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The Development of Children's Gender‐Science Stereotypes: A Meta‐analysis of 5 Decades of U.S. Draw‐A‐Scientist Studies
Author(s) -
Miller David I.,
Nolla Kyle M.,
Eagly Alice H.,
Uttal David H.
Publication year - 2018
Publication title -
child development
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 3.103
H-Index - 257
eISSN - 1467-8624
pISSN - 0009-3920
DOI - 10.1111/cdev.13039
Subject(s) - psychology , representation (politics) , women in science , developmental psychology , developmental science , stereotype (uml) , gender studies , social psychology , sociology , politics , political science , law
This meta‐analysis, spanning 5 decades of Draw‐A‐Scientist studies, examined U.S. children's gender‐science stereotypes linking science with men. These stereotypes should have weakened over time because women's representation in science has risen substantially in the United States, and mass media increasingly depict female scientists. Based on 78 studies ( N = 20,860; grades K‐12), children's drawings of scientists depicted female scientists more often in later decades, but less often among older children. Children's depictions of scientists therefore have become more gender diverse over time, but children still associate science with men as they grow older. These results may reflect that children observe more male than female scientists in their environments, even though women's representation in science has increased over time.