Switching genders: identifying the evaluator in stereotype threat for men and women in a math context

The current study seeks to identify the source of evaluation that causes stereotype threat for men and women in a math context. In a 2 (participant gender: male vs. female) X 3 (gender label: Match, Mismatch, Control) factorial design, male and female participants that identified highly with math were asked to take a math test. Throughout the test, participants\u27 ostensible gender was displayed on the computer screen. The displayed gender was either the correct gender, the opposite gender, or Alabama. Although our results were unable to determine if stereotype threat is a self- or an outside evaluator-threat, we did observe a strong gender-math relationship in which being labeled with the opposite gender disrupted both men and women\u27s math performance. However, women were more affected in that they not only performed significantly lower on the math test, but also took a longer time, attempted fewer problems, and significantly disidentified from math

Social identity and academic belonging: creating environments to minimize the achievement gap among African American and Latino students

Stereotype threat is a highly evident phenomenon that has been used to explain why minority groups underperform in academics compared to Caucasians (Steele, 1997; Steele, Spencer, & Aronson, 2002). This study examined whether an induced feeling of belonging (via information about potential), either in the academic or social domain, can attenuate the effects of stereotype threat on the academic performance of African Americans and Latinos. Results suggest that minority students who are told they have either academic potential or are not told any information about potential (i.e., control condition) perform similarly on an IQ test. However, when minority students are told they have social potential, a marginally significant decrease in performance is evident when compared to the academic potential and control conditions. At the same time, the performance of Caucasian students is not affected by information about potential

Where and With Whom Does a Brief Social-Belonging Intervention Promote Progress in College?

A promising way to mitigate inequality is by addressing students’ worries about belonging. But where and with whom is this social-belonging intervention effective? Here we report a team-science randomized controlled experiment with 26,911 students at 22 diverse institutions. Results showed that the social-belonging intervention, administered online before college (in under 30 minutes), increased the rate at which students completed the first year as full-time students, especially among students in groups that had historically progressed at lower rates. The college context also mattered: The intervention was effective only when students’ groups were afforded opportunities to belong. This study develops methods for understanding how student identities and contexts interact with interventions. It also shows that a low-cost, scalable intervention generalizes its effects to 749 4-year institutions in the United States