Gender disparity in engineering fields: an analysis of historic data, and school counselors' knowledge, values and attitudes

This dissertation investigates the gender disparity in the engineering related fields through three studies. The first study investigates the role of interest in the gender disparity through ACT data over a 30 year period. This study indicated that female interest in engineering related fields has consistently been much lower over this period of time than it has been for male students. Further, results indicate that those who do express interest in engineering related fields are often under prepared. The second study investigated the role of Utah school counselors in the gender disparity. A survey was conducted that established a clear difference between what Utah school counselors believed to be the values and personality characteristics of an engineer based on gender. The last study used this information to inform a nationally distributed vignette that determined that it is likely that school counselors work with students may differ based on the student's gender and perceived personality attributes. This information seems to confirm the need for continued education for both educators and students as to biases and stereotypes that may be influencing female interest in engineering related fields.