SBP: RUI: Collaborative Research: The Identity Pathways Project - A Longitudinal Study of Narrative Identity Processes, Contexts, and Outcomes

那些来自代表性不足背景的人在大学里坚持stem相关的教育途径，与那些选择退出的人有什么不同？提出的研究考察身份发展是否是理解这些教育和发展轨迹的关键。尽管研究表明，在成年初期建立清晰而积极的身份与各种最佳结果有关，但关于身份如何形成仍有许多问题，特别是在发展积极的科学身份和对STEM领域的归属感方面。当前项目的首要目标是通过运用叙事方法来更好地理解身份在大学期间是如何形成的，在这种方法中，身份被理解为通过将生活经历整合到个人和自我定义的故事中的主观过程来发展的。具体来说，叙事的独特优势将被用来更好地理解为什么一些学生——尤其是女性、代表性不足的少数民族和背景不利的学生——放弃了从事与stem相关的职业，而另一些人却坚持不懈。通过将客观标记（如性别、种族、社会经济地位、教育背景）与相关经验（如科学课堂）中出现的编码叙述相结合，本研究可能有助于解决科学中持续缺乏多样性的问题。更广泛地说，通过研究学生如何参与对大学生活核心的关键转变（例如，离家，选择专业）和情境化经历（例如，学术，社会，浪漫）的意义建构，拟议的研究将确定身份途径，这些途径有助于随着时间的推移增加其他重要成果，包括成熟度，幸福感和职业目标的清晰度。身份路径项目是一项为期五年的纵向研究，涉及两个校区，采用定量叙事方法。纵向设计包括每年三次调查，为期四年，毕业后一年进行最后一次调查。调查将包括重复评估叙述（过渡到大学，学术和关系的高潮和低谷，与专业选择和未来职业相关的经历）和兴趣结果的标准量表。通过这种设计，拟议的研究将能够测试身份过程作为发展变化机制的运作程度，更具体地说，反映积极科学身份的叙述是否是在stem相关职业道路上坚持不懈的关键因素。两校区的设计，包括一所私立文理学院和一所州立大学，增加了人口多样性，并允许对身份发展进行更具包容性的检查，特别是当它与职业身份和STEM参与有关时。职业认同的叙事方法对设计职业咨询项目具有重要意义，尤其是那些在女性和少数族裔中促进stem相关职业道路的项目。

What differentiates the individuals from under-represented backgrounds who persist in STEM-related educational pathways in college from those who opt out? The proposed research examines whether identity development is key to understanding these educational and developmental trajectories. Although research has shown that the establishment of a clear and positive identity during emerging adulthood is associated with a variety of optimal outcomes, many questions remain regarding how identity is formed, particularly with regard to developing a positive science identity and a sense of belonging with one's STEM field. The overarching goal of the current project is to better understand how identity forms during college by applying a narrative approach, in which identity is understood as developing through a subjective process of integrating life experiences into a personal and self-defining story. Specifically, the unique vantage point of narratives will be used to better understand why some students -- especially women, underrepresented minorities, and those with disadvantaged backgrounds -- disengage from pursuing STEM-related careers while others persist. By combining objective markers (e.g., gender, ethnicity, SES, educational background) with coded narratives that emerge in response to relevant experiences (e.g., in the science classroom), this study may contribute to solutions for the persistent lack of diversity in the sciences. More broadly, by examining how students engage in meaning-making about the critical transitions (e.g., leaving home, choosing a major) and contextualized experiences (e.g., academic, social, romantic) that are central to college life, the proposed research will identify the identity pathways that contribute to increases over time in other important outcomes, including maturity, happiness, and clarity of career goals.The Identity Pathways Project is a five-year, two-campus longitudinal study that utilizes a quantitative narrative approach. The longitudinal design involves three surveys annually for four years and a final survey one year after graduation. The surveys will include repeated assessments of both narratives (transition to college, academic and relational high and low points, experiences related to major choice and future career) and standard scales of the outcomes of interest. With this design, the proposed research will be able to test the extent to which identity processes operate as mechanisms of developmental change, and more specifically, whether narratives reflecting a positive science identity are a key factor in persistence along a STEM-related career path. The two-campus design, which includes a private liberal arts college and a state university, increases the demographic diversity and allows for a more inclusive examination of identity development, especially as it pertains to career identity and STEM participation. The narrative approach to career identity has important implications for designing career counseling programs, especially those promoting STEM-related career paths among women and minorities.