Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in

Adolescents’ Beliefs about Math Ability and Their Relations to STEM Career Attainment: Joint Consideration of Race/ethnicity and Gender

  • Empirical Research
  • Published:
Journal of Youth and Adolescence Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Much of the workforce demand in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) in the United States goes unmet, and females and racial/ethnic minorities are vastly underrepresented in these fields. To understand the psychological antecedents for STEM career attainment, this study took an intersectional approach and examined racial/ethnic and gender differences in youth’s math-related ability beliefs—growth mindset, self-concept, and career expectancy—and their longitudinal relations to STEM career attainment. Specifically, the study utilized nationally representative data of 10th graders over 10 years (n ~ = 14,320, Mage = 16.46, 50.4% female; 60.6% White, 15.5% Latinx, 14.1% Black, 9.8% Asian). The results indicated that youth’s math-related ability beliefs positively predicted their later STEM career outcomes. Furthermore, female adolescents’ math self-concept was more negative than male adolescents among Whites and Latinxs but not among Blacks and Asians. Black adolescents did not fully garner the advantage of having positive self-concept. Finally, high school math achievement did not predict Latina and Black youth’s STEM career expectancy. The current findings inform future interventions that different ability beliefs may need to be targeted for each race/ethnicity and gender.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Fig. 1
Fig. 2

Similar content being viewed by others

Notes

  1. Race is conceptualized as a sociohistorical rather than biological construct, and the terms race and ethnicity are used interchangeably (for relevant discussion: Smedley and Smedley 2005). White, Black, and Asian Americans indicate those who do not ethnically self-categorize as Latinx. When indicating multiple racial/ethnic groups in a sentence, they are listed in descending order of sample size in the data (i.e., White, Latinx, Black, and Asian), which also aligns with the population size of each race/ethnicity in the United States as of 2017 (United States Census Bureau 2017).

  2. The term Latinx is used as a gender inclusive alternative to Latino or Latino/a.

  3. The internal frame of reference model (Marsh et al. 2017) provides potential explanation for these divergent functions of attribution processes in a school setting: Individuals form ability self-concepts based on their performance not only in the relevant domain but also in other domains. For example, a student with high verbal ability is likely to have a more negative math self-concept than a student with poor verbal ability given the same math achievement. Based on this model, it is plausible that White female adolescents who are negatively stereotyped in mathematics but positively stereotyped in verbal domains may develop less positive math self-concept than their male peers given the same achievement. Latino and Black male adolescents are negatively stereotyped in both math and verbal domains and thus less likely to be affected by the internal frame of reference effects.

  4. Following the research publication guidelines of Institute of Education Sciences (see https://nces.ed.gov/statprog/rudman/chapter2.asp#srp), all unweighted sample size numbers were rounded to the nearest ten.

References

  • Ahmed, W., & Mudrey, R. R. (2018). The role of motivational factors in predicting STEM career aspirations. International Journal of School & Educational Psychology, https://doi.org/10.1080/21683603.2017.1401499.

  • Aronson, J., & Inzlicht, M. (2004). The ups and downs of attributional ambiguity: stereotype vulnerability and the academic self-knowledge of African American college students. Psychological Science, 15, 829–836.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Awad, G. H. (2007). The role of racial identity, academic self-concept, and self-esteem in the prediction of academic outcomes for African American students. Journal of Black Psychology, 33, 188–207.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bandura, A. (1977). Self-efficacy: Toward a unifying theory of behavioral change. Psychological Review, 84, 191–215.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Banerjee, M., Schenke, K., Lam, A., & Eccles, J. S. (2018). The roles of teachers, classroom experiences, and finding balance: a qualitative perspective on the experiences and expectations of females within STEM and non-STEM careers. International Journal of Gender, Science and Technology, 10, 287–307.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bankston, C. L., & Zhou, M. (2002). Being well vs. doing well: Self‐Esteem and school performance among immigrant and nonimmigrant racial and ethnic groups. International Migration Review, 36, 389–415.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bempechat, J., Graham, S. E., & Jimenez, N. V. (1999). The socialization of achievement in poor and minority students: a comparative study. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology, 30, 139–158.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Bender, R., & Lange, S. (2001). Adjusting for multiple testing—when and how? Journal of Clinical Epidemiology, 54, 343–349.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Blackwell, L. S., Trzesniewski, K. H., & Dweck, C. S. (2007). Implicit theories of intelligence predict achievement across an adolescent transition: a longitudinal study and an intervention. Child Development, 78, 246–263.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bui, Q. (2014). Who studies what? Men, women, and college majors. National Public Radio. Retrieved from https://www.npr.org/sections/money/2014/10/28/359419934/who-studies-what-men-women-and-college-majors.

