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Cvencek D, Brečić R, Sanders EA, Gaćeša D, Skala D, Meltzoff AN. Am I a good person? Academic correlates of explicit and implicit self-esteem during early childhood. Child Dev 2024; 95:1047-1062. [PMID: 38148568 DOI: 10.1111/cdev.14052] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/01/2022] [Revised: 10/26/2023] [Accepted: 11/25/2023] [Indexed: 12/28/2023]
Abstract
Implicit and explicit self-esteem are not commonly measured in the same children. Using a cross-sectional design, data from 354 Croatian children (184 girls) in Grade 1 (Mage = 7.55 years) and Grade 5 (Mage = 11.58 years) were collected in Spring 2019. All children completed explicit and implicit self-esteem measures; math and language grades were obtained. For the explicit measure, older children showed lower self-esteem than younger children, and girls showed lower self-esteem than boys. For the implicit measure, there were no age effects, and girls showed higher self-esteem than boys. Although both types of self-esteem were positively associated with academic achievement, implicit self-esteem was associated more strongly with language than with math achievement. Discussion is provided about why self-esteem relates to academic achievement during childhood.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dario Cvencek
- Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Ružica Brečić
- Department of Marketing, Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
| | - Elizabeth A Sanders
- Measurement and Statistics, College of Education, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
| | - Dora Gaćeša
- Department of Marketing, Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
| | - David Skala
- Department of Marketing, Faculty of Economics and Business, University of Zagreb, Zagreb, Croatia
| | - Andrew N Meltzoff
- Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
- Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, USA
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2
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Haber AS, Kumar SC, Leech KA, Corriveau KH. How does caregiver-child conversation during a scientific storybook reading impact children's mindset beliefs and persistence? Child Dev 2024. [PMID: 38698731 DOI: 10.1111/cdev.14107] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/05/2024]
Abstract
This study explores how caregiver-child scientific conversation during storybook reading focusing on the challenges or achievements of famous female scientists impacts preschoolers' mindset, beliefs about success, and persistence. Caregiver-child dyads (N = 202, 100 female, 35% non-White, aged 4-5, ƒ = .15) were assigned to one of three storybook conditions, highlighting the female scientist's achievements, effort, or, in a baseline condition, neither. Children were asked about their mindset, presented with a persistence task, and asked about their understanding of effort and success. Findings demonstrate that storybooks highlighting effort are associated with growth mindset, attribution of success to hard work, and increased persistence. Caregiver language echoed language from the assigned storybook, showing the importance of reading storybooks emphasizing hard work.
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Affiliation(s)
- Amanda S Haber
- Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
- Fairfield University, Fairfield, Connecticut, USA
| | - Sona C Kumar
- Boston University, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
- Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana, USA
| | - Kathryn A Leech
- The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, North Carolina, USA
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3
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Kasparek SW, Rosen ML, Lurie LA, Cikara M, Sambrook K, Cvencek D, Meltzoff AN, McLaughlin KA. Differentiating Between Us & Them: Reduced In-Group Bias as a Novel Mechanism Linking Childhood Violence Exposure with Internalizing Psychopathology. Res Child Adolesc Psychopathol 2023; 51:961-975. [PMID: 36862283 PMCID: PMC9979122 DOI: 10.1007/s10802-023-01035-2] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Accepted: 02/01/2023] [Indexed: 03/03/2023]
Abstract
Strong in-group bonds, facilitated by implicit favoritism for in-group members (i.e., in-group bias), promote mental health across development. Yet, we know little about how the development of in-group bias is shaped by early-life experiences. Childhood violence exposure is known to alter social information processing biases. Violence exposure may also influence social categorization processes, including in-group biases, in ways that influence risk for psychopathology. We examined associations of childhood violence exposure with psychopathology and behavioral and neural indices of implicit and explicit bias for novel groups in children followed longitudinally across three time points from age 5 to 10 years old (n = 101 at baseline; n = 58 at wave 3). To instantiate in-group and out-group affiliations, youths underwent a minimal group assignment induction procedure, in which they were randomly assigned to one of two groups. Youth were told that members of their assigned group shared common interests (in-group) and members of the other group did not (out-group). In pre-registered analyses, violence exposure was associated with lower implicit in-group bias, which in turn was associated prospectively with higher internalizing symptoms and mediated the longitudinal association between violence exposure and internalizing symptoms. During an fMRI task examining neural responses while classifying in-group and out-group members, violence-exposed children did not exhibit the negative functional coupling between vmPFC and amygdala to in-group vs. out-group members that was observed in children without violence exposure. Reduced implicit in-group bias may represent a novel mechanism linking violence exposure with the development of internalizing symptoms.