possiblediscrepanciesto

thevalidityoftheresearchcomparedtostudiesconductedinamorerecenttimeframeandrequiresupdated

researchintomorenarroweddownfactorsinfluencingthepipelineleakageinwomenwithintheInformationTechnologyfield.Moreover,manystudiesthatconductedqualitativeresearchand

maynot

indicateaclearoraccuratescopeoftheissuesregardingthetopic.

Onemustconsiderthepossibilityofunconsciousbiases

regardingthe

previousresearchmethodsandframework,

wheremostlyonlywomenwereinterviewedascomparedtoquantitivedatathatcanbecomparedwithmalesinordertobetterunderstanddifferencesinperceptionsandattitudes.Itisclearthatadditional

studies

on

keypointsinthepipelineleakagesuchasfemale’scareer

choices

ofpursuingcareersintheITcareeratentrylevel(retention)areneeded.Forthisliteratureanalysis,thestudieswereorganisedwiththepreviousconductedresearchinmindinordertobetteridentifyre-occurringpatternsandissuesthatcouldbeusedlaterinthedevelopmentofthehypothesisofthisresearch.

2.1.2DefiningInformationTechnology

InformationTechnologyisbestdefinedbyrecognizingitsimportancewithinanorganizationfirst,ratherthanagenericdefinitionofthetechnicalaspectsalone.(Malone&Morton,2003)ThemostaccurateandconcisedefinitioninregardstothisstudycanbefoundintheInteroperabilityClearinghouseGlossaryofTerms,ICH(2003)inwhichtheydefinedinformationtechnologyasfollows:

“Informationtechnology(IT)-Includesallmattersconcernedwiththeperseveranceoftechnologyandcomputerscienceincludingdesign,installation,development,andtheimplementationofinformationsystemsandapplications.”(ICHGlossaryofterms,2003,page45)

2.1.3ITandComputingOccupationsPreviousTrendsandCurrentDemographic

MoncarzandReaser(2002)anticipatedthatintheperiodfrom2000-2010thedemandforcomputingprofessionalswoulddramaticallyincrease.

Lopez(2002)statedthateveniftheeconomyhasdownturns,thereisstillademandforskilledITprofessionals.Technologyjobswouldgrowin2014over30%,whichwasamongthehighestgrowthratesintheUSeconomyacrossallsectors(Hecker2005).Alongwiththeexpectedgrowthandtheincreasingdemandforprofessionalswithinthefield,thesamegrowthcouldbeappliedtowomenITprofessions.Howeverthiswasfoundtonotbethecase,asthepercentageofwomenITprofessionsnotonlyremainedsmall(Lopez2002)buttrendsinwomenincomputingoccupationshadshowntodeclinefrom1991to2015WomeninIT,Ashcraftetal(2016)[seefigurebelow].

Figure2.1.2:DeclineinWomeninComputingOccupations(1985–2015)

Source:Ashcraft,C.,DuBow,W.,Eger,E.,Blithe,S.,&Sevier,B.(2016).WomeninIT2016

WhenunderstandingthecurrentdemographicoftheITindustryforthepurposeofthisresearch,itisimportanttofirstlookthecurrentandmorerecentstudiesofwomenincomputingoccupations.Notonlylookingatthepercentageofwomenintheindustryascomparedtotheirmalecounterparts,andalsohowdothepatternschangeorvarywhenfurtherlookingatotherfactorssuchasraceandethnicityofthewomen.

In2015,womenmadeupcloseto25%occupationsincomputingrelatedfields(WomeninIT,Ashcraftetal,2016).Levelsoftheparticipationofwomenareevenmoreconcerningwhenitcomestowomenofcolor.Theauthorsofthisreportindicatedfurtherdeclinesinpercentageswhenlookingatthisparticulardemographicofwomen.Fromtheoriginal25%ofwomenincomputingoccupations16%ofthedemographicweremadeofWhitewomen,followedby5percentAsianwomen,3percentBlackwomen,and1percentLatina/Hispanicwomen.Thisindicatesnotonlyanissueofashortageofwomenwithintheindustry,butalsoasecondarylackofdiversitywithintheprimaryfemaledemographic.