  • Bui, Q., & Miller, C. C. (2017). The jobs you’re most likely to inherit from your mother and father. New York Times. https://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2017/11/22/upshot/the-jobs-youre-most-likely-to-inherit-from-your-mother-and-father.html.

  • Chen, X., & Soldner, M. (2013). STEM Attrition: College Students’ Paths into and out of STEM Fields. Washington, DC: NCES, IES, U.S Department of Education. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED544470.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cheung, C. S., Monroy, J. A., & Delany, D. E. (2017). Learning-related values in young children’s storybooks: an investigation in the United States, China, and Mexico. Journal of Cross-Cultural Psychology 48, 532–541.

    Google Scholar 

  • Cokley, K. O. (2002). Ethnicity, gender and academic self-concept: a preliminary examination of academic disidentification and implications for psychologists. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 8, 378–388.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Cole, E. R. (2009). Intersectionality and research in psychology. American Psychologist, 64, 170–180.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Crocker, J., & Major, B. (1989). Social stigma and self-esteem: The self-protective properties of stigma. Psychological Review, 96, 608–630. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-295X.96.4.608.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cvencek, D., Meltzoff, A. N., & Greenwald, A. G. (2011). Math–gender stereotypes in elementary school children. Child Development, 82, 766–779.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Daempfle, P. A. (2003). An analysis of the high attrition rates among first year college science, math, and engineering majors. Journal of College Student Retention: Research, Theory & Practice, 5, 37–52.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Dai, T., & Cromley, J. G. (2014). Changes in implicit theories of ability in biology and dropout from STEM majors: a latent growth curve approach. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 39, 233–247.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • DeCuir-Gunby, J. T., & Schutz, P. A. (2014). Researching race within educational psychology contexts. Educational Psychologist, 49, 244–260.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Degol, J. L., Wang, M. T., Zhang, Y., & Allerton, J. (2018). Do growth mindsets in math benefit females? Identifying pathways between gender, mindset, and motivation. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 47, 976–990.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Dweck, C. S., Chiu, C.-Y., & Hong, Y.-Y. (1995). Implicit theories: elaboration and extension of the model. Psychological Inquiry, 6, 322–333.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fan, X., & Chen, M. (2001). Parental involvement and students’ academic achievement: a meta-analysis. Educational Psychology Review, 13, 1–22.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Fan, X., Chen, M., & Matsumoto, A. R. (1997). Gender differences in mathematics achievement: findings from the National Education Longitudinal Study of 1988. The Journal of Experimental Education, 65, 229–242.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Garg, R., Melanson, S., & Levin, E. (2007). Educational aspirations of male and female adolescents from single-parent and two biological parent families: acomparison of influential factors. Journal of Youth and Adolescence, 36, 1010–1023.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Greene, B. A., & DeBacker, T. K. (2004). Gender and orientations toward the future: Links to motivation. Educational Psychology Review, 16, 91–120.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Guo, J., Parker, P. D., Marsh, H. W., & Morin, A. J. (2015). Achievement, motivation, and educational choices: a longitudinal study of expectancy and value using a multiplicative perspective. Developmental Psychology, 51, 1163–1176.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Holman, L., Stuart-Fox, D., & Hauser, C. E. (2018). The gender gap in science: How long until women are equally represented? PLoS Biology, 16. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pbio.2004956.

