Sexism Sells: How Gender Inequality Made Britain Lose The Computer Race

Mar Hicks examines Britain's fall from early computing dominance through the lens of systematic gender discrimination in the technology sector. Their research focuses on how qualified women were pushed out of computing roles from the 1930s through the 1970s. The book traces key developments in British computing history, including wartime codebreaking operations and the rise of corporate computing systems. Hicks draws on extensive archival materials, oral histories, and government documents to reconstruct how gender-based workplace policies impacted the British tech industry. The narrative follows both individual women's experiences and broader institutional changes in government agencies and private companies. Personnel records and internal memos reveal patterns of discrimination as computing evolved from a female-dominated field into a male-dominated profession. Through this historical analysis, Hicks demonstrates how discriminatory practices can undermine national technological capabilities and economic competitiveness. The work provides a framework for understanding how gender bias in technical fields has long-term consequences for innovation and progress.

There are not enough internet reviews to create a summary of this book. Instead, here is a summary of reviews of Mar Hicks's overall work: Readers praise Hicks' "Programmed Inequality" for documenting how Britain's computing industry systematically excluded women, backed by extensive archival research and primary sources. Multiple reviews highlight the book's relevance to current tech industry gender disparities. What readers liked: - Detailed historical evidence and documentation - Clear connections to present-day tech workforce issues - Personal stories and narratives that illustrate broader patterns What readers disliked: - Dense academic writing style - Repetitive points across chapters - Limited coverage of potential solutions Ratings: Goodreads: 4.1/5 from 274 ratings Amazon: 4.4/5 from 31 ratings One reader noted: "Meticulously researched but accessible enough for non-academics." Another wrote: "Important history that explains how we got here, though the writing can be dry." Reviews particularly value the book's focus on structural and institutional factors rather than individual choices or biases. Some readers wanted more comparative analysis with other countries' computing industries.

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🔷 The book reveals how Britain's Civil Service actively pushed qualified women out of computer operations positions after WWII, despite their crucial role in early computing - a decision that contributed to Britain losing its early lead in computer technology. 💻 Mar Hicks discovered that women were initially hired as computer operators because the work was considered low-status clerical work, but when computers became more prestigious, women were systematically replaced by men. 📚 The author extensively researched previously classified government documents and conducted numerous interviews with former workers to uncover this hidden history of British computing. 🔶 The term "computer" was originally a job title for humans (mostly women) who performed complex mathematical calculations by hand, before it became associated with machines. ⚡ The book demonstrates how Britain's computing industry was dramatically affected by government policies that reclassified computing work as "scientific" rather than "clerical" - a change that deliberately excluded women from higher-paying technical positions.