Women in Computing and the Contingency of Informatics Cultures

Abstract

The paper first shows how early programming was highly shaped by women, and who these were. It further shows when and why computing moved into the hands of men. Then it will deal with the culturally most differentiated partic-ipation of women in informatics studies. It turns out that low female participation is mainly a problem of the western, and north-western countries in the world. A lot of reasons are given, also only suspected ones, but there are so many diversities and influences, both in space and in time, that it is difficult to put them together into a consistent and stable picture. This also makes strategies to invite more women into (western) computing a contingent task and it requires steady accompanying measures. 8.1 Introduction Not only Ada, countess of Lovelace marked the history of computing, but also many female mathematicians from the beginning of the twentieth century until its third quarter. Female participation in informatics broke down mid of the 1980s with the introduction of home-computers and PCs, i.e. with the quick growth of eco-nomic importance of software. Its gradual decline in Western countries contrasts with the high, equal or even higher participation of women in southern and eastern countries. With more foreign students in the western countries also the number of women in computing here has risen is still rising.