  • Hu, L. T., & Bentler, P. M. (1999). Cutoff criteria for fit indexes in covariance structure analysis: conventional criteria versus new alternatives. Structural Equation Modeling, 6, 1–55.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Ingels, S. J., Pratt, D. J., Rogers, J. E., Siegel, P. H., & Stutts, E. S. (2004). Education Longitudinal Study of 2002: Base year data file user’s manual (NCES 2004-405). Washington, DC: US. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics.

    Google Scholar 

  • Jacobs, J. E., Lanza, S., Osgood, D. W., Eccles, J. S., & Wigfield, A. (2002). Changes in children’s self-competence and values: gender and domain differences across grades one through twelve. Child Development, 73, 509–527.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Jeynes, W. H. (2005). Effects of parental involvement and family structure on the academic achievement of adolescents. Marriage & Family Review, 37, 99–116.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Johnson, O. J. (2008). Ecology in educational theory: thoughts on stratification, social mobility & proximal capital. The Urban Review, 40, 227–246.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Jones, M. H., Irvin, M. J., & Kibe, G. W. (2012). Does geographic setting alter the roles of academically supportive factors? African American adolescents’ friendships, math self-concept, and math performance. Journal f Negro Education, 81, 319–337.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Komarraju, M., & Nadler, D. (2013). Self-efficacy and academic achievement: why do implicit beliefs, goals, and effort regulation matter? Learning and Individual Differences, 25, 67–72.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Karunanayake, D., & Nauta, M. M. (2004). The relationship between race and students’ identified career role models and perceived role model influence. The Career Development Quarterly, 52, 225–234.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lauermann, F., Tsai, Y. M., & Eccles, J. S. (2017). Math-related career aspirations and choices within Eccles et al.’s expectancy–value theory of achievement-related behaviors. Developmental Psychology, 53, 1540–1559.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Lent, R. W., Brown, S. D., & Hackett, G. (2002). Social cognitive career theory. In D. Brown (Ed.), Career choice and development (pp. 255–311). San Francisco, CA: Jossey-Bass.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lent, R. W., Sheu, H. B., Singley, D., Schmidt, J. A., Schmidt, L. C., & Gloster, C. S. (2008). Longitudinal relations of self-efficacy to outcome expectations, interests, and major choice goals in engineering students. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 73, 328–335.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Li, W., Harrison, L., & Solmon, M. (2004). College students’ implicit theories of ability in sports: race and gender differences. Journal of Sport Behavior, 27, 291–304.

    Google Scholar 

  • Lindberg, S. M., Hyde, J. S., Petersen, J. L., & Linn, M. C. (2010). New trends in gender and mathematics performance: a meta-analysis. Psychological Bulletin, 136, 1123–1135.

    Article  PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Linnenbrink-Garcia, L., Perez, T., Barger, M. M., Wormington, S. V., Godin, E., & Snyder, K. E., et al. (2018). Repairing the leaky pipeline: a motivationally supportive intervention to enhance persistence in undergraduate science pathways. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 53, 181–195.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Marsh, H. W., Pekrun, R., Murayama, K., Arens, K. A., Parker, P. D., Guo, J., & Dicke, T. (2017). An integrated model of academic self-concept development: academic self-concept, grades, test scores, and tracking over six years. Developmental Psychology, 54, 263–280.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Marsh, H. W., Pekrun, R., Parker, P. D., Murayama, K., Guo, J., Dicke, T., & Arens, A. K. (2018). The murky distinction between self-concept and self-efficacy: beware of lurking jingle-jangle fallacies. Journal of Educational Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1037/edu0000281.

  • McNeish, D., Stapleton, L. M., & Silverman, R. D. (2017). On the unnecessary ubiquity of hierarchical linear modeling. Psychological Methods, 22, 114–140.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Miller, P., & Votruba-Drzal, E. (2013). Early academic skills and childhood experiences across the urban–rural continuum. Early Childhood Research Quarterly, 28, 234–248.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Muenks, K., Wigfield, A., & Eccles, J. S. (2018). I can do this! The development and calibration of children’s expectations for success and competence beliefs. Developmental Review, 48, 24–39.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Muthén, L. K. (2010). Indicators on different scales [Online forum comment]. Retrieved from http://www.statmodel.com/discussion/messages/11/5266.html?1312503676.

