New Routes to Recruiting and Retaining Women in STEM: Policy Implications of a Communal Goal Congruity Perspective

Abstract

Despite advances within a wide range of professional roles, women remain a minority in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) degrees and occupations. The gender gap in mathematics and science performance has converged, and so it is important to consider the motivational reasons that might underlie the differential STEM pursuits of women and men. The goal congruity perspective contends that a fundamental cause of gender gaps in STEM pursuits is the gender difference in communal motivation (i.e., an orientation toward others). STEM fields may be particularly likely to deter communally oriented individuals because these fields are thought to impede goals of directly benefitting others, altruism, or collaboration. In this review, we examine how the communal goal perspective might address the challenges of gender gaps in STEM pursuits from childhood through adulthood. We review the logic and evidence for the goal congruity perspective, and we examine two other deterrents to women in STEM—work‐family challenges and stereotyping—from the perspective of this framework. We then examine particular recommendations for policy actions that might broaden participation of women and girls, and communally oriented people generally, in STEM.

Do They Stay or Do They Go? The Switching Decisions of Individuals Who Enter Gender Atypical College Majors

“…As noted earlier, the bulk of prior research on gender differences in switching majors concentrates on comparing women in STEM fields to men in STEM fields (Diekman et al, 2015; Mann and DiPrete, 2013; Riegle-Crumb et al, 2012; Xie and Shauman, 2003). Yet our study was specifically focused on a related but distinct issue not addressed in this prior literature, namely whether women in male-dominated fields are more likely than their female peers in more normative majors to leave their chosen field.…”

“…Similarly a study of college students at a highly selective university found that exposure to gender/STEM stereotypes decreased women’s sense of belonging in math, which the authors then linked to a lower desire to pursue math in the future (Good et al, 2012). Although the literature on stereotype threat is often experimental, with cues specifically manipulated by researchers, there is ample evidence that women who enter such male-dominated fields are very likely to be exposed to gender stereotypes that decrease their desire to persist (Diekman et al, 2015; Shapiro and Williams, 2012), which could plausibly result in higher switching rates than those of women in other fields.…”

“…Specifically, a primary focus of extant research on those who enter nontraditional majors is on women in STEM majors, typically comparing women in these fields to men in the same fields (Diekman, Weisgram, and Belanger, 2015; Riegle-Crumb, King, Grodsky, and Muller, 2012; Seymour and Hewitt, 1997; Wang and Degol, 2013; Xie and Shauman, 2003). Several recent national studies provide promising empirical evidence that women in many STEM fields now persist towards degrees at the same rate as men (Chen, 2013; Xie and Shauman, 2003).…”

Beneath the numbers: A review of gender disparities in undergraduate education across science, technology, engineering, and math disciplines

“…This difference in values is not innate in women and men, but is hypothesized, using social role theory, to be due to the historical emphasis on women being in more caregiving roles. This has led to the female gender role emphasizing more communal traits (reviewed in Diekman et al [118]). …”

Making STEM “Family Friendly”: The Impact of Perceiving Science Careers as Family-Compatible

“…Researchers across the disciplines of psychology, sociology, education, and many others offer an assortment of possible explanations for the underrepresentation of women in STEM (Ceci and Williams 2007;Diekman et al 2015). Recent reviews have called for greater emphasis on the role of girls' and women's personal choice in the process of selecting a STEM career (Valla and Ceci 2014), along with an understanding of how these choices are influenced by both individual-level and structural-level factors (Diekman and Fuesting).…”