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Maya L Rosen
- Department of Psychology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
- Program in Neuroscience, Smith College, Northampton, MA, USA
| | - Lucy A Lurie
- Department of Psychology, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Mina Cikara
- Department of Psychology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Kelly Sambrook
- Department of Psychology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA, USA
| | - Dario Cvencek
- Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
| | - Andrew N Meltzoff
- Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, USA
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4
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Kumar SC, Haber AS, Ghossainy ME, Barbero S, Corriveau KH. The impact of visualizing the group on children's persistence in and perceptions of STEM. Acta Psychol (Amst) 2023; 233:103845. [PMID: 36706700 DOI: 10.1016/j.actpsy.2023.103845] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/01/2022] [Revised: 12/23/2022] [Accepted: 01/20/2023] [Indexed: 01/26/2023] Open
Abstract
Women are underrepresented in STEM fields across the world. We investigate a perceptual mechanism that may contribute to this gender disparity beginning in early childhood. We explore how visual information about the gender composition of a group of scientists impacts children's persistence on a STEM task and their evaluations of group members. One hundred sixty-six 4- to 6-year-old children viewed one of four groups of scientists: all-male, all-female, a lone female among all-males, or a lone male among all-females. Whereas children's persistence on a STEM task did not change across conditions, their trait judgments did. Children judged the all-male and all-female group scientists as "hardworking," but judged the lone female scientist as "smart." However, they were as likely to judge the lone male scientist as "smart" as to judge him "hardworking." The role of group visualization as a learning mechanism impacting children's perceptions of scientists as early as the preschool years is discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sona C Kumar
- Boston University, 621 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA 02215, United States of America.
| | - Amanda S Haber
- Boston University, 621 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA 02215, United States of America.
| | - Maliki E Ghossainy
- Boston University, 621 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA 02215, United States of America.
| | - Samantha Barbero
- Boston University, 621 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA 02215, United States of America
| | - Kathleen H Corriveau
- Boston University, 621 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA 02215, United States of America.
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5
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Alexander BL, Janssen J, Fraser AM, Bryce CI, Fabes RA. A multimethod examination of hope and adolescent STEM career expectancies. J Adolesc 2022; 94:1163-1178. [PMID: 36131521 DOI: 10.1002/jad.12094] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/12/2022] [Revised: 08/25/2022] [Accepted: 08/26/2022] [Indexed: 12/13/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields are growing rapidly and understanding adolescent's interest and hope for pursuing a STEM career is essential for additional growth and opportunity collectively and individually. Hope is a cognitive-motivational construct that includes three components: hopeful future expectations (HFEs), intentional self-regulation (ISR), and connection, and is associated with academic achievement and career pursuit; it has not been examined in relation to STEM. This study fills a gap in the literature by taking a multimethod approach to understanding the association between adolescents' hope and STEM career interests. METHODS Participants were 639 middle- and high-school adolescents in the southwestern United States who quantitatively reported their hope and STEM career interests and provided qualitative descriptions of reasons for wanting to pursue a STEM career. RESULTS Quantitatively, HFEs significantly and positively predicted STEM career interest. Relations were examined by gender and school level. For middle-school girls, ISR significantly predicted STEM career interest, for middle-school boys and high-school girls, HFEs positively significantly predicted STEM career interest, but results of high-school boys were nonsignificant. Qualitatively, adolescents mentioned reasons aligning with HFEs and ISR as motivations for pursuing a STEM career, as well as prosocial motivations. Additionally, they discussed their interest in a STEM career as a way to pursue other goals such as financial stability. DISCUSSION Findings highlight the possibility of hope as a malleable motivation for STEM career pursuit. Our findings support the components of hope as a salient associate of early STEM career interest, with adolescents who have high HFEs and ISR being particularly apt to say they would like to pursue a STEM career. Our results support the active development of hope among US adolescents as a catalyst toward personal and global success.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brittany L Alexander
