Deck 8: Abilities, Motivation, and Achievement

Question 1

Aiyana switched her career from business and marketing to sports medicine because she realized she wanted to work at a job that she loves and feels passionate about. What can we infer about Aiyana based on this belief?

A) She is expressing stereotypic attribution bias.
B) She has a self-expressive value system.
C) She is internally motivated in her career pursuits.
D) She is attempting to close the gender gap in the STEM fields.

Answer 1

She has a self-expressive value system.

Question 2

Studies on gender differences in abilities and achievements indicate ______.

A) boys do better in terms of school achievement
B) females have better mathematical ability
C) males have better spatial ability, especially on tests of mental rotation
D) males have better fine motor coordination

Answer 2

males have better spatial ability, especially on tests of mental rotation

Question 3

A meta-analysis of studies of gender differences in verbal ability found that ______.

A) girls do considerably better than boys on verbal tests, d = −.70
B) the gender difference is smaller now than it was several decades ago
C) girls do better on simple tasks such as spelling, whereas boys do better at complex tasks such as analogies
D) when the measure is total talking time, females outscore males

Answer 3

the gender difference is smaller now than it was several decades ago

Question 4

Which of the following would be a good intervention strategy to make girls more successful in math and in math-related careers, according to Eccles?

A) lower girls' expectations for success in math courses
B) increase the perceived value of math courses for girls
C) increase the accessibility of math courses for girls
D) decrease achievement-related experiences in math for boys

Question 5

In an experiment by Moss-Racusin et al. (2012), science faculty from research universities rated the materials of an applicant for a laboratory manager position. The materials were identical, except half of the faculty saw them with a male name for the applicant and the other half saw them with a female name. The results from this study highlight ______.

A) the explicit bias of both male and female faculty members toward women
B) how easy it is for men to gain employment in the science fields
C) how far we have come in decreasing discrimination against women in science
D) the continuing discrimination against women in science

Question 6

According to meta-analyses, which of these gender differences is the largest?

A) the gender difference in throwing distance
B) the gender difference in verbal ability
C) the gender difference in spatial ability
D) the gender difference in mathematical computation

Question 7

Eccles has proposed a(n) ______ model of achievement and course choice to explain why females stop taking math and science courses in high school and college.

A) cognitive-developmental
B) psychoanalytic
C) expectation-value
D) gender schema

Question 8

Based on the research on speed in the 50-yard dash, we can conclude that ______.

A) there are very small gender differences in this area across ages
B) there are large gender differences in childhood, but it becomes smaller as age increases
C) the gender difference becomes significantly larger for adolescence and beyond
D) gender differences stay moderate in this area across ages

Question 9

Medicine, veterinary medicine, and law are all examples of ______.

A) male-dominated challenging occupations with only a small number of female professionals
B) challenging occupations that were formerly dominated by men but have seen a significant influx of women professionals
C) challenging occupations that are female-dominated, with numbers of female professionals on the rise
D) occupations that were formally female-dominated but have seen a significant influx of male professionals

Question 10

Feng et al. (2007) found that when college students were given 10 hrs. of training on an action video game, both women and men improved their performance on a mental rotation test. This finding indicates that ______.

A) even after training, men still perform better than women on spatial ability tasks
B) spatial abilities are not biologically based but can be learned
C) gender differences in spatial abilities are innate and biologically based
D) spatial abilities are innate, but practice can build on these skills

Question 11

J. Eccles' analysis is based on the belief that gender differences in math performance and competence are not so much caused by gender differences in ______ as by gender differences in ______.

A) ability; course choice
B) course choice; biology
C) biology; environment
D) attributions; ability

Question 12

Which STEM field is most representative of women?

A) biology
B) computer science
C) engineering
D) mathematics and statistics

Question 13

Cheryan et al. (2013) conducted a study in which undergraduate women who were not computer science majors met a role model who they were told was a computer science major. With a 2 × 2 experimental design, the role model was either a man or a woman and was either stereotypical for computer science or not stereotypical. The results indicated that ______.

A) gender of the role model mattered the most in influencing women's interest in computer science
B) the stereotypicality of the role model had no effect
C) exposure to the stereotypical role model reduced women's interest in computer science
D) the effects of the study lasted for 1 week but not for 2 weeks

Question 14

According to meta-analyses of research on gender differences in mathematics performance, ______.

A) males score higher, d = 0.53
B) males score higher, d = 0.21
C) females score higher, d = −0.15
D) there is no gender difference

Question 15

Numerous explanations for the gender gap in STEM have been proposed. Research supports which of the following?

A) women lack the math ability to succeed in STEM
B) women lack interest in STEM fields
C) gender bias and discrimination in STEM fields
D) women leave the STEM fields earlier than men to have children

Question 16

There is too much variability from one girl to the next to predict that an individual woman will not have adequate spatial ability. A far better indicator would be her score on a ______.

A) spatial perception test
B) mental rotation test
C) spatial visualization test
D) mathematical test

Question 17

When we look at the data on gender differences in school achievement with an intersectional lens, we can conclude that ______.

A) girls receive higher grades than boys across all ethnic groups
B) Asian boys receive higher grades than Asian girls, but girls receive higher grades in every other ethnic group
C) White, Black, and Asian girls have higher school achievement scores, but Latino boys have higher school achievement scores than Latina girls.
D) gender differences in school achievement vary across ethnic groups

Question 18

Marika is a high school junior who is contemplating taking an optional course in physics. The expectancy-value theory says that she will sign up for physics only if she ______.

A) believes the course has little utility value, but has high interest-enjoyment value
B) has high interest-enjoyment value for this subject, even if she is unsure of her expectations of success
C) has positive expectations for success and positive values related to the course
D) was encouraged by her parents to take the course and sees that her friend is also taking this course

Question 19

Saanvi has a condition in which her body produces very high levels of androgens. Saanvi likely has/is ______.

