Opiniones y percepciones sobre los estudios superiores STEMun estudio de caso exploratorio en España

  1. Verdugo-Castro, Sonia 1
  2. Sánchez-Gómez, Mª. Cruz 1
  3. García-Holgado, Alicia 1
  1. 1 Departamento de Didáctica, Organización y Métodos de Investigación, Grupo de Investigación GRIAL, Instituto Universitario de Ciencias de la Educación, Univer-sidad de Salamanca, España
Journal:
Education in the knowledge society (EKS)

ISSN: 2444-8729,  1138-9737

Year of publication: 2022

Issue: 23

Type: Article

DOI: 10.14201/EKS.27529 DIALNET GOOGLE SCHOLAR lock_openOpen access editor

More publications in: Education in the knowledge society (EKS)

Sustainable development goals

Abstract

Gender stereotypes are found in the different spheres in which a person grows. Social pressures, biases, patterns and roles, and stereotypical beliefs condition a person's behaviour and self-perception. This also occurs when young people decide what higher education studies to pursue. Even though this is a decision guided towards the professional future and should be marked by future career prospects, sometimes this is not the case. There is no evidence that the gender gap in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) is caused by biological, natural, or cognitive reasons. However, there is evidence that the environment, culture, and contexts in which the individual develops affect this decision. This study aims to identify the social, family, educational, and peer influences on university students' opinions about STEM studies. A questionnaire was applied based on an exploratory pilot study. A total of 115 university students participated in the pilot. The study followed a quantitative methodology, based on the construction of five dimensions (Gender Ideology, Attitudes, Interests, Perception and Self-perception, and Expectations about Science) and hypothesis tests for the instrument. The results reinforce the hypothesis that the different environments surrounding the individual condition whether or not he/she has gender stereotypes about higher STEM studies. Mainly, it is necessary to consider the support received, the references and those who have judged their decision to study.

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