Impact of social discomfort and academic self-doubt at high performance levels

Description

In this contribution we present results of a recent study (Kronberger, N.; Horwath, I. 2013; Horwath, Kronberger & Appel 2014) adressing the relationship between intellectual performance and persistence for men and women in an environment in which women represent a numerical minority and where they are confronted with a stereotype of inferior competence. It is well documented that such threatening environments can impact intellectual performance via „stereotype threat“ (Steele 1997), but little is known on how performance relates to persistence in such environments. Repeated poor performance will be a frustrating experience, increasing a student’s tendency to escape the field. What happens, however, if a woman excels in a male dominated field? Surely, one might argue, threat is overcome and she will be as likely to persist in the domain as a man. But, is this the case?

Period	03 Sept 2014
Event title	8th European Conference on Gender Equality in Higher Education
Event type	Conference
Location	AustriaShow on map