This dissertation explored science motivation in rural African American high school students using data from the High School Longitudinal Study of 2009. This dissertation was composed of two studies. Both studies were guided by expectancy-value theory (Eccles et al., 1983). The first study examined the relations between science expectancies, subjective task value, and science achievement behaviors in rural African American high school students. The second study tested a parental socialization model of expectancy-value theory to investigate the relationships between parental socialization behaviors, student perceptions of parental attitudes and behaviors, student beliefs about appropriate role characteristics, and science expectancies for rural African American students. This chapter presents the major findings of these studies and highlights the contributions of my dissertation. The chapter concludes with a discussion of the limitations of the studies and implications for future research and practice.
Summary of Major Findings for Study 1
This study used the Eccles et al. (1983) model of expectancy-value theory of achievement motivation to examine science motivation in rural African American high school students. The first study tested whether science expectancies (self-efficacy beliefs) and elements of science subjective task value (attainment value, intrinsic value, and utility value) predicted achievement behaviors (effort, choice, and persistence). In addition, self-reports of gender were explored to determine whether (a) mean level differences existed in science motivation variables among male and female students, and (b) the relations between the variables varied between across gender groups. Several important findings emerged from this study. First, analyses identified
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significant mean level differences in science self-efficacy beliefs and science effort between gender groups. Second, as predicted by the Eccles et al. (1983) model, both science self-efficacy and intrinsic value positively predicted effort in current science course whereas science
attainment value and science utility value positively predicted student plans to persist in science at age 30. Last, as expected based on prior research, there were gender differences in the direct pathways between science self-efficacy beliefs and science course effort, intrinsic value and science course effort, attainment value and student plans to persist in science, and utility value and student plans to persist in science. These findings, along with the nonsignificant findings regarding number of earned science credits, will be discussed further in the sections that follow.
Mean Differences in Science Motivation
MANOVA procedures were used to measure gender group differences in science
motivation variables included in the model of Eccles et al. (1983) expectancy-value theory used as the theoretical framework for Study 1. These variables included science expectancies (self- efficacy beliefs), science attainment value, science utility value, science intrinsic value, science course effort, student plans to persist in science at age 30, and number of earned science credits. The results indicated that there were statistically significant differences among the means levels of science self-efficacy beliefs and science course effort, as well as differences in student plans to persist in science, for rural African American male and female students.
Science expectancies (self-efficacy beliefs). For this dissertation, students’ science
expectancies were measured using a scale of science self-efficacy constructed by HSLS:09
researchers. Although differences in the wording of scale items, previous research has shown that self-efficacy beliefs are a good proxy measure for science expectancies (Eccles, 2009; Eccles & Wigfield, 2002; Guo, Marsh, Morin, Parker & Kaur, 2015; Wigfield & Eccles, 2000).
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Based on prior research, I predicted gender differences, favoring African American male
students, in their science-related efficacy beliefs. As hypothesized, rural African American male students reported higher levels of science self-efficacy than did their female counterparts. These findings confirm prior research that rural African American male middle and high school
students possessed higher levels of science and engineering (S&E) ability beliefs (Rouland et al., 2013). Though there is a dearth of research on science expectancies and science self-efficacy using rural African American samples, these findings align with existing research on gender differences in science self-efficacy. For example, a meta-analysis of mathematics and science self-efficacy studies uncovered a medium effect size (r = .68) for gender and self-efficacy, indicating males were more likely to have higher levels of self-efficacy within mathematics and science (Rottinghaus, Larson, & Borgen, 2003). Moreover, there is evidence that rural male students at all grade levels expect to perform better in science classes than other students and they report science as easier than do rural female students (Legrand, 2013). Gender differences in science competency-related beliefs, such as achievement expectancies, self-efficacy, and perceived ability, are believed to reflect gender-role stereotypes that portray boys and men as superior in science (Grossman & Porsche, 2014; Jacobs, Finken, Griffin, & Wright, 1998; Perry et al., 2012; Rouland et al., 2013; Wang & Degol, 2013).
