Factors Influencing High School Students' Interest in pSTEM

Area of Science:

• Education
• Psychology
• Sociology

Background:

• The transition from high school to college is a critical juncture for students' pursuit of physical science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (pSTEM) careers.
• Students in the U.S. transition from state-mandated high school courses to freely chosen college curricula, influencing their career path decisions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate if social factors inhibiting college students' pSTEM interest also affect high school students.
• To determine if these factors contribute to gender disparities in pSTEM interest and pursuit.

Main Methods:

• Two studies were conducted involving high school students.
• Data collected on social belonging, ability belonging, self-efficacy, and perceptions of pSTEM fields.

Main Results:

• Female high school students reported lower social and ability belonging and lower self-efficacy compared to males in pSTEM classes.
• For females, social belonging significantly predicted intentions to continue in pSTEM, unlike for males.
• Perceptions of pSTEM fields as requiring innate brilliance over hard work disproportionately discouraged female students' intentions to pursue pSTEM.

Conclusions:

• Social belonging is a critical factor influencing female students' intentions to pursue pSTEM careers.
• Both individual self-perceptions and field-specific perceptions significantly impact students' interest in pSTEM.
• Specific processes may deter high school females more than males from pursuing pSTEM career paths.