Pivotal Career Decisions Guiding Potential Women Science Faculty

描述(申请人提供)：自20世纪70年代以来，已经实施了许多计划和干预措施，以鼓励更多的女性进入科学职业生涯。虽然在某些领域的早期培训阶段已经实现了与男性的平等，但进展非常不平衡，其中在教授方面取得的进展最小。尽管许多因素被认为可能是造成这种缓慢进步的原因，但大多数因素都集中在阻碍职业发展的障碍上。然而，一个同样可信的解释是，越来越多的年轻女性，包括那些来自代表不足的群体的女性，认为自己完全有能力在学术生涯中取得成功，但选择不去追求。为了设计支持和促进妇女在学术科学职业中崛起的干预措施，至关重要的是确定持久的障碍和积极的职业决策的相对贡献。没有研究系统地试图确定女性进入学术科学职业的低进步率是由于准备不足、持续的歧视，还是年轻女性主动决定不走这条职业道路。在拟议的纵向研究中，基于访谈的定性研究方法将通过实现以下具体目标来揭示年轻女性的职业决策：1)确定年轻女性从本科进入博士培训期间，在生物医学领域做出职业决定的过程和标准，比较不同种族的女性学院、拥有强大女性科学能力的学院和大学、历史上的黑人学院和其他学院和大学的学生；2)将这些女性的职业决策过程与这些学校广泛而多样的男性样本以及NIGMS赞助的MARC、RISE、IMSD和PREP项目中的女性和男性进行比较；3)比较针对女性的项目(WIS)和针对未被充分代表的少数群体(MARC、RISE、IMSD和PREP)的项目活动如何影响学生对学术职业的看法和兴趣；4)确定在更广泛的学生样本中，先前显示的预测学生可能进入生物医学博士项目的主题是否同样适用于URM和其他女性和男性；5)确定社会认知职业理论在多大程度上可以解释职业决策的精细化，重点关注性别角色社会化过程如何影响信念、态度和自我概念，进而影响动机、选择和行为，特别是对女性而言。这项研究将对NIGMS少数民族学生发展计划支持的学生中类似问题的正在进行的研究进行扩展和补充。他们将共同提供对年轻科学家职业决策过程的无与伦比的了解，以及干预和支持性环境如何影响他们的决策。与公共健康相关：对科学感兴趣进入大学的年轻女性人数和比例稳步上升；进入并完成生物医学博士课程的人数现在往往超过男性。然而，她们晋升到利用自己才华的教职员工职位，尤其是作为未来几代学生的榜样和导师，仍然远远落后于男性。妇女在决定研究优先事项和研究方法方面的独特视角也是至关重要的。因此，至关重要的是要充分了解人才流失的基础以及对其科学和专业发展的投资。这项拟议的研究将研究这个问题的一个方面，即年轻女科学家的决策过程，以确定必须采取哪些不同的方式来增加她们的参与、成功并在大学生命科学教师中晋升为领导职位。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Since the 1970s, many programs and interventions have been implemented to encourage more women to enter science careers. While parity with men has been achieved in the early stages of training for some fields, progress has been very uneven, with the least progress being made in the professorate. Although many factors have been proposed as likely contributors to this slow progress, most focus on barriers preventing professional advancement. However, an equally plausible explanation is that a steadily rising number and fraction of young women, including those from underrepresented groups, see themselves as perfectly capable of succeeding in an academic career, but are choosing not to pursue it. In order to design interventions to support and promote the rise of women in academic science careers, it is essential that the relative contributions of persistent barriers and active career decision-making be determined. No studies have systematically attempted to determine if the low rate of progression of women into academic science careers is due to inadequate preparation, persistent discrimination, or active decisions of young women not to pursue this career path. In the proposed longitudinal study, interview-based qualitative research methods will be use to reveal the career decision-making of young women by accomplishing the following Specific Aims: 1) Determine the processes and criteria young women are using to make career decisions in the biomedical sciences, especially related to academic careers, as they progress from undergraduate into PhD training, comparing students with different ethnicities in women's colleges, colleges and universities with strong Women in Science (WIS) programs, Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and other colleges and universities; 2) Compare the career decision-making processes of these women with a broad and diverse sample of men in these schools, and women and men in NIGMS-sponsored MARC, RISE, IMSD and PREP programs; 3) Compare how activities of programs for women (WIS) and those for underrepresented minorities (MARC, RISE, IMSD and PREP) influence students' perceptions of and interest in academic careers; 4) Determine if themes previously shown to predict students likely to enter biomedical PhD programs hold equally for URM and other women, and men, in this broader sample of students; 5) Determine the degree to which refinement of career decisions can be explained by Social Cognitive Career Theory, with a focus on how sex role socialization processes affect beliefs, attitudes and self concepts which in turn affect motivation, choices and behaviors especially for women. This research will expand and complement an ongoing study of similar questions in students supported by NIGMS minority student development programs. Together, they will provide an unparalleled understanding of the career decision-making processes of young scientists and how interventions and supportive environments affect their decisions. PUBLIC HEALTH RELEVANCE: A steadily rising number and fraction of young women enter college with an interest in science; the number entering and completing biomedical PhD programs now often outnumber men. Yet, their progression into faculty positions that utilize their talents, especially as role models and mentors for future generations of students, continues to lag far behind men. The unique perspectives of women in deciding upon priorities for research and approaches to research are also essential. Thus, it is critically important to fully understand the basis for this loss of talent and the investment in their scientific and professional development. The proposed research will study one aspect of this problem, the decision-making processes of young female scientists, to determine what has to be done differently to increase their participation, success and rise to leadership positions among university life science faculty.