Feeling like one exerts more effort than others may influence women's feelings of belonging with science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) and impede their motivation. In Study 1, women STEM graduate students perceived they exerted more effort than peers to succeed. For women, but not men, this effort expenditure perception predicted a decreased sense of belonging, which in turn decreased motivation. Study 2 tested whether the male-dominated status of a field triggers such effort expectations. We created a fictional "eco-psychology" graduate program, which when depicted as male-dominated resulted in women expecting to exert relatively more effort and decreased their interest in pursuing the field. Study 3 found emphasizing effort as expected (and normal) to achieve success elevated women's feelings of belonging and future motivation. Results suggest effort expenditure perceptions are an indicator women use to assess their fit in STEM. Implications for enhancing women's participation in STEM are discussed.

We examined the basic question of whether pressure is stressful. We proposed that when examining the role of stress or pressure in cognitive performance, it is important to consider the type of pressure, the stress response, and the aspect of cognition assessed. In Experiment 1, outcome pressure was not experienced as stressful but did lead to impaired performance on a rule-based (RB) category-learning task, but not on a more procedural information-integration (II) task. In Experiment 2, the addition of monitoring pressure resulted in a modest stress response to combined pressure and impairment on both tasks. Across experiments, higher stress appraisals were associated with decreased performance on the RB, but not on the II, task. In turn, higher stress reactivity (i.e., heart rate) was associated with enhanced performance on the II, but not on the RB, task. This work represents an initial step toward integrating the stress cognition and pressure cognition literatures and suggests that integrating these fields may require consideration of the type of pressure, the stress response, and the cognitive system mediating performance.

Purpose: The purpose of this research was to explore the knowledge, beliefs and experiences of Canadian dietitians relating to gender and sexual orientation diversity within the profession. Our aim is to share some of the knowledge, beliefs and experiences though comic art, a medium that is widely popular and has been used in health knowledge translation to teach about health, health practices and client care practices. Methods: The research conducted was a qualitative poststructural thematic discourse analysis. Sixteen Canadian dietitians were recruited and asked to share their thoughts and experiences and gender and sexual diversity in the profession. Results: Participants spoke of cis-heteronormativity, feelings of not belonging and offered suggestions to create a more inclusive profession. Through a creative collaboration with an artist, a comic was created to share these findings. Conclusion: Dietetic students, educators and practitioners must take an active role in seeking out and modelling learning opportunities to ensure that the profession continues to move toward ensuring a safe and inclusive space for 2SLGBTQIA+ individuals.

No abstract