Step UP for STEM and Health Careers: An Intervention to Reduce STEM-related biases and improve high school STEM learning environments

Project Abstract The National Institutes of Health has a stated commitment to diversifying the national scientific workforce. While diversity has many dimensions, women and underrepresented minorities (i.e., black, Latinx, indigenous, and Pacific Islanders) are particularly underrepresented in Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) and health careers. Rather than ability, disparities in career entry for both groups are largely due to differences in motivation and “sense of belonging,” which have a significant impact on educational success and persistence to build a career in STEM and health fields. Research shows that adolescents who experience racism at work or in school have negative outcome expectations for future careers. For example, experiences STEM-related gender bias uniquely contribute to lower STEM motivation. The goal of this Phase 2 SBIR is to design, develop, and evaluate Step Up for STEM and Health Careers (Step Up). This state-of-the-art, interactive, digital resource will help students build STEM/health self-efficacy, and reduce bias and harassment in the high school STEM/health learning environment. Step Up will include the key elements of a bystander intervention for high school students to acquire the skills, attitudes, and awareness to mitigate bias and sexual harassment in STEM and health learning environments and attain a positive STEM identity. Step Up will be a state-of-the-art, theory-based (Theory of Planned Behavior) intervention, informed by the Social Cognitive Career Theory with a long-term goal of increasing representation of multiple dimensions of diversity (e.g., race, gender, ability, socio- economic status, etc.) in STEM and health careers. Building on the success of the Phase I Step Up intervention and the evaluation, we will apply user-centered methods, validated frameworks, and bystander principles to develop the full Step Up intervention (i.e. episodes two through six and accompanying graphic novels) as part of Aim 1. We will also develop a PowerPoint presentation on bias and harassment for controls. Per Aim 2, the full intervention will be evaluated using a randomized controlled trial to assess the impact of the Step Up intervention (i.e., episodes + graphic novels) on STEM/health career and bystander outcomes both quantitatively and qualitatively among 300 adolescents age 13-18 from the Chicago metropolitan area (150 per arm). In Aim 3, we will assess the ability to move to full commercialization of the Step Up intervention.