Ally endorsement: Exploring allyship cues to promote perceptions of allyship and positive STEM beliefs among White female students

Abstract

Many science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM) domains are White-male-dominated; yet, investigations exploring how White men scientists can counter women’s underrepresentation are lacking. We examined whether exposure to a White male scientist endorsed as an ally by a gender ingroup member (i.e., an allyship cue) encouraged identity-safety and positive STEM beliefs among White female students. Relative to a White male scientist without an allyship cue, participants that viewed an endorsed scientist reported greater perceptions of allyship, identity-safety (Experiment 1–3), interest, and self-efficacy in computer science (Experiments 2 and 3). In Experiment 3, we recruited White women in STEM and found that ally endorsement from a White or Black female, but not a White male, promoted identity-safety. Moreover, the endorsed scientist encouraged perceptions that they possessed a shared reality with participants and recognized the bias that women in STEM face. Allyship cues may help White men attract White female students to STEM.