The rural African American girls in this sample reported lower science self-efficacy than their male counterparts, despite evidence that African American female students tend to
outperform African American male students in science and other domains (Evans, Copping, Rowley, & Kurtz-Costes, 2011; Perry et al., 2012; Rouland et al., 2013; Swinton et al., 2011; Young & Young, 2018). Traditional gender stereotypes about girls’ science abilities are particularly prevalent by the time students reach adolescence and may shape their self-efficacy,
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course-taking choices, academic performance, and interest in persisting within science domains (Bong, Lee & Woo, 2015; Else-Quest, Mineo, & Higgins, 2013; Legrand, 2013; Perry et al., 2012; Swinton et al., 2011). Though much of this research has been conducted using white students, these results confirm that gendered stereotypes about science and science-related disciplines are also present in rural African American students.
Science course effort. While it was hypothesized that male students would have higher means on all study focal variables, African American female students reported higher levels of science course effort. However, this result is consistent with past research. In a study of students’ causal attributions, Swinton et al. (2011) reported that African American high school students endorsed effort more than ability when explaining success in science courses. Legrand (2013) also reported that female high school students were more likely to attribute science achievement to effort only, whereas male students were more likely to attribute science
achievement to either ability or to a combination of effort and ability. These findings add to the existing literature by confirming the possibility that rural African American female students tend to exert greater effort in science courses than their male parts to counter their perceived lower science self-efficacy. That is, like White female adolescents (Eccles et al., 1983; Legrand, 2013), feelings of inadequacies related to science achievement and success may lead rural African American girls to report that they try harder at science.
Plans to persist in science at age 30. Out of the students surveyed, 33% (n = 273) reported plans to pursue a science-related career at age 30. Most sources typically do not report percentages specific to rural African American students. Further, the data on African American high school students’ interest in pursuing science careers varies across sources, with reported values as low as 23% and as high as 39% (Grossman & Porche, 2015; NSB, 2018). The most
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recent data from the National Science Board (NSB, 2018) indicated that 32% of ninth-grade students (from all racial and ethnic backgrounds) reported plans to pursue a STEM major in college. Considering these figures, rural African American students appear to be interested in pursuing science-related careers at rates similar to their peers. However, as noted in Chapter 1, only 4.8% of the current S&E workforce is composed of African Americans (NSB, 2018; NSF, 2017), an indication that despite students’ plans to persist in high school, they have traditionally not occupied positions in the S&E workforce.
For Study 1, significant differences were present in the percentages of rural African American male and female students who wanted to pursue STEM occupations. Contrary to findings related to students’ motivational beliefs, male students were significantly less likely to report plans to persist in science-related occupations at age 30 (n = 91, 21.5%) than female students (n = 182, 45.5%). One possible explanation is that female students tend to report interests in pursuing careers in health care, one of the seven categories coded as science-related by HSLS:09 researchers. This explanation is consistent with prior research. Compared to men, women are more likely to choose careers in the biological and health sciences than engineering and physical sciences and to be employed in health-related occupations (Eccles & Wang, 2016; Jacobs et al., 1998; NSF, 2017). Health care is also a more viable occupation than engineering and physical sciences in rural communities (United States Department of Agriculture [USDA], 2017). Gender segregation in the health-related professions, such as nursing, may be a factor in the low proportion of rural African American male students planning to pursue a science-related career at age 30 (Weisgram, Bigler, & Liben, 2010). Additional research is needed to assess if persistence in science is related to youth’s perceptions of occupations available in their rural communities.
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Expectancy-Value Path Analysis Findings
This study tested a model of the Eccles et al. (1983) expectancy-value theory to explore science motivation in rural African American high school students. The model hypothesized that student expectancies (science self-efficacy) and subjective task value (attainment value/identity, utility value, and intrinsic value/interest) would predict science achievement behaviors (number of science credits earned, plans to persist in science at age 30, and student effort). I
hypothesized that there would be direct positive relationships between (a) science self-efficacy and each of the achievement behaviors and (b) each of the task values and the achievement behaviors. In addition, I hypothesized that gender would influence the associations between the study variables and that the hypothesized positive relationships would be stronger for male students.
