2014;74.

African American faculty women experiences of underrepresentation in computer technology positions in higher education.

Dolores King

UIID-AD: 1848

Abstract

African American women are underrepresented in computer technology disciplines in institutions of higher education throughout the United States. Although equitable gender representation is progressing in most fields, much less information is available on why institutions are still lagging in workforce diversity, a problem which can be lessened by hiring African American women in computer technology-related fields. The purpose of this study was to examine the perceptions of African American female faculty about race underrepresentation in higher education. The critical race theory and Black feminist thought theory provided the conceptual framework of this study. Using a phenomenological approach, the primary data source was the interview. The sample was comprised of 8 African American faculty women from 1 southwestern state. Data were analyzed using a combined process of open coding, categorizing, and comparison for similarities and emerging themes. Nine themes emerged from the data: negotiating employment in higher education, academic preparation in technology, continuing education and professional advancement, race and gender discrimination, monetary and financial incentives, personal and informal support systems, mentoring and networking, recruitment and hiring practices, and leadership and administrative roles. This study illuminated the challenges that 8 African American women faculty in higher education faced on their career paths in technology related fields. The study can contribute to positive social change by raising awareness in teaching administrators of hiring, promotion, and tenure practices that can help to increase diverse female faculty in computer technology disciplines. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2014 APA, all rights reserved)

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• Thesis