- School of Social and Family Dynamics, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, USA
| | - Jayley Janssen
- School of Social and Family Dynamics, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, USA
| | - Ashely M Fraser
- School of Family Life, Brigham Young University, Provo, Utah, USA
| | - Crystal I Bryce
- School of Medicine, The University of Texas at Tyler, Tyler, Texas, USA
| | - Richard A Fabes
- School of Social and Family Dynamics, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, USA
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Impact of Exposure to a Counter-Stereotypical STEM Television Program on Children’s Gender- and Race-Based STEM Occupational Schema. SUSTAINABILITY 2022. [DOI: 10.3390/su14095631] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 02/05/2023]
Abstract
Gender and racial diversity in STEM has been deemed an essential need for a sustainable future, but girls and children from underrepresented racial/ethnic backgrounds continue to show less interest in STEM than their White and male counterparts. Media has been shown to reflect children’s occupational schema from an early age, and therefore might be used to help broaden children’s beliefs about who participates in STEM. In this field-based pre/post-experimental study, children in kindergarten and first grades (N = 48, 62.5% female, Mage = 6.57) viewed episodes of a STEM-focused educational television series that features a diverse group of protagonists two to three times a week for eight weeks. Their occupational schema were measured before and after exposure. Results suggest there was no quantifiable change in their attitudes. However, qualitative analysis of their open-ended responses sheds light on how children’s beliefs about who participates in STEM are shaped, i.e., by both mediated and real-world exposure.
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7
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Wu CC. Examining the Effectiveness and Efficiency of an Innovative Achievement Goal Measurement for Preschoolers. Front Psychol 2022; 12:741088. [PMID: 35069320 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.741088] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2021] [Accepted: 12/02/2021] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
A large number of studies have investigated achievement goals and their related antecedents and consequences above elementary school level. However, few studies have implemented achievement goal assessment to investigate achievement goals and their relevance for preschoolers. In particular, no valid measurement has been developed for preschoolers' self-reporting of their achievement goals. The main purposes of this study were twofold: (1) To develop an innovative achievement goal measurement for preschoolers, and to investigate the best theoretical model for understanding preschoolers' achievement goal across gender. (2) To examine the effectiveness and efficiency of the pictorial and pure text measurement format and approaches (for young children's self-reporting and teachers' rating purposes, respectively). A total of 364 preschoolers aged 5 years participated in self-report activity, and 32 preschool teachers obtained consent to rate 193 out of 364 preschoolers. Results showed: (1) the developed achievement goal measurement was a valid tool for understanding preschoolers' achievement goals and was equally suitable for boys and girls. (2) The 6-factor achievement goal model was the best theoretical perspective for understanding preschoolers' achievement goals for both boys and girls. (3) The pictorial measurement format for preschoolers' self-reporting of achievement goals was a more effective but less efficient way to investigate preschoolers' achievement goals, while the opposite was the case for the pure text measurement format for teachers' ratings. Implications for achievement goal literature and future research are discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chung Chin Wu
- Department of Early Childhood Education, National Pingtung University, Pingtung, Taiwan
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8
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Norman JB, Fuesting MA, Geerling DM, Chen JM, Gable SL, Diekman AB. To Pursue or Not to Pursue STEM? Faculty Behavior Enhances Student Involvement in STEM Roles by Signaling Role-Specific Support. SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGICAL AND PERSONALITY SCIENCE 2021. [DOI: 10.1177/19485506211035003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Abstract
