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Differential Effects of Interventions to Recruit and Retain Women in STEM

Cowgill, Colleen
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ohiou1597405982998554

Abstract Details

2020, Doctor of Philosophy (PhD), Ohio University, Experimental Psychology (Arts and Sciences).
Interventions designed to increase women’s participation in STEM sometimes emphasize the lack of women in these fields. We hypothesized that interventions drawing attention to women’s minority status in STEM may increase unwanted feelings of distinctiveness in women and subjective feelings of tokenism, thereby lowering their identification with and interest in STEM. Across two studies, women viewed STEM recruitment presentations that varied in the degree to which they emphasized women’s minority status in STEM and/or the framing of such messages. In Study 1, participants who viewed a presentation with the highest emphasis on women’s underrepresentation in STEM reported higher feelings of unwanted distinctiveness and higher subjective feelings of tokenism relative to participants who viewed presentations with less emphasis on women’s underrepresentation. Further, the indirect effect of presentation type on self-reported interest in STEM was mediated by feelings of unwanted distinctiveness. In Study 2, this same mediation pattern held when the impact of trait-level gender identity centrality was taken into account as a moderator. Implications for designing STEM interventions, particularly in ways that minimize the risk of increasing unwanted feelings of distinctiveness, are discussed.
Kimberly Rios, Dr. (Advisor)
Keith Markman, Dr. (Committee Member)
Mark Alicke, Dr. (Committee Member)
Lindsay Dhanani, Dr. (Committee Member)
Frances Wymbs, Dr. (Committee Member)
Experimental Psychology; Social Psychology
women in STEM; optimal distinctiveness; feelings of belonging; STEM interventions; tokenism

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Cowgill, C. (2020). Differential Effects of Interventions to Recruit and Retain Women in STEM [Doctoral dissertation, Ohio University]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ohiou1597405982998554

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Cowgill, Colleen. Differential Effects of Interventions to Recruit and Retain Women in STEM. 2020. Ohio University, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ohiou1597405982998554.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Cowgill, Colleen. "Differential Effects of Interventions to Recruit and Retain Women in STEM." Doctoral dissertation, Ohio University, 2020. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ohiou1597405982998554

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

ohiou1597405982998554
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This open access ETD is published by Ohio University and OhioLINK.