Boys don't benefit, girls still suffer：The role of gender stereotypes of math and physics in academic self-efficacy among Chinese adolescents

doi:10.21203/rs.3.rs-4857424/v1

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Boys don't benefit, girls still suffer：The role of gender stereotypes of math and physics in academic self-efficacy among Chinese adolescents

https://doi.org/10.21203/rs.3.rs-4857424/v1

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Under the background of the prevailing "gender equality" education, an increasing number of voices are noting the importance of gender equality and androgyny, and the impact gender stereotypes will have on students is unclear to most teachers. Therefore, this study used social cognitive theory, social identity theory, and the STEMO model to explore the effects of gender stereotypes in math and physics on academic self-efficacy among middle school students, as well as the moderating role of gender. 629 Chinese adolescents (M_age = 14.38; SD_age = 0.67) were recruited from a local middle school. 48.24% of the sample are girls (n=203). Results: (1) Girls hold significantly fewer gender stereotypes and academic self-efficacy of physics and math than boys. (2) Gender stereotype of math and physics was negatively correlated with math and physics academic self-efficacy, respectively. (3) Gender played a moderation role in the relationship between gender stereotypes and academic self-efficacy in math and physics. For girls, gender stereotypes of math and physics negatively predict academic self-efficacy of math and physics. For boys, gender stereotypes had no significant effect on academic self-efficacy, no matter for math or physics.

math gender stereotype

math academic self-efficacy

physics gender stereotype

physics academic self-efficacy

gender

middle school student

In the STEM(Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) field of math, women's total employment and academic choices are still relatively underrepresented(Ellis et al., 2016). Gender is considered to be one of the most pervasive and enduring influences on personal goals, aspirations, and behaviors. For this reason, a growing body of literature emphasizes the central role of gender in promoting equity in science education (Koul, Lerdpornkulrat, & Poondej, 2016). Women are underrepresented in STEM fields and the roots of this underrepresentation start early(Master& Meltzoff, 2020). Boys in Germany report more interest than girls in math in elementary and middle school (Frenzel, Goetz, Pekrun, & Watt HM, 2010), and boys in the United States report more interest than girls in computer science and engineering by age six. In the literature on math and science education, gender inequality is classically defined as lower female enrollment in higher secondary math and science courses and lower female enrollment and retention in college physical science courses (Sadler, Sonnert, Hazari, & Tai, 2012). Thai women are less than half as likely as Thai men to work in science and technology, and women are still underrepresented in high-paying careers in STEM fields (Sadler et al., 2012; Koul, Lerdpornkulrat, & Poondej, 2016).

Middle school is the important stage of STEM engagement, because the choice of whether students intend to pursue science careers in particular often occurs during middle school (Master& Meltzoff, 2020). Wiebe, Unfried and Faber(2018) showed that students' attitudes towards STEM careers are not static in primary school but stable and flat in secondary school, while men are more interested in physical science.

Math and physics are considered essential subjects in preparation for high earning careers in STEM fields (Sadler et al., 2012e & Henriksen, 2013). In the short term, negative math gender stereotypes affect adolescent girls' learning, motivation and performance in related subjects such as physics. In the long run, negative math gender stereotypes may have a profound impact on girls' future math-related career motivation and math-related field choices (Zhao, Zhang, Alterman, Zhang, & Yu., 2018). Studies have found that men's self-efficacy in math and science is significantly higher than women's (Pajares, 2002). Even with good grades, women often conceptualize science and math as demanding, difficult subjects—a concept that has been found to influence women's self-efficacy and career decisions (Britner & Pajares, 2006). In fact, math-related careers, especially in engineering and computer science, are stereotyped as masculine and seen as inconsistent with female gender. Stereotypes about gender and math ability suggest that women are less capable of math than men (Franceschini, et al., 2014). Therefore, these common gender stereotypes also affect girls' perceptions of their physics abilities (i.e., self-efficacy) before they enter the classroom. The internalized social stereotypes and prejudices of female students can affect their self-efficacy in taking any physics course. Although women are not underrepresented in algebra-based physics courses, these social stereotypes still influence their motivational beliefs in these courses (Cwik & Singh, 2021).

1.1.Gender stereotypes in math and physics

In both math and physics, gender stereotypes exist. An analysis of female students' perceptions reveals that mathematics and physics are perceived as negatively correlated with female gender identity(Makarova & Herzog, 2015). Conversely, male students tend to view mathematics as negatively associated with female gender, while they perceive chemistry and physics as positively linked to male gender identity. Similar to the definition of math stereotypes, physics stereotypes include that "boys perform better than girls in physics" (Song, Zuo, Wen, & Jin, 2016). In terms of fields or disciplines, disidentification of a field or discipline would make individuals decrease their interest in the field or discipline or stay away from the field or discipline, and even change their choice of major and career, and the same phenomenon can be found through implicit association tests or self-report measurements (Cvencek, Meltzoff, & Greenwald, 2011) in both childhood and adulthood (Kneeskern & Reeder, 2022).

