ABSTRACT

Negative stereotypes about female intellectual abilities occur in children as young as 6-years-old and can shape a child’s educational path and career choice, particularly in relation to Science, Technology, Engineering and Math (STEM). The current study (N = 40) explored preexisting gender stereotypes in a purposeful sample of 6 to 8-year-old white British girls at a dance and performing arts center and tested the impact of a brief story-based intervention that exposed young girls to intellectually brilliant female role models in STEM. Rch Findings: Findings indicated that exposure to stories about women in science can help counter negative stereotypes concerning female intellectual ability. Another stereotype, “females are nicer than males”, was prevalent in most participants and was not affected by the current intervention. Pre or Policy: A key implication of this study is that young girls who learn about members of their own gender group who accomplished success in STEM fields may be more inclined to think of STEM careers as a possibility for females in future.

摘要

对女性智力能力的负面刻板印象发生在 6 岁的儿童中，并且可以影响孩子的教育路径和职业选择，特别是在科学、技术、工程和数学 (STEM) 方面。目前的研究 ( N = 40) 在舞蹈和表演艺术中心对 6 至 8 岁的英国白人女孩进行了有针对性的样本调查，并测试了基于故事的简短干预对年轻女孩的影响。 STEM 中聪明绝顶的女性榜样。研究结果：研究结果表明，接触科学界女性的故事有助于消除关于女性智力的负面刻板印象。另一种刻板印象，“女性比男性好”，在大多数参与者中普遍存在，并且不受当前干预的影响。预科或政策：这项研究的一个关键含义是，了解在 STEM 领域取得成功的自己性别群体成员的年轻女孩可能更倾向于将 STEM 职业视为未来女性的一种可能性。