PERC 2013 Abstract Detail Page
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| Abstract Title: | What does it mean to be a Physicist? Exploring the Identity Development of Female Physics Majors |
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| Abstract: | One goal of the Conferences for Undergraduate Women in Physics is to give women the motivation and confidence to pursue a career in physics. Part of our evaluation of these conferences was to explore the participants' physics identity formation. Identity formation that occurs during college shapes vocational decision-making. 608 undergraduate women were asked if they considered themselves to be a physicist. A follow-up question of why or why not provided insight into their identity formation. The results from this study formed a set of characteristics that these undergraduate women believe define a "physicist" and fell into three categories – skills, attitudes, and experiences. This project has led to a deeper understanding of these students' identity formation and provided us with insights into the undergraduate experiences that may foster the development of a young woman's physics identity. |
| Abstract Type: | Contributed Poster Presentation |
Author/Organizer Information | |
| Primary Contact: |
Mary Elizabeth Mills Indiana University 3812 W Woodmere Way Bloomington, IN 47403 Phone: 5133248721 |
| Co-Author(s) and Co-Presenter(s) |
Gayle Buck |
