Feeling “Less Relevant in the Context of Physics”: Exploring Cultural Cost Among Minoritized Physics Students

• In Event: Exploring Cultural Cost Among Students with Minoritized Identities Across Varying Sociopolitical Contexts

Abstract

Objectives and Framework
Enduring inequities in STEM have culminated in the gross underrepresentation of minoritized undergraduates in physics (APS, 2023). Motivation is a powerful mechanism for improving STEM retention (Rosenzweig & Wigfield, 2016); however, prior work has failed to center the voices of minoritized students (Kumar & DeCuir-Gunby, 2023). Moreover, despite the growing situated expectancy-value literature on cost (SEVT; Eccles & Wigfield, 2020), little is known about cultural cost (perceptions that arise from the mismatch between an individual's cultural realities and curriculum materials; Kumar et al., 2018). Given (a) pervasive societal beliefs that STEM is culturally neutral (Sorell, 2013) and (b) the whiteness of STEM curricula and faculty (Patton, 2016), understanding cultural cost will provide critical insight into the classroom experiences of minoritized physics students and their retention. Guided by SEVT and an initial cultural cost framework (see Table 1; Archer et al., 2022), we conducted a thematic analysis of open-ended cultural cost responses among minoritized physics undergraduates.

RQ1: How do minoritized physics students perceive cultural representation in their physics courses?

RQ2: How does the representation of physics students’ identities shape their feelings of inclusion and belonging within the discipline?

Method
We used existing data (N = 142) from undergraduate physics courses at a predominantly white South Central U.S. university. We narrowed the sample to include only minoritized students (N = 98; see Table 3 for demographics). Students completed a survey during Fall 2022 that included two open-ended cultural cost items previously validated (Authors, in preparation). To analyze the data, we conducted a thematic analysis (Braun & Clarke, 2006).

Findings
Three themes emerged (see Table 4 for themes and quotes). First, students reported actively noticing very little representation in their physics courses (47%; e.g., “I dont think there is much representation of any kind…”). Second, many students felt that physics is acultural (27.6%) and/or were indifferent to cultural representation in physics (42.9%; e.g., “I don't feel like cultures and identities would be necessary to represent in a course like physics since it is purely scientific…”). Finally, some students reported experiencing belonging in physics (15.2%; e.g., “It's nice [representation] because I can feel some sense of inherent connection and relatability with classmates”, while others felt they did not belong (11.2%; e.g., “It makes me feel less relevant in the context of physics…”).

Significance
Our findings suggest that minoritized students often (a) believe that physics is acultural alongside perceptions of little representation within these courses and (b) relate their cultural cost experiences to belonging. Theoretically, our study yields insight into cultural cost, which contributes to continued refinement of SEVT to emphasize its situative nature (Eccles & Wigfield, 2020). Methodologically, our study reflects progress towards developing a validated cultural cost instrument. Practically, our study highlights the need for physics programs to emphasize the cultural relevance of physics and prioritize cultivating belonging opportunities for minoritized students. Given the powerful relation between belonging and retention (Pedler et al., 2021), doing so may be crucial for attenuating cultural cost and broadening physics participation.

Authors

• Danielle N. Berry, University of Oklahoma

• Alison C. Koenka, University of Oklahoma

• Kanvarbir Gill, University of Oklahoma

• Korinthia D. Nicolai, Indiana University

• Candace Andrews, University of Oklahoma

• Maria Idrees, University of Oklahoma

• Maisha Farzana Mumu, University of Oklahoma

• Quynh P. Nguyen, University of Oklahoma

• Benjamin C. Heddy, University of Oklahoma

• Eric Abraham, University of Oklahoma