Women and minorities remain underrepresented in chemistry bachelor's degree attainment in the United States, despite efforts to improve their early chemistry achievement through supplemental academic programs and active-learning approaches. We propose an additional strategy for addressing these disparities: course-based, social-psychological interventions. For example, growth-mindset interventions are designed to support students during challenging academic transitions by encouraging them to view intelligence as a flexible characteristic that can be developed through practice, rather than a fixed ability. Previous research has shown that such interventions can improve the overall performance and persistence of college students, particularly those who belong to underrepresented groups. We report a random-assignment classroom experiment, which implemented a chemistry-specific growth-mindset intervention among first-year college students enrolled in General Chemistry 1. Performance results revealed an achievement gap between underrepresented minority and white students in the control group, but no sex-based gap. Critically, after adjusting for variation in academic preparation, the mindset intervention eliminated this racial-achievement gap. Qualitative analysis of students’ written reflections from the intervention shed light on their experiences of the mindset and control treatments, deepening our understanding of mindset effects. We integrate these results with the mindset and chemical education literatures and discuss the implications for educators seeking to support underrepresented students in their own classrooms.

中文翻译：

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通过成长思维定势干预改善一般化学表现：对代表性不足的少数群体的选择性影响

尽管美国努力通过补充学术计划和主动学习方法来提高其早期化学成绩，但妇女和少数族裔在美国获得化学学士学位的人数仍然不足。我们提出了解决这些差异的另一种策略：基于课程的社会心理干预。例如，成长心态干预旨在通过鼓励学生将智力视为可通过实践发展的灵活特征而非固定能力来支持挑战性的学术过渡，从而为学生提供支持。先前的研究表明，这样的干预措施可以改善大学生的整体表现和持久性，特别是那些代表性不足的大学生。我们报告了一项随机分配的课堂实验，该方法对入读普通化学1年级的大一学生实施了针对化学的成长心态干预。绩效结果显示，对照组中少数族裔和白人学生的成就差距，但没有基于性别的差距。至关重要的是，在适应了学术准备的变化之后，心态干预消除了这种种族成就差距。从干预中对学生的书面思考进行定性分析，可以了解他们对心态和控制疗法的体验，从而加深了我们对心态效果的理解。我们将这些结果与思维定势和化学教育文献相结合，并讨论对寻求在自己的教室中支持代表性不足的学生的教育工作者的意义。