  • Muthén, L. K., & Muthén, B. O. (2017). Mplus user’s guide (8th ed.). Los Angeles, CA: Muthén & Muthén.

  • Neuhauser, A., & Cook, L. (2016). 2016 U.S. News/Raytheon STEM index shows uptick in hiring, education. U.S. News. https://www.usnews.com/news/articles/2016-05-17/the-new-stem-index-2016.

  • Osborne, J. W. (1997). Race and academic disidentification. Journal of Educational Psychology, 89, 728–735.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Parker, P. D., Van Zanden, B., & Parker, R. B. (2017). Girls get smart, boys get smug: Historical changes in gender differences in math, literacy, and academic social comparison and achievement. Learning and Instruction, 54, 125–137.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Pew Research Center (2018). Racial and ethnic group representation in STEM occupations. Pew Research Center. http://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2018/01/09/women-and-men-in-stem-often-at-odds-over-workplace-equity/ps_2018-01-09_stem_a-06/

  • Riegle‐Crumb, C., Moore, C., & Ramos‐Wada, A. (2011). Who wants to have a career in science or math? Exploring adolescents’ future aspirations by gender and race/ethnicity. Science Education, 95, 458–476.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Robnett, R. D., & Leaper, C. (2013). Friendship groups, personal motivation, and gender in relation to high school students’ STEM career interest. Journal of Research on Adolescence, 23, 652–664.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sadler, P. M., Sonnert, G., Hazari, Z., & Tai, R. (2012). Stability and volatility of STEM career interest in high school: a gender study. Science Education, 96, 411–427.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shih, M., Pittinsky, T. L., & Ambady, N. (1999). Stereotype susceptibility: Identity salience and shifts in quantitative performance. Psychological Science, 10, 80–83.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Shin, J., Lee, H., McCarthy-Donovan, A., Hwang, H., Yim, S., & Seo, E. (2015). Home and motivational factors related to science-career pursuit: gender differences and gender similarities. International Journal of Science Education, 37, 1478–1503.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sirin, S. R. (2005). Socioeconomic status and academic achievement: a meta-analytic review of research. Review of Educational Research, 75, 417–453.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Sisk, V. F., Burgoyne, A. P., Sun, J., Butler, J. L., & Macnamara, B. N. (2018). To what extent and under which circumstances are growth mind-sets important to academic achievement? Two meta-analyses. Psychological Science, 29, 549–571.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Smedley, A., & Smedley, B. D. (2005). Race as biology is fiction, racism as a social problem is real: anthropological and historical perspectives on the social construction of race. American Psychologist, 60, 16–26.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Spinath, B., & Steinmayr, R. (2008). Longitudinal analysis of intrinsic motivation and competence beliefs: Is there a relation over time? Child Development, 79, 1555–1569.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Steele, C. M., & Aronson, J. (1995). Stereotype threat and the intellectual test performance of African Americans. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 69, 797–811.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Stump, G. S., Husman, J., & Corby, M. (2014). Engineering students’ intelligence beliefs and learning. Journal of Engineering Education, 103, 369–387.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Twenge, J. M., & Campbell, W. K. (2002). Self-esteem and socioeconomic status: a meta-analytic review. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 6, 59–71.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • United States Census Bureau (2017). Quick Facts: United States. United States Census Bureau. https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/US/PST045217#viewtop