A) intersex
B) androgen-insensitivity syndrome
C) gonadal hypertrophy
D) hyperandrogenism

Question 20

What can we conclude based on the research in women's representation in STEM ?

A) Women are underrepresented in all of these fields, although numbers of women in these fields has been rising
B) Women tend to be underrepresented in biology and physics but are represented at the same rate as men in computer science
C) Women tend to be underrepresented in some, but not all, of these fields.
D) Women are represented in number of undergraduate degrees awarded in the STEM field but are underrepresented in the workforce of these professions

Question 21

Meta-analysis research shows that girls earn better grades at all grade levels.

Question 22

The ______ refers to the gap in performance between White students and those who are from underrepresented minority groups.

A) ethnicity gap
B) race gap
C) culture gap
D) identity gap

Question 23

Spatial training programs can decrease the gender difference in this area.

Question 24

Luciana and Mateo are both in the STEM field and both have recently experienced setbacks in their jobs. Luciana is starts to think her setback means she is not cut out for this line of work, while Mateo believes his setback is mainly due to his recent lack of sleep due to having a new baby. This is an example of ______.

A) misdiagnosed ascription
B) stereotypic attribution bias
C) the gender difference in professional fault
D) the gender difference in occupational achievement

Question 25

According to research on self-expressive value systems, women are found more often in engineering in ______ than they are in the United States and Canada.

A) Bulgaria and Colombia
B) France and Spain
C) Norway and Sweden
D) Asian nations

Question 26

A group of female students are told to select their most important values from a list and write an essay about why those values are important to them. This is an example of a ______.

A) defining values activity
B) values affirmation intervention
C) examining values activity
D) self-expressive values intervention

Question 27

Ironically, the American emphasis on ______ may be a factor in keeping women in traditional, female-dominated jobs and out of CEP jobs.

A) explicit stereotyping
B) identity development
C) female role models
D) self-expressive value systems

Question 28

In one study (O-Brien et al., 2015), implicit stereotypes about gender and STEM were stronger among African American college women than they were among European American college women.

Question 29

Ming-Na gets an A on a statistics exam. She believes it was due to luck. This would be an example of ______.

A) the motive to avoid success
B) an internal attribution
C) an external attribution
D) low achievement motivation

Question 30

The ______ refers to the gap in performance between first-generation college students and continuing-generation college students.

A) social class gap
B) college attendance gap
C) continuing education gap
D) socioeconomic status gap

Question 31

Although there has been advancement in this area, women are still underrepresented in all of the STEM fields.

Question 32

Research has consistently shown that there are no gender differences in general intelligence.

Question 33

When we look at the research on implicit stereotypes about gender and STEM with an intersectional lens, we have found that ______.

A) African American women are even more impacted than White women
B) women across ethnicities are impacted similarly
C) some of our thinking about gender and STEM could be limited to Whites
D) Asian women seem to be impacted less than other women of color and White women

Question 34

Harackiewicz et al. (2016) found that ______ reduced the gap in performance between students who are from underrepresented minority groups and White students as well as between first-generation and continuing-generation college students.

A) values affirmation interventions
B) experiential interventions
C) identity-value interventions
D) utility-value interventions

Question 35

In a study of 44 nations, the results indicated that there was less gender segregation in the workforce in the more economically developed nations.

Question 36

Monica received good grades in previous math and science courses and attributes her success to her hard work in the classes. She is hoping to go to medical school in the future. Based on the expectancy-value theory, Monica is not any more likely to sign up for difficult science courses in high school and college than her female peers.

Question 37

Research supports the idea that women are underrepresented in areas where they experience more bias.

Question 38

There are moderate gender differences in verbal ability, with women scoring higher in this area.

Question 39

Engineering is an example of a challenging occupation that was formerly dominated by men but has been evening out with many more female professionals entering the field.

Question 40

Stereotypes about gender and brilliance appear as early as age ______.

A) 4
B) 10
C) 12
D) 6

Question 41

From a feminist perspective, explain why should we care about the underrepresentation of women in STEM?

Question 42

In a study by Levine et al. (2005), elementary school children were tested in two areas of spatial performance: mental rotation and map reading. No gender differences were found among the low-income children, but the usual gender difference has found for middle- and upper-income children. What can you infer about these findings that explain the difference between low-income children and middle- and upper-income children?

Question 43

Refer to Figure 8.2 in your textbook (Gold medal performances of men and women in the 100-m dash in the Olympic Games). What can you infer about gender differences in athletic ability (specifically, regarding running performance) based on this graph?

Question 44

What does the research show regarding gender differences in mathematical ability? What is the stereotype regarding this topic? Analyze why the gender difference in math performance--or its absence--is so important and the implications of the stereotype.

Question 45

Compare and contrast two of the explanations for the gender gap in STEM, or more accurately, CEP.

Question 46

Compare and contrast values affirmation interventions and utility-value interventions.

Question 47

The experimental study done by Miyake et al. (2010) found that the values affirmation intervention was successful in reducing the gender gap in performance in a college physics class. Define "values affirmation intervention" (i.e., what idea is it based on?) and explain what this finding suggests (particularly about stereotype threat).

Question 48

What does "STEM" refer to?

Question 49

For studies published earlier than 1973 on gender differences in verbal ability, d = −0.23, whereas for studies published after 1973, d = −0.10. Although we cannot be certain about what caused this narrowing of the gender gap, explain one possibility for it.

Question 50

Explain Eccles's expectancy-value theory, including the various factors and values that make up the model. What are the practical implications of Eccles's model? Suppose that our goal was to get more girls enrolled in science courses to expand their career options. How would we do that, according to the theory?