Notes on section 5.3 of the paper "Why do women pursue a PhD in Computer Science?"
Participants' preferences and self-confidence
This analysis is based on the following Likert-scale type questions:
Q12. Do you feel enthusiasm for computer science?
Q13. Do you enjoy your studies (without considering the pandemic)?
Q14. Would you say that you have good grades?
Q15. Would you say that you are successful in your studies?
Q16. Do you feel self-confident in interaction with other students?
Q17. Did/Do you regularly participate in study groups during your studies?
Q18. Do you like theoretical computer science subjects (esp. logic and maths)?
Q19. Do you like practical computer science subjects (esp. programming)?
Q20. Do you like interdisciplinary areas of computer science?
Table 4 is extended here with three columns making explicit the Mann-Whitney U test statitstics, the rank of the hypothesis, by p-value, the Holm-Bonferroni corrected significance level, and the Bonferroni corrected significance level.
Extended Table 4
The detailed data analysis, including the Mann-Whitney U tests can be found in the Excel file SurveyDataAnalysis, on the sheet RQ1-RQ2. MW-UQ12-Q54.
To help in the interpretation of the data, the following chart summarises the results obtained for these questions. The data for this chart can be found in the Excel file SurveyDataAnalysis, on the sheet RQ1. Q12-Q20Diagram. This chart only presents results for questions where there was a statistically significant difference between the two groups.
The distributions of responses on enthusiasm and self-confidence, contrasting participants who decided not to do a PhD [No PhD] with those who decided to do one [PhD].
Participants who decided to do a PhD in Computer Science feel more enthusiasm for Computer Science in general, and theoretical computer science and interdisciplinary studies in particular. They also enjoy their studies more than other participants. In addition, they express a higher self-confidence in the success of their studies, and their interaction with their peers.
