What occurred during the same time as the beginning of the decline of women in computer science?
By 1985, personal computers were widely used across the US and the world in households of everyday citizens. When PCs were first being sold, the marketing catered almost entirely to men and boys. Even when I was young, the stereotype that video games were for boys and men persisted, I remember hearing a lot about the struggles of women playing online games like Call of Duty or Halo, being viciously harassed in online lobbies. This stereotype persisted from before I was born, being shown frequently in popular movies of the 80s and 90s. In the end, these cultural ideas lead to computers being mostly bought by males. This set them ahead when attending computer science courses later in life, as they were more likely to have grown up using a computer. These factors combined to create a cultural idea surrounding computers that essentially pushed women away from the field.
Why does it matter that males had been playing on computers growing up?
Because it lead to a familiarity with computers that women and girls were less likely to have. I personally grew up extensively gaming on PCs, and it did lead to a certain degree of familiarity with how to use them, which became more advanced the older I grew and the more time I spent doing various things on a computer. If the stereotype has been that computers and video games are a hobby primarily for boys, it is easy to see how women from their childhoods onward would be slightly discouraged from this kind of extensive use, or use at all. Without the time I spent using computers growing up, I doubt I'd be as efficient as I am with them now, and its clear to see how disadvantaged someone on the opposite end of that perspective is. I'm personally happy that in my teenage years and onward the gaming industry in particular really shifted its attention towards being more inclusive, and catering to everybody.
Why Diversity Matters To Your Tech Company notes
When are diversity efforts most successful?
Why do diverse companies perform better?
Give an example of how a diverse company can serve a diverse user base or vise-versa.