Four studies examine the faculty–student relationship as a mechanism through which students ascertain their place in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. Studies 1 and 2 use experimental methods to demonstrate STEM faculty who behave communally, relative to independently, increase undergraduates’ belonging and interest in STEM roles through anticipation of greater role-specific support (i.e., support that emphasizes guiding students through structures and activities of field-specific roles). Study 3 then examined the consequences of role-specific support for undergraduates’ belonging and interest in STEM. Students anticipated more belonging and interest in STEM roles when faculty provided high levels of role-specific support. Finally, STEM doctoral students’ perception of role-specific support from faculty related to their belonging and future identification in STEM fields (Study 4). Taken together, these studies demonstrate the importance of students’ construals of role-specific support from faculty, and how faculty behavior signals role-specific support, with benefits for student involvement in STEM.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jasmine B. Norman
- Department of Psychology, The University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA
| | - Melissa A. Fuesting
- College and University Professional Association for Human Resources, Knoxville, TN, USA
| | | | - Jacqueline M. Chen
- Department of Psychology, The University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT, USA
| | - Shelly L. Gable
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of California, Santa Barbara, CA, USA
| | - Amanda B. Diekman
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, Indiana University Bloomington, IN, USA
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9
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Heck IA, Santhanagopalan R, Cimpian A, Kinzler KD. Understanding the Developmental Roots of Gender Gaps in Politics. PSYCHOLOGICAL INQUIRY 2021. [DOI: 10.1080/1047840x.2021.1930741] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Isobel A. Heck
- Department of Psychology, The University of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, USA
| | | | - Andrei Cimpian
- Department of Psychology, New York University, New York, New York, USA
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10
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Law F, McGuire L, Winterbottom M, Rutland A. Children's Gender Stereotypes in STEM Following a One-Shot Growth Mindset Intervention in a Science Museum. Front Psychol 2021; 12:641695. [PMID: 34040559 PMCID: PMC8141795 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.641695] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/14/2020] [Accepted: 04/12/2021] [Indexed: 11/20/2022] Open
Abstract
Women are drastically underrepresented in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) and this underrepresentation has been linked to gender stereotypes and ability related beliefs. One way to remedy this may be to challenge male bias gender stereotypes around STEM by cultivating equitable beliefs that both female and male can excel in STEM. The present study implemented a growth mindset intervention to promote children’s incremental ability beliefs and investigate the relation between the intervention and children’s gender stereotypes in an informal science learning site. Participants (n = 143, female n = 77, male n = 66, 5–12-years-old, Mage = 8.6, SD = 1.7) were visitors to a science museum who took part in an interactive space science show. Participants who were exposed to a growth mindset intervention, compared to the participants in the control condition, reported significantly less gender stereotyping around STEM by reporting equitably in the stereotype awareness measure. Relatedly, participants in the control condition reported male bias gender stereotype in the stereotype awareness measure. Further, children between 5 and 8-years-old reported greater male bias stereotypes awareness and stereotype flexibility in space science compared to children between 9 and 12-years-old. Lastly, children demonstrated in-group bias in STEM ability. Male participants reported gender bias favoring males’ ability in stereotype flexibility and awareness measures, while female participants reported bias toward females’ ability in stereotype flexibility and awareness measures. These findings document the importance of a growth mindset intervention in buffering against STEM gender stereotyping amongst children, as well as the significant role a growth mindset intervention can play within an informal science learning site.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fidelia Law
- Department of Psychology, University of Exeter, Exeter, United Kingdom
| | - Luke McGuire
- Department of Psychology, University of Exeter, Exeter, United Kingdom
| | - Mark Winterbottom
- Faculty of Education, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom
| | - Adam Rutland
- Department of Psychology, University of Exeter, Exeter, United Kingdom
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11
