2025 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition

Women have historically been underrepresented in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields [1]. The gender gap in participation in engineering remains especially large, and the cause of this gap is the question of many researchers [2]. Research teams have found that perceptions of the field, specifically that it is nonempathetic and noncommunal goal-oriented, is a deterrent for women, who additionally receive less direct encouragement to join the field [3, 4]. Several research teams have probed motivation for selecting engineering in college students [5]; here, we considered motivation from the perspective of those who are currently working as engineering educators. Specifically, we held focus groups with 10 engineering faculty, seeking to answer the research questions “What motivates individuals to become engineers?” and “How can the knowledge of these motivators be used to broaden participation in this field?” Focus group responses were analyzed using thematic analysis with Situated Expectancy-Value Theory (SEVT) as a framework. Components of SEVT, expectancies for success and subjective task values, were found in all participant responses. While responses from many participants included the motivations of interest in STEM and curiosity towards building and creating, females in the field demonstrated a greater interest in the profession due to the communal goals of engineering as opposed to the agentic goals expressed largely by the male participants. Aligned with SEVT, both men and women participants were motivated to pursue tasks they enjoyed and that were related to areas of past achievements. Recognizing and encouraging engineering-related interests and achievements in women could help develop engineering identities in women and increase participation. This paper contributes examples of the need for explicit and extrinsic motivators for women to become engineers due to the historical lack of cultural pushes towards engineering that often men receive. Additionally, the narratives provided in this work highlight the misperceptions of the field and point to the relevancy of interventions to address the disconnect in agentic perceptions of the field and actual communal nature of the profession.

[1] Tian, J. et al. (2022). Tracing the origins of the STEM gender gap: The contribution of childhood spatial skills. National Institute of Health: National Library of Medicine. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC10811757/#:~:text=From%201970%20to%202019%2C%20the,Martinez%20%26%20Christnacht%2C%202021).
[2] Garcia, C. (2024). Representation Matters: Research reveals that an increase in women engineering faculty can increase the number of women who graduate with a degree in engineering. Magazine of the Society of Women Engineers. https://swe.org/magazine/asee-sow-24/
[3] Jacobs, E. et al. (2019). The Role of Empathy in Choosing Majors. American Society of Engineering Education. https://monolith.asee.org/public/conferences/140/papers/26272/view
[4] Plagge, A., et al. (2024). Putting Affect in Context: Meta-Affect, Beliefs, and Engineering Identity. American Society of Engineering Education. https://nemo.asee.org/public/conferences/344/papers/41992/view
[5] Batz-Barbarich, C., Strah, N., Tay, L. (2024) The impact of changing engineering perceptions on women’s attitudes and behavioral intentions towards engineering pursuits. International Journal of STEM Education. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40594-024-00476-5