A Cross-Cultural Study of Gender Differences in Mathematics-Related Affect

• In Event: 81.033 - MTCC Roundtable Session 38
  In Roundtable Session: 81.033-9 - Comparative Analyses in Mathematics Education

Abstract

Understanding why women are consistently unrepresented in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields has been a constant puzzle. This study uses data from Trends in International Mathematics and Science Study (TIMSS) 2015 to investigate cross-national gender differences in math-related affect, specifically interest, self-confidence, and valuing mathematics. We did our analysis with fourth and eighth grade data to make a cross-sectional comparison as well. While previous similar cross-national studies of gender differences acknowledge the variability of countries in terms of gender difference in mathematics, we propose that the classification of countries based on their World Economic Forum gender gap could partially account for the heterogeneity of the initial unweighted effect sizes and less gap does not necessarily predict positive affect.

Authors

• Ehsan Ghasemi, Texas Tech University

• Hansel Burley, Texas Tech University