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Cvencek D, Paz-Albo J, Master A, Herranz Llácer CV, Hervás-Escobar A, Meltzoff AN. Math Is for Me: A Field Intervention to Strengthen Math Self-Concepts in Spanish-Speaking 3rd Grade Children. Front Psychol 2020; 11:593995. [PMID: 33329257 PMCID: PMC7732437 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2020.593995] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/12/2020] [Accepted: 10/14/2020] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
Children's math self-concepts-their beliefs about themselves and math-are important for teachers, parents, and students, because they are linked to academic motivation, choices, and outcomes. There have been several attempts at improving math achievement based on the training of math skills. Here we took a complementary approach and conducted an intervention study to boost children's math self-concepts. Our primary objective was to assess the feasibility of whether a novel multicomponent intervention-one that combines explicit and implicit approaches to help children form more positive beliefs linking themselves and math-can be administered in an authentic school setting. The intervention was conducted in Spain, a country in which math achievement is below the average of other OECD countries. We tested third grade students (N = 180; M age = 8.79 years; 96 girls), using treatment and comparison groups and pre- and posttest assessments. A novelty of this study is that we used both implicit and explicit measures of children's math self-concepts. For a subsample of students, we also obtained an assessment of year-end math achievement. Math self-concepts in the treatment and comparison groups did not significantly differ at pretest. Students in the treatment group demonstrated a significant increase in math self-concepts from pretest to posttest; students in the comparison group did not. In the treatment group, implicit math self-concepts at posttest were associated with higher year-end math achievement, assessed approximately 3 months after the completion of the intervention. Taken together, the results suggest that math self-concepts are malleable and that social-cognitive interventions can boost children's beliefs about themselves and math. Based on the favorable results of this feasibility study, it is appropriate to formally test this novel multicomponent approach for improving math self-concepts using randomized controlled trial (RCT) design.
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Affiliation(s)
- Dario Cvencek
- Institute for Learning and Brain Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States
| | - Jesús Paz-Albo
- Departamento de Ciencias de la Educación, Lenguaje, Cultura y Artes, Ciencias Histórico-Jurídicas y Humanísticas y Lenguas Modernas, Facultad de Ciencias Jurídicas y Sociales, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, Madrid, Spain
| | - Allison Master
- Institute for Learning and Brain Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States.,Department of Psychological, Health, and Learning Sciences, University of Houston, Houston, TX, United States
| | - Cristina V Herranz Llácer
- Departamento de Ciencias de la Educación, Lenguaje, Cultura y Artes, Ciencias Histórico-Jurídicas y Humanísticas y Lenguas Modernas, Facultad de Ciencias Jurídicas y Sociales, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, Madrid, Spain
| | - Aránzazu Hervás-Escobar
- Departamento de Ciencias de la Educación, Lenguaje, Cultura y Artes, Ciencias Histórico-Jurídicas y Humanísticas y Lenguas Modernas, Facultad de Ciencias Jurídicas y Sociales, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, Madrid, Spain
| | - Andrew N Meltzoff
- Institute for Learning and Brain Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States
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12
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Sobel DM, Letourneau SM, Legare CH, Callanan M. Relations between parent-child interaction and children's engagement and learning at a museum exhibit about electric circuits. Dev Sci 2020; 24:e13057. [PMID: 33108708 DOI: 10.1111/desc.13057] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/13/2020] [Revised: 10/09/2020] [Accepted: 10/13/2020] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
Play is critical for children's learning, but there is significant disagreement over whether and how parents should guide children's play. The objective of the current study was to examine how parent-child interaction affected children's engagement and problem-solving behaviors when challenged with similar tasks. Parents and 4- to 7-year-old children in the U.S. (N = 111 dyads) played together at an interactive electric circuit exhibit in a children's museum. We examined how parents and children set and accomplished goals while playing with the exhibit materials. Children then participated in a set of challenges that involved completing increasingly difficult circuits. Children whose parents set goals for their interactions showed less engagement with the challenge task (choosing to attempt fewer challenges), and children whose parents were more active in completing the circuits while families played with the exhibit subsequently completed fewer challenges on their own. We discuss these results in light of broader findings on the role of parent-child interaction in museum settings.
