Insight #1: Social Image of IT Personnel
This blog article is intended to provide some insight on short items gained from the current research. It is hopeful that these insights will help both business and academic leaders on the various influences associated with selecting IT as a college major.
If you want to read an introduction of this research project, please click here.
Social Image -- A Four Year Trend Analysis
Objective The survey data analyzed the students' perception of social image associated with information technology careers. Two survey questions were asked to gain the social image construct using a Likert Scale (1-7). The analysis was completed using two questions for social image as follows:
- Information technology jobs are just for nerds or introverts.
- Majoring in information technology will lead to a respectable career.
Response Analysis Responses from first-year college students in Fall 2016 and 2020 were identified consisting of 293 responses. The analysis was completed finding 19 records invalid (gender) for a net total of 274 responses.
Statistical Analysis For those that love statistics (ha ha). An analysis of variance (ANOVA) was completed with the following results:
The results of the statistical analysis show that there are no significant differences between the means of the two survey years (2016 vs. 2020) (p>.05) for either question. The various group means, as well as the grand mean (for 274 responses), do not have enough variance between the means to provide significant differences for both social image questions.
What Does This Mean? In plain terms, the perceptions of the social images of IT careers over four years have no differences. If the average of question #1 in Fall 2016 was 6.75 instead of 5.24 (the grand mean would also change), then it possible that there are differences in social image (nerds, introverts) over four years (trending in a positive direction).
With respect to the first question, the results clearly indicate that students somewhat agree (5.66) about IT careers are not just for nerds/introverts. OK, that's great! So there are no negative impediments about perception of social image.
In the second question, students somewhat agree that IT is a respectable career (5.23). Very good!
Final Thoughts The various insights on students' social image concludes that there is no significant movement in the averages during this four-year period.
However, it should be also be noted that there has not been any reduction in social image perception as measured in both questions (.09 and .01). These are minimal changes leading to conclude no diminishing perception of social image associated with IT careers.
Ultimately, in many ways, nothing significant to conclude except that the image is not declining or advancing in the eyes of first-year college students.
I promise ... there is more to come!