Matching Items (2)
Filtering by
- All Subjects: Role Models
- Creators: Kwan, Virginia
- Creators: Mustard, Julie
Description
This thesis study aimed to (1) test whether first-year college students' perceived future self-connectedness predicts their interest in continuing premedical studies, (2) assess whether the presence of academic role models predicts their future self-connectedness and (3) pilot-test an experimental manipulation to increase future self-connectedness and interest in premedical studies. The study included two parts. First, students completed the pre-manipulation measures including future self-connectedness and interest in premed studies. Second, students were randomly assigned to an experimental or a control condition. In the experimental condition, students were asked to imagine that they were licensed doctors and write words of advice to their current selves. In the control condition students were asked to reflect and write about their daily routine. The results from this study showed a significant positive correlation of interest in remaining in premedical studies with both future self-connectedness and the presence of role models and future self-connectedness. Additionally, students in the experimental condition showed a significant increase in future self-connectedness after completing the manipulation. However, their interest in remaining in premedical studies did not change after the manipulation. Together, these findings suggest a method for keeping Freshman undergraduates from dropping out hastily from the premedical track.
ContributorsSosa, Jonathan Mercado (Author) / Kwan, Virginia (Thesis director) / Glenberg, Arthur (Committee member) / Department of Psychology (Contributor) / Barrett, The Honors College (Contributor)
Created2018-12
Description
The gender gap of women in science is an important and unresolved issue in higher education and occupational opportunities. The present study was motivated by the fact that there are typically fewer females than males advancing in science, and therefore fewer female science instructor role models. This observation inspired the questions: Are female college students influenced in a positive way by female science teaching assistants (TAs), and if so how can their influence be measured? The study tested the hypothesis that female TAs act as role models for female students and thereby encourage interest and increase overall performance. To test this "role model" hypothesis, the reasoning ability and self-efficacy of a sample of 724 introductory college biology students were assessed at the beginning and end of the Spring 2010 semester. Achievement was measured by exams and course work. Performance of four randomly formed groups was compared: 1) female students with female TAs, 2) male students with female TAs, 3) female students with male TAs, and 4) male students with male TAs. Based on the role model hypothesis, female students with female TAs were predicted to perform better than female students with male TAs. However, group comparisons revealed similar performances across all four groups in achievement, reasoning ability and self-efficacy. The slight differences found between the four groups in student exam and coursework scores were not statistically significant. Therefore, the results did not support the role model hypothesis. Given that both lecture professors in the present study were males, and given that professors typically have more teaching experience, finer skills and knowledge of subject matter than do TAs, a future study that includes both female science professors and female TAs, may be more likely to find support for the hypothesis.
ContributorsEbert, Darilyn (Author) / Lawson, Anton (Thesis advisor) / Maienschein, Jane (Committee member) / Mustard, Julie (Committee member) / Arizona State University (Publisher)
Created2010