Revista Brasileira de Ensino de Fısica, v. 37, n. 1, 1309 (2015)www.sbfisica.org.brDOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1590/S1806-11173711670

A cross-cultural survey of female undergraduates’ aspirations

for scientific study and careers(Uma comparacao cultural entre as aspiracoes de estudantes de graduacao pela carreira e pelo estudo de ciencias)

Kathleen Foote1, Reva Garg2

1Physics Education Research Group, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, USA2Instituto de Fısica, Universidade de Brasılia, Brasılia, DF, Brasil

Recebido em 29/8/2014; Aceito em 24/9/2014; Publicado em 31/3/2015

Almost worldwide, females still comprise a minority of degree-holders and employees in the physical sciences.Although a significant amount of research has been done to investigate and improve the underrepresentationof females in science, the problem is far from solved. Since this is still a global issue, this cross-cultural studyuses qualitative survey responses completed by approximately hundred Indian, American and Brazilian femalecollege/university science students to identify factors that influenced students to choose scientific majors andplan for future careers. Both differences and common influences between cultures have practical implications fortechniques to help attract and retain women in science worldwide.Keywords: qualitative survey, cross-cultural study, female career.

Em praticamente todo o mundo, mulheres ainda constituem uma minoria entre portadores de diplomas etrabalhadores na fısica. Embora uma quantidade significativa de pesquisa tenha sido feita para investigar ecorrigir a sub-representacao das mulheres na ciencia, o problema esta longe de ser resolvido. Como esse e aindaum problema global, esse estudo comparativo de culturas utiliza respostas a pesquisa qualitativa completada poraproximadamente um cento de estudantes universitarias, nas areas de ciencias exatas, tanto brasileiras quantoindianas e americanas, para identificar os fatores que influenciaram sua escolha de area, bem como seus planospara uma futura carreira. Tanto as diferencas quanto as influencias comuns entre as culturas tem implicacoespraticas em tecnicas para ajudar a atrair e manter as mulheres nas ciencias atraves do mundo.Palavras-chave: pesquisa qualitativa, comparacao entre culturas, carreiras femininas.

“If we’re going to out-innovate and out-educate the rest of the world, we’ve got to open doors for everyone. We need all handson deck, and that means clearing hurdles for women and girls as they navigate careers in science, technology, engineering, andmath”.First Lady Michelle Obama, September 26, 2011 [1].

“Se formos inovar e educar o resto do mundo, precisamos abrir portas para todos. Precisamos de todas as maos na tarefa, e issosignifica retirar os obstaculos para mulheres e meninas quando elas navegam em carreiras em ciencia, tecnologia, engenharia ematematica.”Primeira Dama Michelle Obama, Setembro 26, 2011 [1].

1. Background and motivation

Several international studies have been conducted onthe underrepresentation of women in science, Techno-logy, Engineering, and Math (STEM) [2-7]. But recentresearches tend to focus on STEM employment trendslater in life [8,9]. An interesting report [10] says this un-derrepresentation does not arise because women are lessskilled in those areas but because they elect to pursueother opportunities. The present study investigates un-dergraduate females’ perceptions regarding science du-ring a key junction when many students formulize and

confirm the direction of their career trajectory.

The cross-cultural nature of this study adds insightto this global issue by comparing populations with dif-ferent retention patterns and cultural stereotypes. Inthe United States and Brazil, many females are deter-red from science as early as elementary school and thenumbers continue to drop after each educational level[11], the so-called “leaky pipeline” effect. In contrast,the “glass ceiling effect” characterizes retention pat-terns in India [12]where the percentage of women staysrelatively high through graduate school then represen-tation in the workforce drops dramatically. Although

2E-mail: revagarg@gmail.com.

Copyright by the Sociedade Brasileira de Fısica. Printed in Brazil.

