Divided By Gender – Stereotypes Dissuade Girls From Careers In Computer Science
Allison Master, University of Houston; Andrew N. Meltzoff, University of Washington, and Sapna Cheryan, University of Washington
Stereotypes about what boys and girls supposedly like aren’t hard to find.
Toy advertisements send signals that science and electronic toys are intended for boys rather than girls. Computer scientists and engineers on television shows and movies are often white men, like the guys on “The Big Bang Theory.”
Policymakers, teachers and parents sometimes subscribe to these stereotypes, too. They might spread them to children.
Efforts to combat these stereotypes often focus on boys’ and girls’ abilities.
But as researchers who specialize in motivation, identity and cognitive development, we think society has largely overlooked another harmful stereotype. And that ...