Please Don't Go — A Comprehensive Approach to Increase Women's Participation in Open Source Software

Abstract

Women represent less than 24% of employees in the software development industry and experience various types of prejudice and bias. Despite various efforts to increase diversity and multi-gendered participation, women are even more underrepresented in Open Source Software (OSS) projects. In my Ph.D., I investigate the following question: How can OSS communities increase women's participation in their projects? I will identify different OSS career pathways and develop a holistic view of women's motivations to join or leave OSS, as well as their definitions of success. Based on this empirical investigation, I will work together with the Linux Foundation to design attraction and retention strategies focused on women. Before and after implementing the strategies, I will conduct empirical studies to evaluate the state of the practice and understand the implications of the strategies.