1309-2 Foote and Garg

women have earned 37% of all doctorate degrees awar-ded by Indian institutions, they hold fewer than 15%of science faculty positions. The societal stereotype -“girls aren’t good at math and science” that remainsrelatively widespread in Western countries is increasin-gly less uncommon in India where females have beenoutshining their male counterparts in these subjects onnational exams over the past decade.

Qualitative analysis helps find patterns in Ameri-can, Brazilian and Indian undergraduates’ survey res-ponses to explore which experiences initiated, encoura-ged and discouraged interest in scientific fields. Analy-zing open-ended questions allows students to identifytheir most influential life experiences without the res-triction of pre-selected multiple-choice options, addingdepth and detail that large-scale survey efforts miss.The results of this study are particularly important toteachers and family members who can encourage youngwomen to consider these professions. An increase in thenumber of females graduating with STEM degrees willcreate a larger and more diverse applicant pool avai-lable to fill job vacancies and promote the economicvitality of their respective countries.

1.1. Study design

1.1.1. Data collection

This study surveyed females from a prestigious women’scollege in India (30 respondents), a Baptist liberal artswomen’s college in the United States (28 respondents)and a top ranking co-educational university in Brazil(28 respondents), between 2011 and 2013. Most ofthe Indian students surveyed were pursuing honors de-grees in physics (68%) and chemistry (25%). Since theBaptist Liberal Arts College does not offer physics asa major, approximately 75% of the surveyed studentsfrom this population were studying biology, chemistryor a combination of the two, with an assortment ofother majors. Essentially all of the surveyed Brazi-lian students were pursuing degrees in physics. Variati-ons in institutional type and academic major contributeto differences in the surveyed populations that extendbeyond culture, but most results are disaggregated intothese three student populations.

The data consists of responses to the five shortanswer questions listed below. The survey was com-pletely voluntary so the respondents would respond ho-nestly to the questions with a valid portrayal of theiropinions.

1.1.2. Qualitative Survey Questions:

1. What made you choose your major in college?

2. Was your current major your first choice? Whyor why not?

3. Did a teacher or role model inspire you to pursuescience? How?

4. If you have made up your mind about further edu-cation and long term career plans, what are they?

5. At what age or stage of your schooling did youmake this your career choice? Why?

1.1.3. Data reduction

In order to analyze survey responses, answers weretranscribed and organized into a spreadsheet. Ques-tion responses were split up into segments that containone primary idea to be coded exclusively within eachdomain. The codes were developed iteratively, basedon both literature and collected data. Specific codeswere organized under three independent domains: sci-entific identity, past experiences and outcome expec-tations that describe a student’s present, past and fu-ture influences (respectively). Statements that explici-tly mention a positive or negative impact were codedas “encouraging” or “discouraging”, respectively.

The “scientific identity” domain in this study wasinfluenced by Hazari’s gender study [13] on likelihoodfor choosing a physics career based on high school ex-periences. Statements that discuss students’ presentperception of their interest, performance, competencein science and recognition as a “science person” werecoded under the “scientific identity” domain. Past ex-periences fall under the “outside influence” domain,for example, statements about past advice, influentialcourses or extracurricular activities (such as a job orresearch experience). The “outcome expectations” do-main includes future plans for specific degrees/ careers,financial goals, yearning for prestige or extraneous go-als (such as a flexible career, people-friendly profession,opportunity to travel, etc.).

To establish inter-rater reliability, an independentresearcher was trained in the code definitions. Afterpreliminary coding and discussing disagreements, codedefinitions were refined and the process was repeatedfor a larger portion of the data. Reliability scores werefound to be above benchmark values, suggesting thatindependent researchers could apply the code definiti-ons consistently and that agreements are unlikely to becoincidental.

1.2. Results

1.2.1. What do undergraduates consider whenchoosing a course of study and/ or ca-reer?

Figure 1 displays the percentage of statements undereach domain, by culture. Assuming the frequency ofstatements is correlated with how much each domain in-fluenced the surveyed students; we can infer somethingabout the domains that influenced each population the

A cross-cultural survey of female undergraduates’ aspirations for scientific study and careers 1309-3

most. All three populations mention influences fromall three domains and responses reveal some commonthemes across culture. However, there are some nota-ble differences, especially within the “outcome expec-tation” domain.

