The psychological, social, and emotional
aspects of education—so-called
“noncognitive factors” and “soft skills”—have
gained traction in recent years among
educators as well as the wider public as
major drivers of student achievement. From
developing grit and a growth mindset, to
learning collaboration and perspective-taking
skills, to fostering student belonging and
inclusion, psychological resources are critical
to student success and to a 21st century
education.
MarYam G. Hamedani and Linda Darling-Hammond
Reducing the Effects of
Stereotype Threat
on Student Performance
Professor Rodney O. Fong
Stereotype Threat
Claude M. Steele
“I believe that stereotype
threat is a standard
predicament of life. It springs
from our human powers of
intersubjectivity – the fact
that as members of society
we have a pretty good idea of
what other members of our
society think about lots of
things, including the major
groups and identities in
society.”
►Stereotype
threat refers to
being at risk of confirming, as
self-characteristic, a negative
stereotype about one's group
►
(Steele & Aronson, 1995).
Memorization Test
►20
words on the screen
►30
seconds to view words
►3
minutes to write down words.
►At
the end of 3 minutes, we will ask
each person:
 their age and
 how many words they memorized.
Math Test
► Asian
women undergraduates from
Boston area colleges taking a math
test along with other math students.
► What
is the stereotype?
Math Test
Results for Asian women
• Reminded them of gender identity
(were dorms coed?) - 43
• Did not remind them of gender nor
ethnic identity - 49
• Reminded them of ethnic identity – 54
Stereotype BOOST
“Our explanation was that frustration during a
difficult math test made women worry about
conforming, or being seen to confirm, the societal
view about women’s poor math ability, and that
worry, in turn, interfered with their performance.”
The extra pressure that people place on
themselves worrying about how others
will judge them based on the stereotype
causes frustration that results in
underperformance.
Social Identity: The part of personal
identity - our sense of who we are - that
comes from our group memberships and
the social categories to which we belong:
our age, sex, race, ethnicity, nationality,
sexual orientation, region, socialeconomic status, mental health status,
etc.
Social Identities Researched
► Standardized
testing:
 African-Americans
 Latinos
 Low socio-economic groups
► Women
in math and sciences
► Elderly in memory
► Whites in athletics
Other Factors
► Caring
& Motivation:
 Heightened effect of stereotype threat for
those who care about the task and are
motivated to do well (over-efforting).
► Ease
of task
 If task is manageable, stereotype threat
could boost performance.
 But if the task is difficult, stereotype threat
can cause underperformance.
Physiological Impact
► People
under stereotype threat do not
report feeling more anxiety than normal.
► People
under stereotype threat report
getting less sleep before the event.
► Stereotype
threat does cause a measurable
rise in blood pressure, increase heart rate,
and related physiological signs of anxiety to
the point that these reactions interfere with
performance.
Stereotype Threat in Education
► Standardized
exams
 Star Tests / Common Core Tests
 High school exit exam (CAHSEE)
 College entrance: SAT / ACT
 Graduate entrance: LSAT / MCAT
 Licensing exam (bar exam)
► What
other situations might stereotype
threat affect a student’s performance?
Reducing the Effect
► Becoming
aware of stereotype threat
► Deemphasizing
the threatened social
identities or cues (triggers)
►Demographic
questions
►Emphasis
on importance of event
►Dynamics
of the setting
►Stereotypic
►Behaviors
ads
of other people
Framing the Issue
Black and white Princeton students attempted
to putt a golf ball, i.e. sink some putts.
•White students who were told the test was a
measure of “natural athletic ability”, did worse
than those who were not told anything. No
effect on black students.
•Black students who were told it was a measure
of “sports strategic intelligence” did dramatically
worse than black students who were told
nothing. No effect on white students.
Reducing the Effect
► Working
towards creating a boost or lift
 Reframing the task
►
“Memorization Test”
 Providing external attributions for difficulty
► Ethical
issue
 Does reduction for one group threaten
another group?
Reducing the Effect
► Practice
the task
 Emphasizing high standards with
assurances of capacity
 Emphasizing an incremental view of
ability
►
Formative assessment
►
Growth Mindset
►
Resilience
Growth Mindset
When students and educators have a growth mindset,
they understand that intelligence can be developed.
Students focus on improvement instead of worrying
about how smart they are. They work hard to learn
more and get smarter. Stanford Professor Carol Dweck.
Growth Mindset – Michael Jordan
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IbzEiAj02ks
The Power of Belief – Eduardo Briceno
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pN34FNbOKXc
Reducing the Effect
► Creating
a critical mass
► Belonging
 Dr. Terrell Strayhorn
► Providing
role models
► Encouraging
self-affirmation
 Becoming identity-secure
 Practicing Mindfulness techniques
Reducing the Effect
►Determining
the social identity
of your students
►Determining
the stereotype
threat
►Determining
the triggers
Removing the stereotype threat for one event
does not eliminate it for future situations.
Professor Rodney O. Fong
[email protected]