Dismantling Stereotypes About Latinos in STEM

Abstract

The present study compared the effectiveness of a self-affirmation and a role model guest lecture intervention on reducing students’ perceptions of science-related social identity threat. Participants included 67 Latino high school students enrolled in a college preparation program. Students were randomly assigned either to a self-affirmation intervention or a self-affirmation control task, and the role model intervention was open to all students, with some choosing to participate. Results from an ANCOVA found the combination of both interventions had an identity threat reducing effect of moderate magnitude on perceptions of identity threat, and planned contrasts found statistically significant differences in perceptions of identity threat between students who received both interventions and no intervention, and between students who received both interventions and the self-affirmation task alone. Our research suggests that using multiple and combined interventions might provide an important advantage in order to reduce perceptions of identity threat in Latino students.