An interest in science was a primary motivator forstudents from all cultures. An American explains whybiology interests her; “I like that everything (at leastthe basics) tend to follow rules that can be explained.I like that things are tested (experimentation). I wouldlike to work in a field that is consistently changing/advancing”. An Indian student describes a similar sen-timent, “I love physics it helps to understand what isgoing on in the nature around us, physically as well asmathematically”. A curiosity about the natural worldinitiated interest for several students including a Bra-zilian who decided to study physics when she “was 9years old and looked at the stars”.

Under the “outside influences” domain, studentsfrom all populations mention high school teachers andfamily members as influential, while several studentsdiscuss being primarily self-motivated. An Indian stu-dent reflected on her role models and wrote, “to someextent it was my mom, but I myself was so interestedfrom my early stages that no one needed to influenceme”. Unlike teachers who were almost exclusively men-tioned positively, advice from family members deterredsome students when “family disapproved of the course”.Several Indian students and a Brazilian student (butno American students) mentioned historical scientistsas inspiring. For example, “Marie Curie inspired me,as she was a woman researcher in an age when scientificresearch was dominated by men” and “Albert Einstein.

He was a great physicist and I admire his work. Hiswork, discoveries and research inspired me to attemptto get to their level”.

Statements in “outside expectations” domain variednoticeably between cultures. Many Americans consci-ously chose their major with a specific lifestyle in mind,deciding on a practical and interesting career path. AnAmerican kept switching majors until she found a fieldshe enjoyed and could imagine a future; “I enjoy puzzleslooking at how things fit together and why they work.Biology and then Chemistry turned out to be exactlywhat I liked. . . . [With] previous majors. . . I liked thecourses but didn’t see myself doing anything with themin the long run.” Similar statements from Americansdiscuss choosing a major that “I thought would prepareme the most for the kind of things I want to do later inmy life”.

Indian and Brazilian students express more abstractand generic career goals, often listing off educationaldegrees in preparation for a future in academia. Forexample, “I plan on doing M.Sc., then Ph.D. in phy-sics. I even want to continue my life with physics” andone student explains making her career decision “af-ter 12th. All said teaching job is better for girls, that’swhy I chose academics & due to my deep interest in sci-ence, I also decided. . . to go in research also”. Brazilianstudents tend to mention similarly generic career go-als, probably because they are less familiar with careeroptions available degree holders in the sciences. OneBrazilian admits wanting to work outside of academiabut thinks it will be difficult. She states, “I would liketo work in industry but they don’t encourage it at myUniversity”.

Figura 1 - Percentage of segments that fall under each influence code, by culture. N denotes the number of total coded statements foreach population.

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1.2.2. What factors encourage female under-graduates to pursue scientific studyand/ or careers? Are there differences inwhich factors encourage students fromdifferent cultures?

Figure 2 displays the percentage of statements codedas having an encouraging impact across each of the do-mains for each student population.

Indian students mention encouraging extracurricu-lar experiences (often research) about twice as oftenas their American counterparts. An Indian studentwrites, “I actually got highly affected during my pro-ject. . . Theories can be learnt anytime, anywhere butit’s really important that how one can apply his brainpractically.... so it helped me a lot in solving my doubtsabout some basic concepts....”. Other Indian studentsecho the importance of research enhancing content mas-tery while increasing their appreciation for the scienti-fic process, “these projects and mini projects somehowmake learning much easier and provides a creative wayto deal with it”. Since the institution surveyed inthis study has a research project requirement (whichis atypical for other colleges in India), these experien-ces are probably less common for other students in In-dia. However, research projects allowed these studentsdeepen conceptual insights and gain an appreciationfor experimentation so expanding similar opportunitiescould help others enjoy multi-faceted benefits.

