Gender norms and STEM: the importance of friends for stopping leakage from the STEM pipeline

Vleuten, Maaike van der; Steinmetz, Stephanie; Werfhorst, Herman G. van de

doi:10.1080/13803611.2019.1589525

Cited by 29 publications

(24 citation statements)

References 52 publications

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“…It might be that a comparative advantage in mathematics leads girls to a more mathematics-orientated but female-typical trajectory (in this case Science & Health). Science & Technology is the most math intense, followed by the combination of Science Werfhorst, 2018). Understanding why girls choose a science trajectory in secondary education might therefore be particularly important, as it might increase our understanding of why they do not continue their educational career in science after secondary education.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Gender Differences in Fields of Study: The Role of Comparative Advantage for Trajectory Choices in Upper Secondary Education

Vleuten

2021

Journal of Education

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Absolute ability/achievement does not explain gender differences in educational trajectories, but the role of comparative advantage (i.e., being better in one subject compared to another) has received much less attention. To study this, longitudinal data collected among 1,352 individuals (age 15-16) in upper secondary education in the Netherlands are used. Multinomial path analyses showed that compared to girls, boys are on average 15% more likely to enter the most male-typical trajectory and 16% less likely to enter the most female-typical trajectory. Although having a comparative advantage affects trajectory choices, it does not explain gender differences in trajectory choices in secondary education.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Gender Differences in Fields of Study: The Role of Comparative Advantage for Trajectory Choices in Upper Secondary Education

Vleuten

2021

Journal of Education

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“…From a rational choice perspective, working in a gender-atypical career can be conceived as normative and social 'costs' (Jonsson 1999). For example, gender-atypical behavior and occupational choices have been connected to lower peer acceptance and lower levels of social support (Heilman et al, 2004;Taylor, 2010).…”

Section: Normative Reference Groups and The Gender Gap In Stem Expectationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…During adolescence, the school context represents the fundamental social space for social interaction and peer socialization. Therefore, research has been increasingly interested in understanding social influences on gendered career plans, for example regarding interaction with peers (Raabe, Boda, and Stadtfeld 2019;Sinclair, Carlsson, and Björklund 2014;van der Vleuten, Steinmetz, and van de Werfhorst 2018) and school composition (Mann, Legewie, and DiPrete 2015;Legewie and DiPrete 2014).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…First, it introduces classroom effects in the study of adolescents' expectations toward STEM occupations. Previous research has either focused on comparative (Jonsson and Mood 2008;Mann, Legewie, and DiPrete 2015) or on normative reference group effects (van der Vleuten, Steinmetz, and van de Werfhorst 2018;Gabay-Egozi, Shavit, and Yaish 2015;Riegle-Crumb, Farkas, and Muller 2006) when investigating contextual effects on students' preferences for science and technology careers. Considering both effects jointly allows for an assessment of their relative contribution.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Gendered career expectations in context: the relevance of normative and comparative reference groups

Beckmann

2021

British Journal of Sociology of Education

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Although women are increasingly entering male-dominated careers, they remain strongly underrepresented in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) occupations. While previous explanations emphasize the importance of individual preferences or family socialization, less is known about how the school context contributes to these differences. This study aimed to examine the role of the classroom context as a frame of reference for students' career expectations, focusing on comparative and normative reference group effects. Building on gender socialization theory and rational choice models, I investigate whether these contextual effects affect students' occupational expectations in a gender-specific way. Drawing on a large representative sample of secondary school students in Germany, I find that the gender gap in students' occupational expectations is larger in classrooms characterized by a high mathematical confidence and high aspirations toward STEM. In classrooms with a pronounced STEMrelated classroom climate, female students less frequently expect to work in a STEM career, while for male students the same classroom climate is associated with higher expectations toward STEM. More generally, this study demonstrates that research on the explanation of gender differences in career expectations profits from incorporating social context effects within schools and classrooms.

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“…Furthermore, encouragement by parents and peers increases the chance of students choosing a STEM high school curriculum or STEM field of study (Gabay-Egozi et al, 2015;Riegle-Crumb et al, 2006;van der Vleuten et al, 2018). Additionally, support from significant others for choosing a STEM field is affected by traditional gender norms.…”

Section: State Of Researchmentioning

confidence: 99%

Student attrition in gender atypical fields of study. A matter of lacking social integration or pressure from significant others?

Jusri¹

2019

Preprint

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In most European countries, the choice of college majors is highly segregated by gender. Only a small amount of students enrolls in a gender atypical major. Previous studies indicated that these students may have a higher attrition rate than their counterparts in gender typical majors. In this paper, I investigated whether this higher attrition rate is caused by lower levels of social integration and pressure from significant others. I built a synthesis of Tinto’s model of student drop out and Kanter’s theory of tokenism and drew on theories of comparative reference groups to test these hypotheses. Using data from the German National Educational Panel Study, which follows undergraduate students who enrolled in 2010, I conducted discrete time survival analysis. I found that men and women in gender atypical majors have a higher risk to switch to a more gender balanced major and – only for women - to drop out than students in gender typical majors. Low levels of social integration and disapproval of the major by significant others increase the attrition risk. However, these two aspects do not contribute to the explanation of the higher attrition risk of students in gender atypical majors. Alternative explanations are discussed.

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Gender norms and STEM: the importance of friends for stopping leakage from the STEM pipeline

Cited by 29 publications

References 52 publications

Gender Differences in Fields of Study: The Role of Comparative Advantage for Trajectory Choices in Upper Secondary Education

Gender Differences in Fields of Study: The Role of Comparative Advantage for Trajectory Choices in Upper Secondary Education

Gendered career expectations in context: the relevance of normative and comparative reference groups

Student attrition in gender atypical fields of study. A matter of lacking social integration or pressure from significant others?

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