  Diversity and inclusion are necessary prerequisites for shaping technological
innovation that benefits society as a whole. A common indicator of diversity
consideration is the representation of different social groups among software
engineering (SE) researchers, developers, and students. However, this does not
necessarily entail that diversity is considered in the SE research itself.
  In our study, we examine how diversity is embedded in SE research,
particularly research that involves participant studies. To this end, we have
selected 79 research papers containing 105 participant studies spanning three
years of ICSE technical tracks. Using a content analytical approach, we
identified how SE researchers report the various diversity categories of their
study participants and investigated: 1) the extent to which participants are
described, 2) what diversity categories are commonly reported, and 3) the
function diversity serves in the SE studies.
  We identified 12 different diversity categories reported in SE participant
studies. Our results demonstrate that even though most SE studies report on the
diversity of participants, SE research often emphasizes professional diversity
data, such as occupation and work experience, over social diversity data, such
as gender or location of the participants. Furthermore, our results show that
participant diversity is seldom analyzed or reflected upon when SE researchers
discuss their study results, outcome or limitations. To help researchers
self-assess their study diversity awareness, we propose a diversity awareness
model and guidelines that SE researchers can apply to their research. With this
study, we hope to shed light on a new approach to tackling the diversity and
inclusion crisis in the SE field.
