Two
experiments investigated the roles of stereotype
activation and anxiety in accounting for the performance
of women in mathematics under stereotype threat. In
Experiment 1, female undergraduates who identified
strongly with the domain of math answered a set of math
problems by themselves (control), in the presence of
five other male students (solo condition), or in a
mixed-gender group (non-solo condition). After
being told they were to complete a series of math
problems but before doing so, students completed word
fragments designed to assess gender stereotype
activation. Students then completed the math test.
Average test performance was best in the non-solo
condition and worst in the solo condition. Gender
stereotypes appeared to be most accessible in the solo
condition and least accessible in the control condition,
but these differences were not significantly different.
Moreover, stereotype accessibility was unrelated to
performance. In Experiment 2, female undergraduates took
the math test under solo or non-solo conditions but,
prior to doing so, their performance expectations were
measured. After completing the test, students were told
that would complete another task with the group members
and, at that time, measures of stereotype anxiety and
interest in gender-related tasks were administered.
Performance anxiety was higher in the solo compared with
the non-solo condition but, surprisingly, there emerged
no differences in math performance or performance
expectations. However, across the conditions, anxiety
regarding math performance was negatively correlated
with performance, and performance was negatively related
to expressed interest in female-related activities.
These results suggest that anxiety plays a more direct
role than stereotype activation in accounting for
performance deficits under stereotype threat and that
domain performance relates to the strength of group
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