Hispanic and Anglo Americans’ intentions to pursue IT careers

Purpose The purpose of this study was to validate a model of factors related to Hispanic Americans and Anglo Americans intentions to pursue careers in information technology (IT). Design/methodology/approach The study used a non-experimental design and data from 90 Anglos and 90 Hispanics to evaluate the model. Data were collected about the following predictors: Gender, ethnicity, collectivism, IT career self-efficacy, occupational stereotypes, beliefs about IT careers, attitudes toward IT jobs and intentions to pursue IT careers. Data were analyzed using multiple/regression correlational analyses. Findings The results revealed that IT career self-efficacy and attitudes toward IT careers were positively related to intentions to pursue careers in IT. In addition, ethnicity, gender, and subjective norms were related to attitudes toward IT careers. Surprisingly, the results did not show that collectivism cultural values were related to intentions to pursue IT careers, but the findings did indicate that Hispanics had greater intentions to pursue IT careers than Anglos. Women also had lower IT career self-efficacy than did men. In particular, Anglo men reported the highest levels of IT career self-efficacy and Anglo women reported the lowest level of IT career self-efficacy. Finally, attitudes toward IT careers fully mediated the relation between gender and intention to pursue IT careers. Practical implications Results of the study identify several key factors that IT organizations might use to recruit and retain Hispanics and women in the IT field. With respect to women, organizations and educational institutions should continue to focus on programs that increase their self-efficacy. However, these efforts may not be as fruitful for Hispanics. Rather, programs which are focused on removing barriers to starting a career in the field may prove more fruitful. Another strategy would be to provide Hispanic families with information on the benefits of pursuing careers in IT. In addition, providing role models for Hispanics who are choosing careers may improve their interest in careers in this field. Social implications Jobs in the field of IT are often prestigious and high paying. However, Anglo and Asian males dominate the workforce. We believe that employing more ethnic minorities and women would benefit organizations and society because it will ensure that IT products and services meet the needs of all members of the population. It merits noting that women and ethnic minorities have different strategies for processing information and including IT employees who represent these differences will make the products much more useful. Further, including a broader set of employees in IT will offer insights into how new products should be developed and implemented. Originality/value To our knowledge this is the first study on Hispanics’ ethnicity, cultural values, gender, and intentions to pursue careers in IT. This study was designed to identify factors that are related to the underrepresentation of ethnic minorities in the IT field.