Abstract: |
Research and literature indicates that women leave science,
mathematics, and engineering (SME) at the undergraduate level due, in part, to a lack of confidence in their SME academic abilities. In this study we investigate the factors that influence first-year science and engineering students' academic confidence. We were particularly interested to determine whether and to what degree male and female undergraduates differed in academic confidence, and whether a programmatic intervention could enhance women's confidence. Data come from 635 survey respondents who provided information about their first-year experiences and activities. We developed the sample by matching women who participated in an SME living/learning residence environment (WISE-RP) to male and female controls on projected major, SAT/ACT scores, high school grade-point-average, and race/ethnicity. We conducted several multiple regressions on each subsample (WISE-RP, male controls, female controls), controlling for student characteristics such as motivation and satisfaction as well as campus environment. Findings
indicate that student abilities (SAT) and coping skills positively influence academic confidence. Research participation influences confidence for male and female controls, but not for WISE-RP students. A visible gender difference was identified concerning the connection between academic
identity (the degree to which academic performance defined a students' identity) and academic confidence. Academic identity significantly influences academic confidence for men, but there was no such connection for with the WISE-RP women nor the female controls. WISE-RP participants'
academic confidence was significantly influenced by a positive faculty environment and satisfaction with academic courses. The WISE-RP living/learning environment was a significant positive influence on students' academic confidence; that is, WISE-RP did enhance women's academic confidence. Findings indicate that a supportive living/learning environment
can offset the decrease in women's academic confidence. |