These past research experiences often inspire Indianstudents’ outcome expectations. An Indian student dis-cusses hopes of attaining a prestigious career in rese-arch because “the vastness of applications, practicality,power and importance of chemistry today made me cho-ose this course that. . . will give me a sound foundationfor research ahead.” An Indian student explains how

she decided to forgo study in mathematics so she couldpursue a Ph.D. “in some experimental field for whichI can have better options in physics and establish myown lab with new equipment”. No statements like thesewere found in the American or Brazilian student res-ponses collected in this survey. This is not surprisingfor the surveyed Americans since research opportunitieswere limited at their small liberal arts college. The lackof positive research experiences for Brazilian studentsis slightly more unexpected, since the students attenda university with a graduate program.

Brazilian students have an even higher percentageof statements in the outside expectation domain, oftenunder the “mentor” code, describing experiences whenteachers, parents or friends encouraged them to pursuescience. For example, one Brazilian said that her fatherand high school teachers “inspired me to study physicsbecause I earned the best grades”. Perhaps the LatinAmerican emphasis on family and community contri-bute to the higher frequency of these statements.

1.2.3. What discouraging experiences cause fe-males to change their initial course/ ca-reer plans? Are there differences in dis-couraging influences for these three dif-ferent populations?

Figure 3 displays the percentage of statements codedas having a discouraging impact across each of the do-mains for each student population.

There were interesting and significant differences inwhat caused students to switch paths, with Indian stu-dents often deterred by low examination results whileAmerican students shy away from uninteresting sub-jects or unappealing job prospects.

Figura 2 - Percentage of statements coded as having an encouraging impact that fall across each of the domains, by culture. N denotesthe number of total coded statements for each population.

A cross-cultural survey of female undergraduates’ aspirations for scientific study and careers 1309-5

Figura 3 - Percentage of statements coded as having a discouraging impact that fall across each of the domains, by culture. N denotesthe number of total coded statements for each population.

The relatively large percentage of Indian negativeexperiences under performance code is not surprisingconsidering India’s countrywide examinations whose in-flexible cutoffs limits which colleges and courses a stu-dent can pursue. Interestingly, performance and inte-rest tend to be tightly linked for Indian students. Onestates, business “was top choice, I was not selected inany of the entrance and also of the realizing myself ifweak in the practical work that must be conducted du-ring the course, I lose my interest.” Similarly, a lowrank on an engineering exam makes another Indian stu-dent “rethink about my previous decision of making ca-reer as an aeronautic engineer then I realized astronomyis my true interest and I decided to make a career as anastronomer.” This apparent link between performanceand interest casts some doubt on whether Indian stu-dents’ self-reported “interest” in science really comesfrom an intrinsic enjoyment of the subject or whethergood grades have initiated this “interest”. This wouldbe an interesting issue to investigate with in-depth in-terviews that can probe this issue more deeply and dis-tinguish between an authentic and an externally instil-led “interest”.

Some of the students who changed their initial ca-reer plans because of exam results have found satisfac-tion but others seem even more likely to pursue theiroriginal non-scientific careers despite studying sciencein college. For example, one Indian student who studiedphysics because she did not get into business school voi-ces disillusionment with a lack of creativity in science,which affirms her desire to work in non-scientific fields.“I want to pursue MBA or a job as probationary officerin bank [sense] I realized that in India, core sciencesare only limited to studying only books and not reallygoing for something innovative. Even the experimentsperformed in the labs are crammed up.” She mentions a

lack of academic freedom in India where “families don’treally allow you to go outside your restricted area forresearch, and colleges don’t provide enough liberty toperform the experiments.”