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13
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Rhodes M, Cardarelli A, Leslie SJ. Asking young children to "do science" instead of "be scientists" increases science engagement in a randomized field experiment. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2020; 117:9808-9814. [PMID: 32300013 PMCID: PMC7211969 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1919646117] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/30/2023] Open
Abstract
Subtle features of common language can imply to young children that scientists are a special and distinct kind of person-a way of thinking that can interfere with the development of children's own engagement with science. We conducted a large field experiment (involving 45 prekindergarten schools, 130 teachers, and over 1,100 children) to test if targeting subtle properties of language can increase science engagement in children's daily lives. Despite strong tendencies to describe scientists as a special kind of person (in a baseline control condition), brief video-based training changed the language that teachers used to introduce science to their students. These changes in language were powerful enough to predict children's science interest and behavior days later. Thus, subtle features of language shape children's beliefs and behaviors as they unfold in real world environments. Harnessing these mechanisms could promote science engagement in early childhood.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marjorie Rhodes
- Department of Psychology, New York University, New York, NY 10003;
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14
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McGuire L, Jefferys E, Rutland A. Children's evaluations of deviant peers in the context of science and technology: The role of gender group norms and status. J Exp Child Psychol 2020; 195:104845. [PMID: 32276151 PMCID: PMC7193893 DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2020.104845] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/27/2019] [Revised: 02/04/2020] [Accepted: 03/08/2020] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Boys negatively evaluate peers who challenge group norms related to computing. Children expect groups to negatively evaluate challenges to science gender norms. Perceptions of group evaluation predict how boys individually evaluate their peers.
Women are drastically underrepresented within computer science, which is in part informed by societal ideas of who can and should belong in the sciences. Less is known about how children evaluate their peers who challenge gendered expectations of who can and should take part in computer science. The current study asked children (N = 213; 110 girls) in middle childhood (Mage = 8.71 years; n = 108) and late childhood (Mage = 10.56 years; n = 105) to evaluate a gender-matched peer who challenged a group norm related to either computer science (male-gendered domain) or biology (less male-gendered domain). Male participants most negatively evaluated a peer who wanted to take part in a biology activity when the rest of the group wanted to do a programming activity. Furthermore, male participants expected their group to negatively evaluate this deviant peer in the programming condition. Mediation analysis revealed that for boys in the computer science condition, perceived group evaluation predicted individual evaluation. Female participants, in contrast, did not negatively evaluate someone who challenged a STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) peer group norm. This study demonstrates that male peer groups may perpetuate the idea that computer science is for men through negative evaluation of in-group members who challenge those ideas and, in turn, maintain their dominant position as the high-status group. Achieving equity in the computer science field will require a greater understanding of these peer group norms.
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Affiliation(s)
- Luke McGuire
- Department of Psychology, University of Exeter, Exeter EX4 4QG, UK.
| | - Emma Jefferys
- UCL Institute of Education, Bloomsbury, London WC1H 0AL, UK
| | - Adam Rutland
- Department of Psychology, University of Exeter, Exeter EX4 4QG, UK
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15
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Lei RF, Green ER, Leslie SJ, Rhodes M. Children lose confidence in their potential to "be scientists," but not in their capacity to "do science". Dev Sci 2019; 22:e12837. [PMID: 31006163 PMCID: PMC6803025 DOI: 10.1111/desc.12837] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2018] [Revised: 02/28/2019] [Accepted: 04/13/2019] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
Abstract
Over the course of middle childhood, children's interest and beliefs about their own capacities for success in science often decline. This pernicious decline is especially evident among underrepresented groups, including girls, members of some racial and ethnic minorities, and children from lower socioeconomic backgrounds. The present research (N = 306, ages 6-11) found that while children lose interest and feelings of efficacy about their potential to "be scientists" across middle childhood, they maintain more robust interest and efficacy about "doing science." These patterns were confirmed in both longitudinal and cross-sectional analyses; effects were stable or increased across time and age. Mediation analyses revealed that the positive effect of action framing is partially accounted for by children's views that the group of people who do science is more inclusive than the category of scientists. These findings suggest that using action-focused language to encourage children in science is more inclusive and may lead to more science engagement across middle childhood than language that emphasizes scientists as an identity category. Implications for educational practices will be discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ryan F Lei
