"I'm Out Here Alone Practically": Who Latinas in STEM Go to for Mentorship in STEM

• In Event: Using an Identity Lens to Explore Latinx Undergraduate Pathways Into and Through STEM

Abstract

In light of the dismal participation rates of women of color pursuing and earning STEM degrees, researchers are beginning to explore the various factors that result in their underrepresentation. Unique to the experiences of women of color in STEM are the ways in which their multiple and intersecting marginalized identities situate them within the “double-bind” (Ong, Smith, & Ko, 2018). This double-bind often results from the prevalence and pervasiveness in which women of color experience covert and overt forms of racism and sexism in STEM environments. The emotional and psychological conflicts that arise for women as they negotiate their multiple and intersecting identities (i.e., gender, race/ethnicity, class, science) in STEM environments is well documented (Banda & Flowers, 2018; Gibson & Espino, 2016; Leyva, 2016). To resolve these conflicts, women engage in the construction of multi-dimensional, compartmentalized, and isolated identities. In a study of Black womanhood, Gibson and Espino (2016) found that Black women struggled to merge their personal and engineering identities which resulted in participants living fragmented lives. While some women compartmentalized their identities, other women foregrounded identities that became more salient depending on the context (Banda & Flowers, 2018; Parker, 2013; Verdin & Godwin, 2018). For example, gender identity became foregrounded for women of color in response to the pervasiveness in which they experienced sexism (Banda & Flowers, 2018; Leyva, 2016; Rodriguez, 2015). It’s important to note that Black women are more likely to display a range of constructed identities (e.g. multi-dimensional, compartmentalized, and context specific), while Latinas are more apt to adopt isolated identities (primarily one that privileges their gender) within STEM environments. Understanding how Latinas utilize their identity to form their social network is important to better support Latinas in STEM.

Informed by data gathered from a larger multi-year, multi-site, and complementarity sequential mixed-methods study funded by the National Science Foundation, this study sought to understand how Latinas develop their social support system within STEM by engaging two interrelated questions: How do Latinas engage their complex social identities within higher education and STEM contexts? How, if at all, do these complex identities shape the development of support networks in STEM? We draw primarily on the interview data collected from 8 self-identified Latinas pursuing STEM degrees. Findings from this study indicate that Latinas in STEM use their involvement outside of the classroom to connect with their identities. Latinas found comfort in participating in identity-based organizations within and outside of STEM and utilized these involvements to nurture their identities. Additionally, we find that Latinas engaged in active compartmentalization of different aspects of their identities as they formed support networks while in college. This strategy allowed Latinas to seek and find mentorship that complemented one of their many identities despite the lack of Latinas in STEM. The findings from this study have several implications for how universities can better support Latinas in STEM to increase their social networks, involvement, and retention in STEM fields.

Authors

• Blanca E. Rincón, University of Nevada - Las Vegas

• Ariana Lucia Garcia, University of Nevada - Las Vegas

• Juanita Hinojosa, University of Nevada - Las Vegas