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Sex‐role stereotyping by high school females in science
Author(s) -
Vockell Edward L.,
Lobonc Susan
Publication year - 1981
Publication title -
journal of research in science teaching
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.067
H-Index - 131
eISSN - 1098-2736
pISSN - 0022-4308
DOI - 10.1002/tea.3660180304
Subject(s) - perception , psychology , physical science , preference , science education , competition (biology) , social psychology , developmental psychology , women in science , hard and soft science , sports science , mathematics education , gender studies , sociology , social science , ecology , physiology , neuroscience , economics , biology , microeconomics
Although the participation by females in upper‐level occupations and positions has expanded considerably in recent years, science is still considered a masculine career field. The results of this study show that only the physical sciences in particular (not science in general) are clearly viewed as masculine academic areas. Furthermore, the results suggest that the perception by girls of the physical sciences as masculine is much more likely to occur in coed classes than in all‐female classes. The results can best be explained by two factors: (1) the attitudes conveyed by teachers and by society may predispose students toward a greater acceptance of women in biology than in the physical sciences; and (2) when girls perceive themselves as a deviant minority in physical science classes, their performance and preference for the physical sciences is reduced, perhaps because of competition and comparison with males. In all‐female classes, however, girls are not a deviant minority, and therefore they are able to perform and develop preferences without inhibition.