This explanatory, sequential mixed-methods case study examined the extent to which participation in a mentoring program affects the sense of self-efficacy of school-age girls of color. The researcher conducted this study in a Title I suburban public elementary school implementing the New York State Mentoring Program (NYSMP) model. The NYSMP…

Negative stereotypes about female intellectual abilities occur in children as young as 6-years-old and can shape a child's educational path and career choice, particularly in relation to Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM). The current study (N = 40) explored preexisting gender stereotypes in a purposeful sample of 6 to 8-year-old…

Drawing on a social identity framework of mathematical development, the authors present a model, Improving Girls' Math Identity (IGMI), designed to address two key "leaks" in the female STEM pipeline: undergraduate and middle school. IGMI involves a supportive professional development network for undergraduate women preparing to…

Background: Adolescent girls are at an increased risk of low physical activity and the associated health consequences. Girls Can Move!, an after-school intervention guided by social cognitive theory, was designed to increase physical activity. Purpose: To examine the feasibility and initial effectiveness of Girls Can Move! Methods The 8-week…

The presence of gender-related professional stereotypes has been detected as early as preschool. The value of counterstereotypical role model interventions in triggering changes in the gender perceptions of children has been extensively researched with varying results. In the present study, drawing on the operational tool of exposing children to…

Female role models show promise for inoculating women against the harmful impact of stereotypes impugning their ability in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM, e.g., Dasgupta in Psychol Inq 22(4):231-246, 2011). We conducted a test of an intervention to leverage the benefits of STEM role models. Female STEM majors (N = 72) in their…

What affect does female participation in the Training Future Scientist (TFS) program based on Vygotsky's sociocultural theory and Maslow's Hierarchies of Needs have on achievement levels in science and their attitude toward science and interest in science-based careers? The theoretical framework for this study was developed through a…

We detail our experience running an annual four-day workshop at the University of Minnesota, called the Mathematics Project at Minnesota (MPM). The workshop is for undergraduates who come from groups underrepresented in mathematics and aims to increase the participation and success of such groups in the mathematics major at the University. In this…

The journey to achieve gender diversity in STEM [Science, Technology, Engineering, and Math] subjects appears to be a slow one. According to UCAS (Universities and Colleges Admission Service) data provided by the Higher Education Statistics Agency, just 35 per cent of STEM students in higher education in the UK [United Kingdom] are women (STEM…

Purpose: The aim of this research was to analyze change of STEM career choices of female students having different cognitive styles who participated in out-of-school STEM activities. Socio-economically disadvantaged, high academic achiever 20 female students participated in the research. Participants received integrated STEM training for six days…

The experiences of female students in an engineering living-learning program (LLP) are described in this study using a constructivist theoretical perspective. The study aims to fill gaps in the literature using qualitative methods. Data from 13 semi-structured individual interviews serve as the primary data source. After conducting a metaphorical…

Research suggests that, to narrow the gender gap in engineering, we should focus on helping young girls identify with engineering both because gendered attitudes emerge around kindergarten and because identity is more predictive than performance on persistence in the field. This qualitative study sought to understand the impact of collaborative…

BASE (Broadening Access to Science Education) Camp is a hands-on, two-week residential summer science experience on the Fairfield University campus in Fairfield CT, USA. The annual program targets 24 young women who attend high school in the neighboring city of Bridgeport, CT, the most economically depressed city in CT. The camp, which is free to…

This study explores the experiences of male college students who participated in a theatre-based, peer-education, sexual assault prevention presentation. The program was established through the use of Pedagogy of the Oppressed and Theatre of the Oppressed, as well as multicultural feminist theory and approaches. These models emphasize subverting…

This study examines the effect of a program that aimed to encourage girls to choose a science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) career in Israel. The program involved school visits to a high-tech company and meeting with role model female scientists. Sixty ninth-grade female students from a Jewish modern-orthodox single-sex…