Study hypotheses were only partially supported. The model explained a statistically significant amount of variance (R2) for science course effort (25%, p < 0.001); yet, only 10% of
the variance for students’ plans to persist and just 2% of the variance for earned science credits was explained by the model. The small R2 values indicate that the outcome variables are largely dependent on variables not measured within this model. Indeed, number of science credits earned was not predicted by any of the endogenous variables in this study. Moreover, science effort and student plans to persist in science at age 30 were predicted by some, but not all, of the endogenous variables. Further, gender differences were uncovered in the multigroup model, with utility value being statistically significant only for predicting male students’ plans to persist. Notable gender differences are discussed below.
Direct effects: Science expectancies (science self-efficacy). Numerous studies have documented positive relations between students’ competency-related beliefs and self-reports of
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effort (Rouland et al., 2013; Swinton et al., 2011). The current study used a measure of self- efficacy to assess students in their ability to perform well in their current course. Consistent with prior research, results revealed a positive direct relationship between these measures of self- efficacy and effort for the African American students in the HSLS sample. In addition, the results revealed that the association was significant and positive for both male and female
students in the sample. Students with high self-efficacy confront difficult tasks directly and exert the additional effort necessary for the successful completion of the task. On the other hand, students with low self-efficacy view difficult tasks as hurdles that cannot be overcome and apply less effort (Bandura, 1986; Hernandez et al., 2013; Kerpelman et al., 2008; Long et al., 2007). The findings of this study extend the literature on the relationship between measures of science self-efficacy and effort to rural African American students.
Direct effects: Subjective task values. Although it was hypothesized that the elements of subjective task value (attainment value/identity, utility value, intrinsic value/interest) would each be predictive of the outcome variables in this study, the results revealed otherwise. First, only intrinsic value (interest) exerted a positive statistically significant on rural African
American students’ effort in science. Students who indicate interest in a subject typically report higher levels of attention and persistence (Bong et al., 2015). Though mean levels of intrinsic value did not significantly differ between the two gender groups in this study of rural African American youth, the association between intrinsic value and effort was significantly stronger in male students than in their female counterparts. Based on these results, male students reported exerting greater effort based on interest. On the other hand, female students’ effort, though linked to domain interest, may be also influenced by a variety of factors not included in this model. Indeed, the variables in this model explained only 21% of the variance for science effort
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for girls compared to 31% for boys. Additional research, including qualitative research, is warranted to better understand the dynamics of science course effort in rural African American students.
Next, rural African American students’ plans to persist in science at age 30 were positively predicted by the self-reported measures of utility value and attainment value, but not intrinsic value. As noted earlier, utility value represents the usefulness of a task as it relates to a student’s plans for the future (Andersen & Ward, 2014; Eccles et al., 1983; Graham, 2004). Although utility value predicted students’ plans to persist in science at age 30 in the full group model, the results of the multigroup model indicated that it was not statistically significant for female students’ plans to persist in science. To understand this finding, it is important to consider the types of STEM careers male and female students tend to pursue as adults (Wang & Degol, 2013; Wang, Eccles, & Kenny, 2013). Male students are more likely to plan to pursue careers within the core STEM disciplines than their female counterparts (e.g., Life and Physical Science, Engineering, Mathematics, and Information Technology Occupations); therefore, utility value tends to be predictive of their plans to persist in science. Women, on the other hand, are more likely to be employed in health-related occupations, where the emphasis is on helping others (Bhattacharyya et al., 2011; Eccles & Wang, 2016; Grossman & Porche, 2014; NSF, 2017; Perry et al., 2012; Sharkawy, 2015; Wang & Degol, 2013). As such, the female students in this sample may not realize the utility of science as a discipline as it pertains to health careers.