- Department of Psychology, New York University, New York, NY
| | - Emily R Green
- Department of Psychology, New York University, New York, NY
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Rhodes M, Leslie SJ, Yee KM, Saunders K. Subtle Linguistic Cues Increase Girls' Engagement in Science. Psychol Sci 2019; 30:455-466. [PMID: 30721119 PMCID: PMC6419261 DOI: 10.1177/0956797618823670] [Citation(s) in RCA: 27] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/14/2018] [Accepted: 10/30/2018] [Indexed: 11/17/2022] Open
Abstract
The roots of gender disparities in science achievement take hold in early childhood. The present studies aimed to identify a modifiable feature of young children's environments that could be targeted to reduce gender differences in science behavior among young children. Four experimental studies with children ( N = 501) revealed that describing science in terms of actions ("Let's do science! Doing science means exploring the world!") instead of identities ("Let's be scientists! Scientists explore the world!") increased girls' subsequent persistence in new science games designed to illustrate the scientific method. These studies thus identified subtle but powerful linguistic cues that could be targeted to help reduce gender disparities in science engagement in early childhood.
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Master A, Cheryan S, Moscatelli A, Meltzoff AN. Programming experience promotes higher STEM motivation among first-grade girls. J Exp Child Psychol 2017; 160:92-106. [DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2017.03.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 174] [Impact Index Per Article: 24.9] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/04/2016] [Revised: 03/21/2017] [Accepted: 03/22/2017] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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Theobald EJ, Eddy SL, Grunspan DZ, Wiggins BL, Crowe AJ. Student perception of group dynamics predicts individual performance: Comfort and equity matter. PLoS One 2017; 12:e0181336. [PMID: 28727749 PMCID: PMC5519092 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0181336] [Citation(s) in RCA: 30] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/24/2017] [Accepted: 06/29/2017] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Active learning in college classes and participation in the workforce frequently hinge on small group work. However, group dynamics vary, ranging from equitable collaboration to dysfunctional groups dominated by one individual. To explore how group dynamics impact student learning, we asked students in a large-enrollment university biology class to self-report their experience during in-class group work. Specifically, we asked students whether there was a friend in their group, whether they were comfortable in their group, and whether someone dominated their group. Surveys were administered after students participated in two different types of intentionally constructed group activities: 1) a loosely-structured activity wherein students worked together for an entire class period (termed the 'single-group' activity), or 2) a highly-structured 'jigsaw' activity wherein students first independently mastered different subtopics, then formed new groups to peer-teach their respective subtopics. We measured content mastery by the change in score on identical pre-/post-tests. We then investigated whether activity type or student demographics predicted the likelihood of reporting working with a dominator, being comfortable in their group, or working with a friend. We found that students who more strongly agreed that they worked with a dominator were 17.8% less likely to answer an additional question correct on the 8-question post-test. Similarly, when students were comfortable in their group, content mastery increased by 27.5%. Working with a friend was the single biggest predictor of student comfort, although working with a friend did not impact performance. Finally, we found that students were 67% less likely to agree that someone dominated their group during the jigsaw activities than during the single group activities. We conclude that group activities that rely on positive interdependence, and include turn-taking and have explicit prompts for students to explain their reasoning, such as our jigsaw, can help reduce the negative impact of inequitable groups.
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Affiliation(s)
- Elli J. Theobald
- Department of Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
| | - Sarah L. Eddy
- Department of Biological Sciences, Florida International University, Miami, Florida, United States of America
| | - Daniel Z. Grunspan
- School of Life Sciences and Center for Evolution and Medicine, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona, United States of America
| | - Benjamin L. Wiggins
- Department of Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
| | - Alison J. Crowe
- Department of Biology, University of Washington, Seattle, Washington, United States of America
- * E-mail:
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