  • Usher, E. L. (2018). Acknowledging the Whiteness of motivation research: seeking cultural relevance. Educational Psychologist, 53, 131–144.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Valentine, J. C., DuBois, D. L., & Cooper, H. (2004). The relation between self-beliefs and academic achievement: a meta-analytic review. Educational Psychologist, 39, 111–133.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • van Laar, C. (2000). The paradox of low academic achievement but high self-esteem in African American students: an attributional account. Educational Psychology Review, 12, 33–61.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wang, M. T., & Degol, J. (2013). Motivational pathways to STEM career choices: using expectancy–value perspective to understand individual and gender differences in STEM fields. Developmental Review, 33, 304–340.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wang, M. T., Eccles, J. S., & Kenny, S. (2013). Not lack of ability but more choice: individual and gender differences in choice of careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. Psychological Science, 24, 770–775.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Watt, H. M. (2004). Development of adolescents’ self‐perceptions, values, and task perceptions according to gender and domain in 7th‐through 11th‐grade Australian students. Child Development, 75, 1556–1574.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Watt, H. M., Hyde, J. S., Petersen, J., Morris, Z. A., Rozek, C. S., & Harackiewicz, J. M. (2017). Mathematics—a critical filter for STEM-related career choices? A longitudinal examination among Australian and US adolescents. Sex Roles, 77, 254–271.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Wigfield, A., & Eccles, J. S. (2000). Expectancy–value theory of achievement motivation. Contemporary Educational Psychology, 25, 68–81.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Xue, Y., & Larson, R. C. (2015). STEM crisis or STEM surplus? Yes and yes. Monthly Labor Review. https://www.bls.gov/opub/mlr/2015/article/stem-crisis-or-stem-surplus-yes-and-yes.htm#_edn32.

  • Yeager, D. S., Purdie‐Vaughns, V., Hooper, S. Y., & Cohen, G. L. (2017). Loss of institutional trust among racial and ethnic minority adolescents: a consequence of procedural injustice and a cause of life‐span outcomes. Child Development, 88, 658–676.

    Article  PubMed  Google Scholar 

Download references

Authors’ Contributions

E.S. conceived of the study, designed the theoretical model, performed the statistical analyses, interpreted the results, and drafted the manuscript. Y.S. secured the data, participated in designing the study, oversaw the process of data analyses, provided interpretation of the results, and revised the manuscript. E.C.A. participated in designing the study, provided interpretation of the results, and revised the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

Data Sharing and Declaration

The data that support the findings of this study are available from the National Center for Education Statistics, but restrictions apply to the availability of these data, which were used under license for the current study, and so are not publicly available. However, most of the data analyzed in this study are available in the public-use data at https://nces.ed.gov/EDAT. Descriptions of the differences between the restricted- and public-use data files can be found at https://nces.ed.gov/surveys/els2002/avail_data.asp.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Family and Consumer Sciences, Texas State University, 601 University Drive, San Marcos, TX, 78666-4684, USA

    Eunjin Seo, Yishan Shen & Edna C. Alfaro

Authors
  1. Eunjin Seo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Yishan Shen
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Edna C. Alfaro
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Yishan Shen.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Ethical Approval

All procedures performed in the study involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Informed Consent

The current study is a secondary data analysis of the Education Longitudinal Study of 2002 conducted through the RTI International and sponsored by the National Center for Education Statistics. Prior to data collection, permissions to contact the schools were obtained from leaders of each state and school district/diocese. Parental consent was obtained through mails for all participating students. Detailed information about the data collection procedure is available at https://nces.ed.gov/pubs2004/2004405.pdf.

Appendix

Appendix

Table 3, 4, 5, 6

Table 3 Measurement invariance of the two-factor model of math growth mindsets and math self-concept
Full size table
Table 4 Testing structural invariance across race/ethnicity
Full size table
Table 5 Testing structural invariance across gender within each race/ethnicity
Full size table
Table 6 Bootstrap path coefficients without family characteristic as covariates
Full size table

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Seo, E., Shen, Y. & Alfaro, E.C. Adolescents’ Beliefs about Math Ability and Their Relations to STEM Career Attainment: Joint Consideration of Race/ethnicity and Gender. J Youth Adolescence 48, 306–325 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-018-0911-9

Download citation

  • Received:

  • Accepted:

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10964-018-0911-9

Keywords

Search

Navigation