To support this argument, recent research using rural students revealed that even though female students reported that math and science would be useful within their careers, many viewed higher level math and science courses as “abstract”. Moreover, they reported a lack of understanding of how advanced science concepts might be utilized in the future (Legrand, 2013;
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Zhang & Barnett, 2015). Although rural economies have begun to transition away from a reliance on agriculture and manufacturing jobs, there are limited opportunities to find employment within science-related occupations in many rural areas, apart from health care careers (Carr & Kefalas, 2009; Petrin et al., 2014; USDA, 2017). Further exploration of how rural African American female students perceive the relationship between health occupations and science would be beneficial in understanding why science utility was not predictive of plans to persist for female students.
As stated, attainment value was defined and measured as the degree to which students report they and others view themselves as a “science person.” Students who score high on this measure are believed to be forming a science identity (Andersen & Ward, 2014; Eccles et al., 1983; Graham, 2004). Prior research has indicated that attainment value is a significant predictor of students’ ratings of engagement with science activities when given a choice. Students who view themselves as scientists also hold beliefs that science-related careers are an attainable goal (Andersen & Ward, 2014; Jones et al., 2015). These results confirm prior findings that also found an association between attainment value and student plans to persist in high-achieving African American students (Andersen & Ward, 2014). There were no significant statistical differences between gender groups in the degree to which attainment value predicts students’ plans to persist. These results add to the literature base on the relationship between attainment value and students’ plans to persist by extending it to rural African American students.
Nonsignificant findings. Some of the expected relationships proposed in Study 1 were not supported. Regarding Hypothesis 1, I hypothesized that mean level differences in study variables would exist between gender groups, due to traditional science stereotypes that favor male students. However, small gender effects were only found on two variables: science
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expectancies (self-efficacy beliefs; d = 0.22) and science class effort (d = 0.26). Though rural African American male students did report higher mean levels of science self-efficacy than their female counterparts, male students did not report significantly higher mean levels on any other study variables including the perceived value to science (intrinsic value, utility value, and attainment value). In contrast to female African American students, male students reported significantly lower mean levels of science effort and a significantly lower proportion of boys than girls planned to persist in science at age 30.
The lack of differences in mean levels of the various dimensions of subjective task value between male and female students (attainment, utility, and intrinsic) may be partially attributable to the lack of African American role models in science and engineering careers. In a study of urban African American third-grade students, researchers found that both girls and boys were more likely to identify older white men wearing glasses/goggles, collared shirts, ties, and lab coats as scientists (Sharkawy, 2015; Walls, 2012). While this research has not been conducted with rural populations, African Americans students, regardless of gender and location, may associate science careers with middle-aged white males and not view themselves or believe that others view them as scientists (Andersen & Ward, 2014; Perry et al., 2012; Riegel-Crumb & King, 2010; Riegel-Crumb et al., 2011; Thomas, 2017; Young & Young, 2018).
Similarly, levels of utility values were not significantly different between gender groups. A majority of the rural African American students in this sample lacked interest in STEM
careers. Students uninterested in majoring in science or pursuing a science career would not view science as useful for their future plans. Although 46% of female students in this study (n = 182) indicated plans to pursue science, only one-fifth of the male students in this study (n = 91) indicated plans to persist in science. Despite the higher percentage of female students who
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reported plans to persist in science, many indicated that they intended to pursue healthcare. As a result, many may not have associated the science taught in school with their desired occupation. Past studies have uncovered a disconnect between how students view “school” science and “real” science. Students may understand the concepts taught in science courses, but many are unaware of how the concepts learned in the classroom are applicable to their everyday lives or of the wide range of occupations that are classified as S&E (Andersen & Ward, 2014; Archer et al., 2010; Aschbacher et al., 2014; Garrioti, Hultgren, & Frazier, 2017). In addition, a scarcity of role models working within science-related occupations in rural African American communities may contribute to a lack of knowledge about science and engineering careers and limited
understanding about the work done by people employed in S&E occupations (Perry et al., 2012;