Communications of the ACM
MIT Librarian: Tech Workplaces Plastered With Star Trek Posters, Geeky Stuff Are Non-Inclusive to Women
The top librarian at MIT recently argued that to make tech workplaces more inclusive and welcoming to women, ditch "Star Trek" posters and other geeky stuff cluttering office walls.
"There is research that shows that workplaces that are plastered with stereotypically 'tech or nerd guy' cultural images—think 'Star Trek'—have negative impact on women's likelihood of pursuing tech work and of staying in tech work in general or in that particular work environment," said Chris Bourg, director of libraries at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
"Replace the Star Trek posters with travel posters, don't name your projects or your printers or your domains after only male figures from Greek mythology, and just generally avoid geek references and inside nerd jokes," Bourg added. "Those kinds of things reinforce the stereotypes about who does tech; and that stereotype is the male nerd stereotype."
Asked about her reference, Bourg pointed to a study: "Ambient Belonging: How Stereotypical Cues Impact Gender Participation in Computer Science."
The 2009 study examined whether "stereotypical objects" like Star Trek posters "signal a masculinity that precludes women from ever developing an interest in computer science." Or, as the authors say, how the "ambient belonging" of women is affected by tech-geek ware.
From The College Fix
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