Predicting Intent to Persist from Career Values and Alignment for Women and Underrepresented Minority Students

摘要

Researchers theorize that commitment to a college major is supported when there is alignment between career values and perceptions of a career field's value affordances. Research shows substantial gender differences in occupational values and interests, where women are more likely to prefer communal occupations, which may cause misalignment when engineering is seen as only affording the pursuit of status values. The goal of this study was to explore the relationship between first-year engineering students' career values, their perceptions of engineering as a career field that meets different career values, and how this relationship affects major commitment. Using a pre/post-survey design, we explored whether engineering students (N = 996) varied in their perception of engineering as a communal vs. status profession, comparing male/female and underrepresented/other racial groups. We also explored how perceptions and career values predicted commitment to their engineering major. We found variability in perceptions of the affordances of engineering but no group differences, which suggests this is an individual difference that may influence perceptions of career fit. Predictions of major commitment revealed complex relationships between affordance beliefs, career values, and commitment to staying in an engineering major.