Investigating the Influence of Interpersonal Dynamics and Sociocultural Fit in STEM Research Apprenticeships

努力扩大和多样化的STEM劳动力包括项目，从事本科STEM学生进行科学研究与教师导师。虽然有证据表明，这些指导关系可以是有益的，也有证据表明，学生的结果从这些经验的变化。现有的研究提供了有限的洞察力，为什么有些学生在这些指导的研究经验蓬勃发展，而其他人可能会挣扎。拟议的研究将探讨人际动力学和社会文化背景的影响，作为本科生研究经验的变量结果的潜在机制。研究结果可以提供新的见解，学生和导师如何相互影响，以及这些互动如何可能是由参与者的社会文化价值观和人际动态塑造的。这项研究的结果可以用来改善指导计划，特别是那些渴望吸引来自边缘化背景的学生进入STEM劳动力的计划。拟议的研究旨在通过调查STEM研究学徒的未充分探索的维度来推进研究指导文献。该项目将调查人际动态和社会文化契合度如何与学生STEM研究学徒的成果相关。使用混合方法，顺序探索性设计，并利用社会交换理论和社区文化财富框架，项目目标是1）了解学生和导师在研究学徒中对人际动态和社会文化契合度的概念化，2）分析学生对社会文化契合度的感知与学术态度和成果之间的纵向关联，以及3）探索指导关系随时间的动态变化，并确定可能影响指导关系质量感知的关键时刻。这些目标将在三项研究中得到解决，这些研究侧重于学生和研究导师对-研究1：35对指导，研究2：100对指导，研究3：150对指导）-他们参与了STEM研究学徒制。关于学生成绩的数据收集将包括对学生学术态度、未来STEM职业计划和科学探究能力的评估。这项研究将与高校现有的暑期研究项目合作进行，这些项目为来自各种社会人口背景的学生提供服务。鉴于本科生STEM研究学徒制被广泛用作旨在扩大和多样化STEM劳动力的工具，这项工作的结果可能会对STEM学科，学徒模式和机构类型产生重大和变革性的影响。该项目由NSF的核心研究（ECR）计划支持。ECR计划强调基础STEM教育研究，产生该领域的基础知识。该奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响力审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Efforts to broaden and diversify the STEM workforce include programs that engage undergraduate STEM students in conducting scientific research with faculty mentors. Although there is evidence that these mentoring relationships can be beneficial, there is also evidence of variations in student outcomes from these experiences. Existing research provides limited insight into why some students thrive in these mentored research experiences while others may struggle. The proposed research will investigate the influence of interpersonal dynamics and sociocultural background as potential mechanisms of variable outcomes of undergraduate research experiences. Findings could provide novel insights about how students and mentors may influence one another and how these interactions may be shaped by participants’ sociocultural values and interpersonal dynamics. Results from this research could be used to improve mentoring programs, especially those that aspire to attract students from marginalized backgrounds into the STEM workforce.The proposed research aims to advance the research mentoring literature by investigating underexplored dimensions of STEM research apprenticeships. The project will investigate how interpersonal dynamics and sociocultural fit may relate to student STEM research apprenticeship outcomes. Using a mixed-methods, sequential exploratory design and leveraging social exchange theory and community cultural wealth frameworks, project goals are to 1) understand student and mentor conceptualizations of interpersonal dynamics and sociocultural fit within research apprenticeships, 2) analyze longitudinal associations between student perceptions of sociocultural fit and academic attitudes and outcomes, and 3) explore the dynamics of mentoring relationships over time and identify pivotal moments that may influence perceptions of mentoring relationship quality. These goals will be addressed across three studies that focus on student and research mentor pairs – study 1: 35 mentoring pairs, study 2: 100 mentoring pairs, and study 3: 150 mentoring pairs) – who are involved in STEM research apprenticeships. Data collection on student outcomes will include assessment of student academic attitudes, future STEM career plans, and science inquiry aptitude. This research will be carried out in partnership with pre-existing summer research programs at colleges and universities that serve students from a range of sociodemographic backgrounds. Given that undergraduate STEM research apprenticeships are widely used as tools aiming to broaden and diversify the STEM workforce, the findings of the effort could have significant and transformative impacts across STEM disciplines, apprenticeship models, and institution types.This project is supported by NSF's Core Research (ECR) program. The ECR program emphasizes fundamental STEM education research that generates foundational knowledge in the field. Investments are made in critical areas that are essential, broad and enduring: STEM learning and STEM learning environments, broadening participation in STEM, and STEM workforce development.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.