Moreover,uponfurtherreviewoftheliteratureinotherstudiesadditionalresearchintowomenminoritieswithintheITindustrywasoftennottakenintoconsideration.Duringtheprocessofidentifyingbarrierstowomenininformationtechnology,itwasclearthatsimilarfactorsthataffectedwomen’scareerinthefieldre-occurredoften.Themainbarrierscanbeseparatedintotwofactorgroups,socialandstructuralbarriers.Thesocialbarriersofsocialexpectations,attitudes,gender-rolestereotypingandwork–familyconflictandhowtheyaffectkeythepipelineleakagepoints(Recruitment&Retention)arediscussedinthefollowingsections.

2.2.1Socialexpectations,attitudesandstereotypes

Thesocialexpectationandvalueinthisrespectaremostlyreflectedinthecurrentculturalvalues,thataretheninturnreflectedinbehaviour,whetheritbeaconsciousorunconsciouspattern.Thevaluesthatsocietiesreflectonushaveanimpactonourownvaluesandwhatweexpectofourselves.Kolata(1984)suggestedthatinoursocietywegivedifferentsignalstogirlsandboysastheyaregrowingup,whichtheybegintoestablishmanydifferencesamongstthemselvesintermsofexpectations.Tocomparecomputerusebetweenboysandgirls,boysaremostlyencouragedandexpectedtohavecomputersathomeandatschooltheycanuse(Turkle,1988).However,whenlookingatgirlsuseandencouragementofcomputers,thereismuchlessexpectation.InastudybyDidio,1996theauthornoticedtheywerenotaslikelyasboystohavecomputerclassesorattendcampsforcomputing.Additionally,girlsaremoreencouragedtotakeupmorecreativesubjectssuchasartandliteratureandlessencouragedtobestudyingmoretechnicalcoursessuchasscienceandmathematics.Researchiswelldocumentedtoshowthattheroleofsocialexpectationscanhaveadirectimpactonperformanceandconfidencelevelsinthetechnicalfield,andthatwithmorecomputertrainingandstructuredsupport,attitudesandconfidencetowardsworkingwithcomputerscanimprove(Collis,1985;SteeringCommitteeonWomeninScience,Technology,TradesandEngineering,1995).Technologyisviewedmostlyasamasculinefieldandtopicingeneral(Newmarchetal.,2000).Similarlyasnotedinsocialexpectations,boystendtobemoredirectedintheunderstandingofthecomponentsoftechnology,suchabuildingandputtingpartstogether.Itistheuseofthetechnologyitselfwhichiswheregirlstendtobemostlydirected(Bush,etal.,2002).InresearchbyNewmarchetal.(2000)theyauthorsfoundthatthelikihoodofparentsbuyingcomputersforboyswashigherthanthatforgirls,astheybelievedthatboysaremorelikelytohaveacareerinITinthefutureanditwillproveuseful.Furthermore,engagingandexperimentingwithcomputer-relatedgamesandactivitieswassomethingmorelikelytohappenbetweenfathersandtheirsons,comparedtotheirdaughters(Barker&Aspray,2006).

Anotherimportantfactorthatrelatedtogender-rolestereotypingistheuseofcomputergames.In1984popculturecomputersweremarketedheavilytowardsboysastoys.Thecharacteristicsofvideo-gamegenresoftenrevolvedaroundaction,violenceandcompetitivegaming.Thismarketingstrategydirectlyimpactedtheperceptionthatvideo-gameswereforanyoneasthecharacteristicsweresociallystereotypedtobeenjoyableforboysandnotforgirls.InastudybyTillberg&Cohoon(2005)theauthorsstatedthatbeingactivelyinvolvedinvideogamesdirectlyinfluencedthelikelihoodthatpersonwouldthenhaveonbetterunderstandingthetechnologywhichthegameisbeingplayedon.Peoplethatplaycomputerandvideogamesaremorelikelytoresearchintothepartsofconsolesandcomputersthattheyplayonoutofinterest,meaninggirlsaroundthetimeofthemarketingcampaignsofvideogameswerenotasversedincomputersandtheircomponentscomparedtoboys,whichcanbeadeterrenttowomenwantingtopursuethiscareerinthefuture.Itisalsoimportanttoconsiderthedifferencesinhowmaleandfemalestudentslearnabouttechnology(Barker&Aspray,2006).

