| May. 17th, 2012

The “Math Is for Boys” Stereotype

Culture

By Exception Staff | March 21, 2011

For the first time ever, there are more women than men earning PhDs in America, according to recent figures released by the Council of Graduate Schools. However, only 27 percent of Math and Science PhDs went to women in 2009.

The reason why women lag behind men in the sciences is a matter of intense debate amongst employers, academics and public policy wonks. On one side, academics like Lawrence Summers, President Obama's economic guru, argue "issues of intrinsic aptitude" account for the difference. Opponents of this view believe gender stereotypes and societal expectations drive women into other fields.

New research out of the University of Washington shows that gender stereotypes may be a contributing factor. The researchers found evidence suggesting young boys are confident in their math abilities, while girls tend to think math is for boys. Here is the key snippet from the school's findings:

The kids, 247 children (126 girls and 121 boys) in grades one through five in Seattle-area schools, sat in front of a large-screen laptop computer and used an adapted keyboard to sort words into categories.

In the math-gender stereotype test, for example, children sorted four kinds of words: boy names, girl names, math words and reading words. Children expressing the math-gender stereotype should be faster to sort words when boy names are paired with math words and girl names are paired with reading words. Similarly, they should be slower to respond when math words are paired with girl names and reading words are paired with boy names.

As early as second grade, the children demonstrated the American cultural stereotype for math: boys associated math with their own gender while girls associated math with boys. In the self-concept test, boys identified themselves with math more than girls did.

Why do you think, in the aggregate, that women are currently lagging behind men in math and sciences? Please join the conversation in the Exception's comment section below.

The study is published in the March/April issue of Child Development.

Photo by Flickr user "giovanni.k," CC 2.0.