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“I can't push off my own Mental Health”: Chilly STEM Climates, Mental Health, and STEM Persistence among Black, Latina, and White Graduate Women

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Abstract

Drawing on 12 semi-structured interviews with Black, Latina, and white graduate women who either continued or discontinued their STEM doctoral degrees, the present study examined the psychological impact of navigating marginalizing experiences in white male-dominated STEM environments. Using thematic analysis grounded in a social constructivist paradigm, researchers identified three emergent themes: 1) institutional challenges as contextual barriers, 2) impact on wellbeing and STEM persistence, and 3) contextual supports and coping. These findings indicate that challenging STEM encounters within the higher education environment contributed to increased stress, depression, anxiety, and suicidal ideation among graduate women in STEM from diverse racial/ethnic backgrounds. The compound effect of these STEM stressors and their subsequent psychological toll contributed to decreased STEM persistence among participants. Study implications highlight the need for faculty and university administrators to challenge and address institutional norms that operate as contextual barriers, destigmatize discussions surrounding mental health, and adopt a “whole person” approach to supporting graduate women in STEM.

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Funding

This work is supported by a collaborative National Science Foundation grant that was awarded to Drs. Bekki, Wilkins-Yel, Bernstein, and Randall (# 1761278 and # 2019533).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. University of Massachusetts at Boston, Boston, USA

    Kerrie G. Wilkins-Yel & Madison Natarajan

  2. Arizona State University, Tempe, USA

    Amanda Arnold, Jennifer Bekki, Bianca Bernstein & Ashley K. Randall

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  1. Kerrie G. Wilkins-Yel
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  2. Amanda Arnold
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  4. Madison Natarajan
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Contributions

All authors contributed to the study conception and design. Data collection and analysis were performed by Kerrie Wilkins-Yel, Amanda Arnold, Jennifer Bekki Madison Natarajan, and Bianca Bernstein. The manuscript was collaboratively written by all authors of the manuscript. All authors read and approved the final manuscript.

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Correspondence to Kerrie G. Wilkins-Yel.

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This study received IRB approval from both Arizona State University (#00008323) and the University of Massachusetts Boston (# 2020082).

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The study involved research with human participants (adult women aged 18 +). All women participated in informed consent and agreed to participate in the study.

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Wilkins-Yel, K.G., Arnold, A., Bekki, J. et al. “I can't push off my own Mental Health”: Chilly STEM Climates, Mental Health, and STEM Persistence among Black, Latina, and White Graduate Women. Sex Roles 86, 208–232 (2022). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-021-01262-1

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