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This program is tentative and subject to change.

Wed 30 Apr 2025 11:15 - 11:30 at 206 plus 208 - Gender, Equity and Diversity

Queer students often encounter discrimination and a lack of belonging in their academic environments, contributing to higher dropout rates. This may be especially true in heteronormative male-dominated fields like software engineering, which already faces a \emph{diversity crisis}. In contrast, disciplines like humanities have a higher proportion of queer students, suggesting a more diverse academic culture. While prior research has explored queer students’ challenges in STEM fields, limited attention has been given to how experiences differ between the sociotechnical, yet highly heteronormative, field of software engineering and the socioculturally inclusive humanities. This study addresses that gap by comparing 165 queer software engineering and 119 queer humanities students regarding outness, campus climate, sense of belonging, and dropout intentions. Our findings reveal that queer students in software engineering are less likely to be open about their sexuality, report a significantly lower sense of belonging, and encounter more academic challenges compared to their peers in the humanities. Despite these challenges, queer software engineering students show greater determination to continue their studies. These insights suggest that software engineering could enhance inclusivity by adopting practices commonly seen in the humanities, such as fostering acceptance and integrating inclusive policies in classrooms, to create a more welcoming academic environment where queer students can thrive.

This program is tentative and subject to change.

Wed 30 Apr

Displayed time zone: Eastern Time (US & Canada) change

11:00 - 12:30
Gender, Equity and DiversitySE in Society (SEIS) at 206 plus 208
11:00
15m
Talk
A Socio-Technical Grounded Theory on the Effect of Cognitive Dysfunctions in the Performance of Software Developers with ADHD and Autism
SE in Society (SEIS)
Kiev Gama Universidade Federal de Pernambuco, Grischa Liebel Reykjavik University, Miguel Goulao NOVA-LINCS, FCT/UNL, Aline Lacerda Federal University of Pernambuco (UFPE), Cristiana Lacerda Federal University of Pernambuco (UFPE)
11:15
15m
Talk
Belonging Beyond Code: Queer Software Engineering and Humanities Student Experiences
SE in Society (SEIS)
Emily Vorderwülbeke University of Passau, Isabella Graßl Technical University at Darmstadt, Germany
Pre-print
11:30
15m
Talk
Breaking the Silos: An Actionable Framework for Recruiting Diverse Participants in SE
SE in Society (SEIS)
Shandler Mason North Carolina State University, Hank Lenham North Carolina State University, Sandeep Kuttal North Carolina State University
11:45
15m
Talk
Enhancing Women's Experiences in Software Engineering
SE in Society (SEIS)
Júlia Rocha Fortunato University of Brasília, Luana Ribeiro Soares University of Brasília, Gabriela Silva Alves University of Brasília, Edna Dias Canedo University of Brasilia (UnB), Fabiana Freitas Mendes Aalto University
12:00
15m
Talk
Investigating the Developer eXperience of LGBTQIAPN+ People in Agile Teams
SE in Society (SEIS)
Edvaldo R. Wassouf-Jr UFMS, Pedro Fukuda Federal University of Mato Grosso do Sul, Awdren Fontão Federal University of Mato Grosso do Sul (UFMS)
12:15
15m
Talk
There's Nothing to See Here: A Study of Deaf and Hearing Developer Use of Stack Overflow
SE in Society (SEIS)
Steve Counsell Brunel University London, Giuseppe Destefanis Brunel University London, Rumyana Neykova Brunel University London, Alina Miron Brunel University, Nadine Aburumman Brunel University, Thomas Shippey LogicMonitor
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