AnextensivestudyintocareerchoiceinITbyAccenture‘CrackingtheGenderCode’(2016)foundthatthemainfactorsthatinfluencedgirlsinterestincomputingwastheperceptionthatiswasnotenjoyable,andthattheirfriendswerenotinthefield.Theyfoundthatmostofthegirlsinthestudylostinterestinhighschool,beforetheyevenreacheduniversity.Thereportnotedthatmoreactionneededtobetakeninhighschooleducationaldepartmentstoincreasegirl’sinterestincomputing,asthisiswheremostofthemlostinterestandmadeothereducationalchoices.ThistoanextentcanexplainthelackofwomenstudyingITrelatedcourses,beforetheyevenreachtherecruitmentstepinthepipeline.

2.2.3Work-familyconflict

Thefollowingstudylookedintowhateffectsafter-hourstelecommutinghadontheabilitytobalancedemandbetweenworkandfamily.Higgins&Duxbury(1992)foundthatWork–familybalancecanbeamajorsourceofoccupationalstress.InthefieldofIT,it’snotuncommonthatworkerswillbeexpectedtocommute,worklatehoursandweekends;orbereadilyavailabletosolvetechnicalproblemsthatmayarise.Work–familyconflictwasdefinedbytheauthorsoftheresearchas“aformofinter-roleconflictthatoccurswhenthedemandsofworkandfamilyaremutuallyincompatibleinsomerespectsforcareer-orientatedmen”.

Researchfromthe90’ssuggestthatfamilyconflictisassociatedwiththelevelofinvolvementrequiredatwork,itwasalsofoundthatahigherlevelofworkinterferencewithfamilypredictedloweremotionalandinstrumentalinvolvementAdamsetal(1996).TheITindustryissaidtoadoptawork-over-familywayoflife,whichhasoftenattributedtosuccessfulITcareersifadopted.Womeninthisstudywerefoundtohavehaddifficultiesinraisingyoungchildren,keepinguptodatewithchanges,andbalancingtheirwork-familytime.(VonHellensetal.2001).Thiswork-over-familywayoflifecanleadtowork-familyconflictwithintheITindustryduetolackofflexibilitywithinmostorganizations,whichcanalsoaffectmen.However,womenaremorelikelytofocusonfamilyandchildrenmorethanmenastheyhavemorefamily-careobligations(Moen,Phyllisetal.2016).Theirearlycareerexperiencesthereforeoftenshowconflictsbetweenfamilyandworkastheyarelikelyatthestageintheirliveswheretheyhavemoreobligationstowardsmarriageandchildren.Overall,thepreviousresearchsuggestedwomeninthisfieldofworkfounditdifficulttomaintainasuccessfulcareerasitlackedaworkfamilybalanceaswomenhavemoredisputesbetweenworkandfamilythanmen(Innstrandetal.2009).Extrahouseholdresponsibilitiesofwomencancreateworkoverload,effectwomen'sworkexperienceandpossiblyreducetheircareerpromotionalopportunities(CortisandCassar2005).Duringtheprocessofidentifyingbarrierstowomenininformationtechnology,itwasnotablethatbarriersthatimpactedwomen’scareerinthefieldre-occurredoften.Thebarriersforthepurposeofthisresearchwereseparatedintotwofactorgroups,socialandstructural.Thestructuralbarriersofoccupationalculture,Lackofrole-modelsandmentorsanddemographiccompositionarediscussedinthefollowingsections.

