Students who remain in STEM majors report greater sense of belonging than leavers, and lack of science identity distinguishes leavers¶

Claim · All claims
Evidence · 1 study · qualitative r3 · q2
Currency · newest study 2018 · not yet checked against its sources · not reviewed by a person

Subclaims¶

q2 i? Leavers across all demographic groups reported a lower sense of belonging than majors; approximately one quarter of leavers cited lack of science identity as a reason for not belonging, while no major did, and reports of lacking science identity came from students in marginalized groups. → Katherine Rainey 2018

Evidence¶

Katherine Rainey 2018¶

Katherine Rainey, Melissa Dancy, Roslyn Mickelson, Elizabeth Stearns and Stephanie Moller. (2018). Race and gender differences in how sense of belonging influences decisions to major in STEM. International Journal of STEM Education 5:10. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40594-018-0115-6

q2 · i? · qualitative · r3

Comparison of coded belonging reasons between majors and leavers in the interview dataset. The article notes its data "is correlational, so we cannot determine" whether lack of science identity motivates dropping out or results from it; no white male major or leaver reported lacking science identity.

"No major indicated lack of science identity as a reason for not belonging. In contrast, approximately one quarter of leavers did so."

Discussion¶

Related Claims¶

• Four factors explain students' sense of belonging in STEM, with interpersonal relationships the most commonly cited — related
• Female STEM majors report significantly lower sense of belonging than male majors — related
• Students of color majoring in STEM report significantly lower sense of belonging than white majors — related
• Women of color are the least likely, and white men the most likely, to report a sense of belonging in STEM majors — related
• Qualitative research shows marginalized students' sense of belonging depends on maintaining connections to their valued identities at school (self-concept fit) — related
• Racially marginalized students are less likely to report a sense of belonging in STEM education — related
• Representation in the sub-discipline relates to belonging: women of color in pSTEM report belonging less frequently than white men — related