Some argue that one possible reason for this decline relates to negative stereotypes about STEM fields (e.g., Kessels et al., 2006), such as the stereotype that women working in the STEM field are unfeminine ( Yoder and Schleicher, 1996 Smeding, 2012). There are several external reasons why this discrepancy occurs. For example, only about one in five STEM academics, and about one out of nine STEM skilled labors is female. In Germany and many other industrial countries, the participation rate of females in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) is deficient, especially in engineering and computer-science ( Statistisches Bundesamt, 2018). Overall, peers have a positive influence on the measured mentoring outcomes, especially for young mentees. This effect was moderated by the mentee’s age. In addition, peer group size had a positive effect on confidence in own STEM abilities, but not on STEM-related activities. Younger mentees tended to become more similar to their peers regarding confidence in own STEM abilities and STEM-related activities, whereas older mentees tended to become more dissimilar over time. Our results indicate that both mentoring outcomes – mentees’ confidence in own STEM abilities and STEM-related activities – are influenced by peers moderated by the mentees’ own age. We used a longitudinal social network analysis approach to examine peer influence on mentoring outcomes. Participants can also interact with other participants on the platform. The program provides girls with at least 1 year of one-on-one interaction with a personal female mentor who has a college degree in a STEM subject.
In our study, we investigated peer influence on mentoring outcomes – confidence in own STEM abilities and STEM-related activities – in an online mentoring program in STEM for secondary school girls ( N = 124, M = 14.3 years, SD = 2.2 years, age range: 11–19 years). This topic seems especially crucial in programs for adolescents as peer influence plays an important role at this age. However, research is missing on peer influence. Studies show that online mentoring is an effective measure to support girls in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics), especially if it also allows for networking with other participants on the mentoring platform. 2School Research, School Development, and Evaluation, University of Regensburg, Regensburg, Germany.1Educational Psychology and Research on Excellence, University of Erlangen–Nuremberg, Nuremberg, Germany.Hopp 1*, Heidrun Stoeger 2 and Albert Ziegler 1
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