The computing profession faces a serious gender crisis. Today,
fewer women enter computing than anytime in the past 25 years. This
book provides an unprecedented look at the history of women and men
in computing, detailing how the computing profession emerged and
matured, and how the field became male coded. Women's experiences
working in offices, education, libraries, programming, and
government are examined for clues on how and where women
succeeded--and where they struggled. It also provides a unique
international dimension with studies examining the U.S., Great
Britain, Germany, Norway, and Greece. Scholars in history,
gender/women's studies, and science and technology studies, as well
as department chairs and hiring directors will find this volume
illuminating.
Autorentext
THOMAS J. MISA is at the University of Minnesota, where he directs the Charles Babbage Institute, teaches in the graduate program for the History of Science, Technology, and Medicine, and is a faculty member in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering.
Zusammenfassung
The computing profession faces a serious gender crisis. Today, fewer women enter computing than anytime in the past 25 years. This book provides an unprecedented look at the history of women and men in computing, detailing how the computing profession emerged and matured, and how the field became male coded. Women's experiences working in offices, education, libraries, programming, and government are examined for clues on how and where women succeededand where they struggled. It also provides a unique international dimension with studies examining the U.S., Great Britain, Germany, Norway, and Greece. Scholars in history, gender/women's studies, and science and technology studies, as well as department chairs and hiring directors will find this volume illuminating.
Inhalt
Foreword ix
Preface xiii
Contributors xv
PART I: TOOLS FOR UNDERSTANDING 1
1 Gender Codes 3
Defining the Problem
Thomas J. Misa
2 Computer Science 25
The Incredible Shrinking Woman
Caroline Clarke Hayes
3 Masculinity and the Machine Man 51
Gender in the History of Data Processing
Thomas Haigh
PART II: INSTITUTIONAL LIFE 73
4 A Gendered Job Carousel 75
Employment Effects of Computer Automation
Corinna Schlombs
5 Meritocracy and Feminization in Confl ict 95
Computerization in the British Government
Marie Hicks
6 Making Programming Masculine 115
Nathan Ensmenger
7 Gender and Computing in the Push-Button Library
143
Greg Downey
PART III: MEDIA AND CULTURE 163
8 Cultural Perceptions of Computers in Norway 1980-2007
165
From "Anybody" Via "Male Experts" to "Everybody"
Hilde G. Corneliussen
9 Constructing Gender and Technology in Advertising Images
187
Feminine and Masculine Computer Parts
Aristotle Tympas, Hara Konsta, Theodore Lekkas, and Serkan
Karas
PART IV: WOMEN IN COMPUTING 211
10 The Pleasure Paradox 213
Bridging the Gap Between Popular Images of Computing and
Women's Historical Experiences
Janet Abbate
11 Programming Enterprise 229
Women Entrepreneurs in Software and Computer Services
Jeffrey R. Yost
12 Gender Codes 251
Lessons from History
Thomas J. Misa
13 Gender Codes 265
Prospects for Change
Caroline Clarke Hayes
Bibliography 275
Index 297