In contrast to Indian students with performance-limited options, multiple American students chose anenjoyable subject over one where they naturally excel.One student recalls how she chose biology even though“this major was not my first choice. My first choicewas mathematics and I discovered that I enjoyed bi-ology a lot more. I am better at math but I enjoyscience more.” Another student chose psychiatry forsimilar reasons “I am good at science but it is moreof a hobby. . . I like psychiatry better.” American stu-dents have more freedom to select majors based on theirown interest, which often results in choosing “the paththat would make me happiest”. In addition disinte-rest in the subject itself, some Americans find scienti-fic jobs unappealing; “other career opportunities seemmore desirable to me”. Other deterrents include a lackof exposure, “I don’t even know what type of careersin physics are out there”, the perception that sciencecareers limit interactions with people “I love workingclosely with people (not in a lab)” and aspects of thework environment “it is a tough area to get a job, onlythe best ones are successful and it is a male dominantfield”.

Several Indian and Brazilian students anticipategender may negatively impact acceptance in the field.“I feel science society is male dominant and womenis always confined to home” and fears that a “job ingood companies or MNC’s (multinational companies) isnot safe or convenient for women due to late timings”.Harsh treatment from a professor deterred a Brazilianstudent from studying in the field. “I stopped workingin the discipline for this factor. I was struggling in phy-

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sics and instead of helping me with my difficulties, aprofessor said I should learn about make-up and notlearn physics”. No other Brazilian students mentionspecific instances like this but one acknowledges shefeels “I would not say discriminated, but underestima-ted. Because I’m what they call a beautiful woman, I’musually not expected to be intelligent.” Another Brazi-lian student, who teaches physics, suffers from a similarlack of recognition; “Often many people doubt I knowphysics. . . when I say, ‘I’m the teacher’, they look atme without conviction, not believing I know physics”.It appears that there are still substantial socio-culturalbarriers to overcome for Indian and Brazilian studentsbefore they can feel comfortable in the scientific work-force.

2. Discussion

By surveying undergraduates from three different coun-tries, this survey successfully identified important com-monalities and illuminated differences about how fe-males chose scientific studies and plan for their careers.Although differences between populations cannot be ex-clusively attributed to culture, common themes acrosspopulations have immediate, practical implications fora wide variety of women since the respondents repre-sent a range of ability levels and socio-cultural back-grounds. Students from all cultures value advice frommentors (especially teachers and family) and an inte-rest in science. Many students mention research as aparticularly positively influence (if they were given theopportunity), helping them to decide whether to pursuefutures in academia.

Many of the Indian students discussed researchexperiences while American students often had moreoutcome-oriented motivations. Brazilian students com-monly mentioned “outside influences”, especially men-torship. As far as discouraging experiences, perfor-mance on national exams affected the decisions of seve-ral Indian students since admittance to a major requi-res surpassing benchmark scores. In contrast, naturalability in a subject area is less important to Americanstudents since several chose a major based on intrinsicinterest over natural aptitude.

Ensuring females are exposed to a wide variety ofscientific career options (beyond academia) can encou-rage students from all countries to get excited about fu-tures in science. Many American students mention mo-tivation from specific career goals whereas many Bra-zilian and Indian students listed very generic employ-ment aspirations. This could indicate a lack of expo-sure to options outside academia especially since mostof today’s undergraduates in developing countries willout-educate their parents. Studying a subject withoutfocusing on career implications could contribute to In-dian women leaving science (instead of working) afterthey complete their studies, an issue that deserves moreinvestigation. Exposing students to what it is like to

work in these fields might help students find jobs wherethey will be interested and successful.

Connecting high school students or undergradua-tes to female scientists could simultaneously addressmany of the suggestions in this study. Female scien-tists could provide mentorship, quiet concerns aboutworking in a male-dominated environment and give tan-gible examples of working in science careers outside ofacademia. Hopefully, suggestions from this study canaddress these issues at early stages in decision-makingto increase the representation of females studying andworking in technical fields.

Acknowledgments

Data collection for this project was funded by Ameri-can Physical Society travel grants, co-sponsored withthe Indo-U.S. Science and Technology Forum and Soci-edade Brasileira de Fısica. Thanks to the faculty whofacilitated the administration of these surveys and mostimportantly, the students who participated and sharedtheir experiences.

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