2.2.4OccupationalCulture

Asdiscussedinwork-familyconflictthereisalong-hours,latenightandhardworkingculturewellassociatedwithworkinginITfields.Muchlikethesocialaspectofthefactor,theoccupationalcultureandperceptionsofworkinginITfieldspossessasimilarstructuralsignificance.ThisespeciallybecomesprevalentintheIToccupationincollegesanduniversities,wherelatenightsarenotuncommon(Frenkel,1990).ThisintenseworkethicassociatedwiththeoccupationalcultureofITmayconflictwithwomen’sideasoffuturefamilyresponsibility,asitremainsaverydominantpartofit.Thistypeofoccupationalcultureisimportantinhighereducationincomputerrelatedfields,aswomenfindithardertointegrateintotheoftencelebratedlong-hoursethicwhichhassincebecameverymaledominated,leavingthemunsureofapositionwithinthefield(RasmussenandHapnes,1991).Ithasbeenperceivedasamajordisadvantageforwomenintheworkplacetocombineworkwithotherroles,especiallymotherhood.Familydemandsmayinterferewithwomen'scareers,perhapscausingthemtorejectovertime,rearrangetheirworkingdays,orrefuseadditionalwork,allofwhichmaybeperceivedasbeinglessdedicatedITprofessionals(KeeneandReynolds2002).

2.2.5LackofRoleModels

Attherecruitmentstageinthepipeline,womenmakecriticalcareerdecisionswherebyapresenceofrelatablerole-modelscanhaveapositiveinfluenceontheirdecisionmaking.Thesignificanceofrolemodelsistoleadanexamplewherebyacareerwithinthefieldisattainable(Pearl,1990).A2003studybytheInformationTechnologyAssociationofAmerica(ITAA)identifiedthatlackoffemalerolemodelshadbeenidentifiedasdeterrentstowomenintheretentionpartofthepipelinewhowerechoosingwhethertopursueacareerinIT.Womenmayfeelliketheylackopportunitieswithoutbeingabletosocializeandworkwithotherprofessionalfemalesintheindustry,whichcanleadtofeelingsofisolationandalonelyworkingenvironment.Peopletendtopreferthepresenceofotherstheycanrelateinwhichtheysharesimilarcharacteristics,whichhelpsthemintegrateintoworkingenvironmentsbetter.WithouttheopportunitytolearnfromwomenthatcamebeforethemintheITfield,itmayfurtherhaveanegativeinfluenceonrecruitmentandretentioninthepipelineBush,Henle,Cohen,Jenkins,andKossy(2002).

2.2.6Informalnetworks

Socialinformalnetworkingmostlyhappensoutsideofhoursofwork,withresearchsuggestingthatwomenstruggletokeepupwithoutofworksocialactivitiesinamaledominatedworkplace(LWirth,2001)Womeninthestudyexplainedtheirfrustrationtowardsinformalnetworking,oftenleavingthemfeelingisolatedasmenoftenplannedeventsandcelebrationswithoutincludingthemorpurposefullychoosingactivitiestheywouldnotfindinteresting.Howeveritisnotjustasocialbarrier,butastructuralonetoo;asnetworkingeventsoftensetupbytheindustrywereshowntobeintimidatingtowardsoftenoutnumberedwomenwithinthecompany.Thustheirneedtofurtherrelyonmoreinformalnetworksinordertobetterintegrateintothecompanyorindustry,yettheseeffortsprovedoftenfutile.Thisbarrieralsoplayedasignificantroleonawoman’sadvancementinhercareerwhenattemptingtomoveontomoreseniorleveljobpositions.

