Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Students' Sense of Belonging in Computing: An Intersectional Approach

Abstract

The field of computing is rapidly developing, requiring a strong and diverse labor force. The authors' work assessed the relationship between lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) students' sense of belonging in computing and thoughts about leaving the field. The results of two studies indicated that among undergraduate students (study 1) and graduate students (study 2), thoughts about leaving a computing program were associated with feeling a low sense of belonging in the computing community. Importantly, women LGBTQ students reported the lowest sense of belonging among all student groups in the samples. These findings suggest in order to capitalize on talent and perspective offered by the LGBTQ community, the field of computing should be especially attentive to LGBTQ students' sense of fit in the computing community.