Self-Generated Research Experiences to Support Biomedical/Behavioral Research Car

描述（由申请人提供）：许多学生进入大学时对科学有兴趣，甚至考虑在生物医学和行为科学领域工作。然而，在参加了几门大学水平的科学课程后，这些学生往往决定攻读其他专业。这一问题在代表性不足的少数群体（urm）中尤为突出，通常被称为“管道泄漏”。关于“泄漏的管道”的研究表明，早期的本科生研究经历和丰富的课程机会是增强学生对科学的兴趣和他们对科学的感知信心（例如动机信念）的重要因素。当前的应用程序建立在先前的工作基础上，以检查针对动机自我信念的干预措施的有效性，以增加大学生（特别是urm）对生物医学/行为研究事业的追求。我们提出的干预措施是基于我们以前成功的高中项目“启动药理学教育”（LEAP），该项目包括一个暑期充实课程和一次自主研究经历。我们的干预还解决了“刻板印象威胁”，包括增加能力成分，以提升urm的感知能力、兴趣和成就。我们研究的总体目标是确定在创造有效干预措施以鼓励大学生追求生物医学和行为科学研究事业方面至关重要的具体特征和相关的潜在心理过程。为实现这一目标，我们有四个具体目标：(1)评估参与LEAP暑期课程对科学相关动机信念、成就和职业相关信念/选择的影响；(2)评估LEAP自我产生的研究经验对支持科学相关动机信念、成就和职业相关信念/选择的额外效益；(3)评估培养增量能力信念对科学相关动机信念、成就的影响；(4)研究解释为什么LEAP干预和增量能力治疗会改变学生的科学成就和职业相关信念/选择的潜在心理过程（如动机）。我们以960名杜克大学新生为样本，研究了参与LEAP项目（相对于无治疗对照组）的近期和长期影响（进入大学毕业后的第一年）。为了检验(1)自我产生的研究经验和(2)增量能力治疗的相对影响，我们在LEAP治疗中使用了2 x 2的实验设计。我们提出的工作将告知教育工作者和政策制定者，在设计干预措施以鼓励大学生追求生物医学/行为研究事业时，具体因素是至关重要的。通过对我们的干预运作的关键心理变量的评估，将提供一个增强的、更细致的理解是什么使这些干预成功。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): Many students enter college with an interest in studying science and even contemplate careers in biomedical and behavioral sciences. However, after enrolling in a few college-level science courses, these students often decide to pursue other majors. This issue, which is particularly salient for underrepresented minorities (URMs), is often termed the 'leaky pipeline.' Research on the 'leaky pipeline' indicates that early undergraduate research experiences and enriched curricular opportunities are important factors in enhancing students' interest in science and their perceived confidence in science (e.g., motivational beliefs). The current application builds on this prior work to examine the effectiveness of an intervention specifically targeting motivational self- beliefs for increasing college students' (especially URMs) pursuit of biomedical/behavioral research careers. The proposed intervention is based on our previously successful high school program called "Launch into Education About Pharmacology" (LEAP), which includes a summer enrichment course and a self-generated research experience. Our intervention also addresses 'stereotype threat' by including an incremental ability component to buoy perceived competence, interest, and achievement of URMs. The overall goal of our research is to identify the specific features and associated underlying psychological processes that are critical in creating effective interventions to encourage college students' pursuit of biomedical and behavioral science research careers. To achieve this goal, we have four specific aims: (1) evaluate the effect of participating in the LEAP summer course on science-related motivational beliefs, achievement, and career-related beliefs/choices, (2) evaluate the added benefit of the LEAP self-generated research experience for supporting science-related motivational beliefs, achievement, and career-related beliefs/choices, (3) evaluate the effect of fostering incremental ability beliefs on science-related motivational beliefs, achievement, and career-related beliefs/choices for URMs, and (4) examine the underlying psychological processes (e.g., motivation) that explain why the LEAP interventions and incremental ability treatment alter students' science achievement and career-related beliefs/choices. We examine both immediate and long-term (into the first year after college graduation) effects of participating in the LEAP program (relative to a no-treatment control group) in a sample of 960 Duke University freshmen. To examine the relative impact of (1) a self-generated research experience and (2) an incremental ability treatment, we use a 2 x 2 experimental design within the LEAP treatment. Our proposed work will inform educators and policy makes about specific elements that are critical in designing interventions to encourage college students' pursuit of biomedical/behavioral research careers. The assessment of key psychological variables through which our intervention operates will provide an enhanced, more nuanced understanding of what makes these interventions successful.