The survey, released by Deloitte & Touche LLP/Deloitte Consulting and conducted by Roper Starch Worldwide, reveals why women are less likely than men to choose a high tech profession: the glass ceiling, usually associated with more traditional companies, has reappeared in the new economy.

According to James E Copeland Jr, CEO of Deloitte & Touche, "The findings from the Women in Technology survey clearly demonstrate that much more progress needs to be made before women and men are perceived as equals in the workplace. The research findings provide a compelling reason for business leaders to identify and promote new opportunities for women to become technology leaders."

Key findings of the survey include:

• Nearly two-thirds of women surveyed believe a glass ceiling is a reality for women in the high technology industry (62%), whereas 62% of men felt that this barrier is a non-issue for women in the high tech industry.
  
• Those who perceive a glass ceiling exists cited the following reasons: women perceived as less knowledgeable and/or qualified than their male counterparts, gender bias, sex discrimination, stereotypes, and a lack of women technology leaders (84% of women and 57% of men said there were too few women high tech leaders).
  
• 65% of respondents associate the high tech industry with men compared with a mere 4% who associate it with women.
  
• Women are more likely to link female success to skill, accessibility to female mentors, and education, while men are more likely to attribute women's success to the prosperous economy of the past 10 years.
  
• An overwhelming percentage of male and female respondents (78%) associate a strong economy and long-term future growth with the industry. 61% of women who work in high tech say they generally face a glass ceiling (vs. 62% of women in other professions). And while 33% of women, when asked if they were "starting out on a career" today, would choose high tech as their preferred career path, fully 47% of men say the same.