2012 - Friendship Groups, Personal Motivation, and Gender in Relation to High School Students’ STEM Career Interest

Attribution: Robnett, Rachael D., & Leaper, Campbell
Researchers: Campbell LeaperRachael D. Robnett
University Affiliation:
Email: rrobnett@ucsc.edu
Research Question:
Friendship group characteristics, motivation, and gender were investigated in relation to adolescents’ science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) career interest. First, the authors investigated the extent to which personal motivation and friendship group STEM climate predicted adolescents’ STEM career interest after controlling for gender and other background factors. They hypothesized that the effects of these variables would be domain-specific, such that the friendship group’s STEM climate and students’ sci-ence motivation would predict STEM career interest after controlling for the friendship group’s English climate and students’ English motivation. Finally, they investigated possible moderation effects.
Published: Yes
Journal Name or Institutional Affiliation: Journal of Research on Adolescence
Journal Entry: Vol. 23, No. 4, pp. 652-664
Year: 2012
Findings:

– Friendship group characteristics account for variation in STEM career interest beyond what is accounted for by science motivation.
– Gender, science expectancy, science value, group STEM climate, and group importance were significant predictors of interest in a STEM career. Specifically, being male, being high in science ability beliefs and science value, and being part of a friendship group high in STEM support independently predicted greater interest in a STEM career.
– As science value increased, interest in a STEM career increased most rapidly among participants with an important friendship group that had a supportive STEM climate.
– Among participants with a low proportion of same-gender friends, the difference between boys’ and girls’ interest in a STEM career was less pronounced for participants high in science value.
– Having a friendship group that is less supportive of STEM and predominantly comprised of girls may have been especially detrimental to girls’ interest in a STEM career.
– Findings suggest social identities and self-concepts may shape youths’ STEM career choices.

Scholarship Types: Journal Article Reporting Empirical ResearchKeywords: FriendshipsHigh SchoolMotivationSTEMSTEM Career IntentSTEM IdentityRegions: WestMethodologies: QuantitativeResearch Designs: SurveyAnalysis Methods: Descriptive StatisitcsHierarchal Logistic Regression Sampling Frame:Five schools in northern California
Sampling Types: Non-RandomAnalysis Units: High SchoolsStudentData Types: Quantitative-Cross Sectional
Data Description:

Study draws from the following theories: expectancy-value theory (Eccles & Wigfield, 2002; Wigfield & Eccles, 2002), social cognitive theory (Bandura, 1997), self-perception theory (Harter, 1992) and social identity theory (Tajfel & Turner, 1986).

Participants were recruited from five high schools in northern California. The classes included advanced placement and regular levels. The full sample includes 737 participants. However, given the purposes of the current study, analyses focused on a subset of 468 participants (204 boys, 264 girls) who indicated that they had a group of friends with whom they regularly spent time. A researcher (from among five females and one male) administered the surveys in students’ classrooms during periods that ranged in length from 50 to 75 min. Although specific rates of participation are not available, an average of 71% of students across all classes participated.

Theoretical Framework:
Relevance:STEM Interest/Pursuit/Aspiration
Archives: K-16 STEM Abstracts