2.2.7LackofMentorsinIT

NetworkingandmentorshipcanbeconsideredequallyasimportantintheITfield,andsofarnotenoughwomenhaveadvancedintohigherranksinordertoprovidementorshiptowomennewtothefield.Infact,informalnetworkingandlackofmentorsarerelatablefactors.Sincewomenfeelisolatedandexcludedfromthenetwork,theywillhavedifficultiesinbeingabletobuildarelationshipwithamentorwithinthefield.Formaleventormentorshipprogrammesorganizedbytheorganizationthemselvescanbeanintimidatingandcompetitive,unnaturalprocess.Asinformalmentoringrelationshipsisanapproachthoughtoftobemorecommoninthefield.Mentoringisimportantasitallowscareeradvancementandprogressionsasthementorwillprovidedirection,trainingandadviceandcanofferanopportunityforjuniorstofeelbetterintegratedinthefield.Mentoringrelationshipsmaybeessentialforwomeninthefield,asfemalemanagersfacegreaterbarrierstoadvancementonorganizational,individualandinterpersonallevelsBurkeandMcKeen(1994).Developingwomen'snetworkscanbeaneffectivestrategytoresolvecertainobstaclestodiversitywhentheychallengewomen'sinvisiblesystemsatwork(McCarthy2004).Ithasalsobeenshownthatmentoringhassignificantpositiveeffectsonmenteecareers(RaginsandScandua1994).Ameta-analysisofmentoringcareerbenefitspointstopositiveoutcomesforprotégésintermsofcareerperformance,jobsatisfaction,advancementandcompensation(Allenetal2004).

2.2.8OrganizationalStructure

Inpreviousstudiesevidencelinkedsocialstructures,personalandcompensationpracticesandwomen’sadvancementinorganizations.StudiesshowedthatthestructuralfactorshadinfactinfluencedthevariationinpercentageofhighermanagementpositionsintheITindustry(Blumetal.(1994).Onestudyanalyzedfirmcharacteristicsthathadunder-representedgroupsinhighmanagementpositionscomparedtothosethatdidnot.Intheirresults,theymentionedthatfirmsinmorehigh-techfieldsneededfarmorefemalesthanotherfirmsbelongingtootherfields(FryxellandLerner1989).

2.3.1LiteratureSummary

FromtheliteratureitwasclearthatmostoftheresearchfocusedoninvestigatingfactorsthatinfluencedcareerchoiceandrecruitmentintotheITindustry.Althoughmuchoftheresearchhadrecommendedvariousprogramsandmodelstoimprovethesituation,ithasyettoshowasubstantialeffect.Trauthetal.(2004)recommendedintheirstudythatforthesereasons,futureresearchcouldbetterinvestigatetheissuessurroundingtheretentionofwomeninITandtheattitudesthatinfluenceprematureexitfromtheindustry.Thus,thisstudyaimstofillthegaphighlightedintheliteraturebypreviousresearcherrecommendations;withtheobjectiveofprovidingasignificantcontributiontodeterminetheissueswiththeretentionofwomeninthefieldofIT.

FromthesummaryoftheliteraturereviewthefollowinglistwascomposedoffactorsthatmayhaveaninfluenceofcareerretentionofwomenintheITindustrybasedonpreviousresearch.

SocialexpectationsmayhaveanegativeinfluenceonITcareerretention

Gender-biasmayhaveanegativeinfluenceoncareerretention

Work-familyconflictmayhaveanegativeinfluenceoncareerretention

Occupationalculturemayhaveanegativeinfluenceoncareerretention

Lackofrole-models/mentorsmayhaveanegativeinfluenceoncareerretention

2.3.2ResearchHypothesis

ConsideringthebarriershighlightedpreviouslythatmayaffectcareerretentioninIT,theresearchhypothesiswascarefullybuiltinordertoprovideasignificantcontributionofnotableissuesfromwhichpreviousresearchersrecommendedfurtherstudies.Fromapreliminaryunderstandingoftheresearchasawhole,thesocialandstructuralbarriersprovedtobeamainsourceofpipelineleakage;withwomenoftenfeelingtheneedtoleavetheindustryprematurely.Itwasimportanttodeterminewhatfactorsprovedtocontributetothedissatisfactionofcareerchoice,andtowhatextentdiditaffecttheretentionofwomenintheindustry.Baseduponthepreviousresearchundertakeninthisfield;andwithconfidenceinthepreliminaryunderstandingoftheresearchmethodologiesusedbypreviousresearchers,theresearchhypothesisforthisstudywasproposedasfollows:

H1:Thereisapositiverelationshipbetween