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2022 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tessa M. Benson-Greenwald ◽  
Mansi P. Joshi ◽  
Amanda B. Diekman

Although representations of female scientists in the media have increased over time, stereotypical portrayals of science persist. In-depth, contemporary profiles of scientists’ roles have an opportunity to reflect or to challenge stereotypes of science and of gender. We employed content and linguistic analyses to examine whether publicly available profiles of scientists from New York Times and The Scientist Magazine support or challenge pervasive beliefs about science. Consistent with broader stereotypes of STEM fields, these portrayals focused more on agency than communality. However, profiles also challenged stereotypes through integrating communality, purpose, and growth. This analysis also found similar presence of communal and agentic constructs for both female and male scientists. The current findings highlight the importance of considering counterstereotypic representations of science in the media: Communicating messages to the public that challenge existing beliefs about the culture of science may be one path toward disrupting stereotypes that dissuade talented individuals from choosing science pathways.


Author(s):  
Hyeon Jean Yoo ◽  
David T. Marshall

Graduate student parents are a unique subpopulation in higher education that accounts for a large proportion of graduate students. While student parents struggle to balance multiple roles, female students in STEM fields may face more significant barriers in balancing family and academic responsibilities compared to male graduate student parents or female students in non-STEM fields. Despite the urgent need to support this special population, little attention has been paid to how parental status, major, and gender affect graduate students. In this quantitative study of 545 graduate students, we examined the influence of parental status, major, and gender on motivation, stress, and satisfaction. A series of factorial ANOVAs found significant differences in motivation and mental health between graduate student parents and non-parents. Our findings highlight the importance of providing adequate resources to graduate students according to their status.


2022 ◽  
Vol 82 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Mooi-Choo Chuah

In this talk, the author would like to share her research journey from industry to academia, first in Malaysia and then in United States. She was fortunate to receive a strong science & mathematical education in Malaysia, trained as an engineer at University of Malaya, worked with a team of talented R&D engineers at Motorola Communication Sectors Sdn Bhd in Penang before she went to United States for graduate studies. In United States, again she was fortunate to have several mentors who helped to inspire her to conduct great research first in industry and then in academia. She will first share her research journal from Malaysia to United States. Next, based on her experience, she will share some main ingredients one needs to cultivate to conduct great research, e.g., curiosity, diligence, and perseverance. Subsequently, she will also share her thoughts on how industry leaders, academic leaders and Malaysian government can collaborate to energize innovations among Malaysian engineers as well as young generations aspiring to be our next generation engineers. Cultivating curiosity in STEM fields at young age, providing opportunities for high school students to appreciate science through solving real life problems with college students, and creating opportunities for faculty members in STEM fields to spend sabbatical semesters at top universities or industry R&D laboratories to horn their skills are necessary steps to energize innovations among Malaysian engineers.


2022 ◽  
Vol 9 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Fatma Kayan-Fadlelmula ◽  
Abdellatif Sellami ◽  
Nada Abdelkader ◽  
Salman Umer

AbstractAbundant research conducted in many countries has underlined the critical role of Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) in developing human capital in fields important to a nation’s global competiveness and prosperity. In the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) States, recent long-term policy plans emphasize the ever-increasing need of transition to a knowledge-based economy and preparing highly qualified nationals with credentials in STEM fields to meet the current and future needs of the labor market. Yet, despite multiple educational reforms and substantial resources, national and international indicators of student performance still demonstrate insignificant improvement in GCC students’ achievement in STEM subjects. Demonstrably, the GCC youth still lack interest in STEM careers and represent low enrollment rates in STEM fields. This paper presents the results of a systematic review conducted on STEM education research in GCC countries. The review seeks to contribute to the body of the existing STEM literature, explore the factors influencing student participation in STEM, and identify the gaps in STEM education research in those countries.


Author(s):  
Elizabeth Saville ◽  
Jennifer M. Jakobi ◽  
Anne Sophie Beaudoin ◽  
Sabre Cherkowski

This study explores the academic, professional and personal career benefits of leading Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) outreach, from the perspective of undergraduate student leaders. We consider traditional and non-traditional STEM university students, gender and type of position (paid or volunteer) in this evaluation. Data were collected through an online survey completed by 30 former student STEM outreach leaders from the University of British Columbia. Survey data indicated that STEM outreach had a moderately strong impact on academic, professional and personal career development. Outcomes did not differ between genders and paid work was found to contribute to greater personal and professional impact. The positive influence of outreach on academic and professional decision making was higher in traditional STEM fields than STEM based health-science studies. Future studies are needed to fully understand how demographics and year of study might differentially inform career decision making within as well as between STEM fields to maximize university student leader involvement and create advances in the university-leaders academic and professional development. The outcomes of this research will further inform the relevant impacts of STEM outreach on university student leaders.


PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (12) ◽  
pp. e0260646
Author(s):  
Saili Moghe ◽  
Katelyn Baumgart ◽  
Julie J. Shaffer ◽  
Kimberly A. Carlson

The positive influence of undergraduate research and mentoring on student success in STEM fields has been well-established. However, the role that the gender of a research mentor may play in the undergraduate research experience warrants further investigation. This is an especially critical issue to address, since the lack of female role models in STEM fields is acknowledged as an impediment to the success and progress of women pursuing STEM-careers. To evaluate how the gender of undergraduate research mentors influences the research experience of students, we collected and analyzed surveys from undergraduates and alumni who had completed undergraduate research at the University of Nebraska at Kearney. We found that even though students did not select mentors based on gender, there were differences in how students perceived their mentors, depending on the gender of their mentors. Interestingly, students with female mentors were more likely than students with male mentors to report that their research experience had prepared them for a career in science. Further, our gender-pairing analyses revealed that students who expressed that the gender of their mentor had contributed to their relationship with their mentor were more likely to have a female mentor. Our data indicate that female mentors favorably influence the undergraduate research experience of both male and female students. Finally, our study reinforces the conclusions of previous studies demonstrating that undergraduate research and mentoring are beneficial for students. Overall, our findings support that, for students to fully benefit from their undergraduate research experience, undergraduate research opportunities for students should include an equitable representation of female mentors.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alysson Light ◽  
Tessa Benson-Greenwald ◽  
Amanda Diekman

While women's representation in STEM fields has increased over the past several decades, some fields have seen a greater increase women's participation than others. In the present research, we explore how women's participation in STEM disciplines influences labeling of those disciplines as hard vs. soft sciences. Study 1 found that increasing perceived participation of women in a STEM discipline increased the likelihood that participants would label it a soft science. Study 2 found that among people who did not work in science, this tendency to associate women's participation with soft science was correlated with endorsement of stereotypes about women's STEM competency. And Studies 3A and 3B showed that labeling disciplines as soft sciences led to the fields being devalued, deemed less rigorous, and less worthy of federal funding. These studies show that stereotypes about women's STEM competency can impact perceptions of fields in which women participate, with consequences for how scientific disciplines are perceived.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (11) ◽  
pp. 746
Author(s):  
Athina G. Mitsopoulou ◽  
Evangelia A. Pavlatou

The aim of this study is to investigate the predictive factors that predispose secondary school students’ interest in studying STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics) fields in higher education. For this purpose, an already existing questionnaire was used and modified properly, according to the Greek educational system. The survey was attended by 301 secondary school students, who study in Piraeus, one of the largest cities in Greece. Research findings indicated that the principles of Social Cognitive Career Theory (SCCT) are well supported. It is worth mentioning that this is the first time that such a number of variables had been examined, in order to support the SCCT. In particular, very few studies exist in literature—to the best of our knowledge—investigating the effect of more than four factors influencing students’ interest towards STEM higher studies. Learning experiences, students’ exposure to STEM activities within the school environment and outside of it (OR = 0.071, p = 0.002), as well as their involvement with high difficulty STEM courses (OR = 0.203, p = 0.038), appear to be positively correlated with the development of interest towards studies in the STEM fields. In addition, students from low-income families are more likely to follow STEM studies (OR = 0.198, p = 0.034). On the contrary, it has been revealed that parental educational background only supports the student’s decision to continue studies after high school, without specifying the educational field in higher education (OR = 0.769, p = 0.703; father’s educational level, OR = 0.698, p = 0.552; mother’s educational level). Data revealed that outcome expectations and self-efficacy (OR = 14.366, p = 0.005) are positively related to the procedure of students’ interest development to pursue STEM fields in higher education, while gender seems to be a non-regulatory factor (OR = 0.886, p = 0.831).


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