The effects of stereotype threat on Roma academic performance in Slovakia: role of academic self-efficacy and social identity

Abstract

PurposeOne of the goals of various European Union (EU) organizations (i.e. Roma and non-Roma nonprofits) is the integration of Roma into the educational system. A challenge for the educational systems of EU countries, therefore, is to determine how to support the academic performance of Roma. Understanding the positive and negative factors related to Roma’s academic performance and achievement is an important first step in increasing academic success among this minority group.Design/methodology/approachA quantitative experimental design was used both online and face-to-face to examine whether stereotype threat had an influence on the academic performance of Roma in Slovakia and second, whether such threat was moderated by social identification and academic self-efficacy.FindingsThe results showed that stereotype threat does influence Roma in Slovakia and there were direct effects of social identity and academic self-efficacy on academic performance of the face-to-face participants.Originality/valueConsistent with stereotype threat theory, to the best of authors’ knowledge, this research is the first to show that a stereotype threat did harm the academic performance of the face-to-face Roma sampled. Further, although many studies have examined stereotype threat effects on academic performance, little is known regarding whether social identification and academic self-efficacy have an influence on such threats. The results of the study show that social identification and academic self-efficacy had a significant direct influence on academic performance.