Research on math stereotypes finds that girls generally have a lower sense of identity with math and believe that boys are more suited to learning math. The results are consistent across primary school students (Dweck, 2007), middle school students (Wang, 2010) and college students (Li, 2016). Math stereotypes affect math performance differently for boys and girls; for boys, math stereotypes can promote their math performance (Smetackova, 2015; Steffens & Jelenec, 2011), while for girls, math stereotypes can cause a decline in their learning motivation and attitude (Jouini, Karehnke, & Napp, 2018; Liu, 2018). With increasing age, math stereotypes are increasingly damaging to girls' math interest and motivation (Smith et al., 2007), which further affects girls' math performance (Song & Liu, 2011). The activation of stereotype will have a negative impact on the mathematical academic performance of girls (Smith & Postmes, 2011).

Physics and math are both STEM fields, and similar to research on math stereotypes, many studies have shown that physics stereotypes cause girls to perform worse in the field, but for boys, physics stereotypes make their performance better. For example, girls are more likely to believe that girls do not have the ability to learn physics and believe that such ability can partly explain the difference in physics performance between them and boys (Malespina, Schunn, & Singh, 2022). Some researchers have also found that physics stereotypes affect students' physics performance by affecting their self-efficacy in physics learning (Li, 2019). Smith (2004) found through a stereotype task experiment that stereotype threat leads to worse academic performance in girls. Some researchers have also reported that physics stereotypes can reduce the physics procrastination behaviour of boys by increasing the physics procrastination behaviour of girls (Song et al., 2016).

1.2. Academic self-efficacy in math and physics

Self-efficacy was first proposed by Bandura (1977), and it is an individual's belief in how well he or she can complete a task before he or she wants to do something. Zhao (2000) further put forward the concept of "math self-efficacy", which is an individual's belief in his or her ability to perform mathematical tasks. Physics academic self-efficacy in is manifested in the internal subjective judgement that one can learn physics well, the external investment in learning physics and the persistence when encountering difficulties in physics learning. Finally, it shows an ability to learn physics (Wu, Hu, & Peng, 2011).

There are also significant gender differences in academic self-efficacy in math and physics. Compared with students with low academic self-efficacy in math, students with high academic self-efficacy in math persist in math problems longer and are more accurate in mathematical calculation (Hoffman, Schraw, 2009; Fast et al., 2010). Jiang's (2015) research found that junior middle school boys' sense of academic self-efficacy in math was higher than that of girls, and the difference was significant. The research of Ismatullina et al. (2022) pointed out that for easier math, girls show higher gender stereotypes and lower self-efficacy, while boys have higher math and overall academic self-efficacy. Li (2021) studied the academic self-efficacy of middle school students and found that there was a significant gender difference, with male students significantly higher than female students. Smith (2011) found that in both general and introductory physics courses, women's self-efficacy in learning physics in introductory courses was lower than that of men, and the difference increased from precourse to postcourse. Sawtelle, Brewe and Kramer (2010) obtained the same results in lecture-based physics courses. Nissen and Shemwell (2016) found that there is gender difference in physical academic self-efficacy, and boys are significantly better than girls.

Bandura (1963) proposed the social cognitive theory in the 1970s, which states that negative physiological emotional states such as anxiety, depression and helplessness are related to a person's level of self-efficacy. People's behaviour and ideas can be acquired through learning, and gender stereotypes are no exception. Similar to the commonly accepted assumption in social psychology, gender stereotypes can be acquired from the surrounding environment (Bandura, 1971). Bandura (1978) studied deeply and put forward the tripartite reciprocity determinism, that is, the behavior, the environment and the subject are mutually influencing and interacting. Therefore, based on and social cognitive theory, when girls in stereotyped situations are affected by negative information about their groups, they unconsciously think that they are inferior to boys in math, physics and other fields, resulting in low academic self-efficacy. When girls in the stereotype situation are exposed to negative information about their group, they have psychological motivation and unconsciously think that girls are inferior to boys in math, physics and other fields, which leads to higher anxiety, resulting in a low level of academic self-efficacy. On the contrary, boys' subjective awareness of the role model of their own group can subtly reduce their anxiety, and the level of academic self-efficacy will be high (Song et al., 2016; Li, 2021).

Tajfel, Billig, Bundy and Flament(1973) put forward the theory of social identity to define the concept of social identity: individuals recognize that they belong to a specific social group, and at the same time recognize the value cognition brought to them by members of this group. Gender stereotypes is an overgeneralization of some characteristics of a group based on its gender (Ellemers, 2018; Flerx, Fidler, & Rogers. 1976). Steele and Aronson(1995) found that stereotype would make groups or individuals feel alienated and unrecognized. Adolescents are susceptible to peer influence, as it aids them in integrating into their peers, and adolescent girls agree that women perform worse in STEM courses to gain a sense of belonging in the same sex community (Lamer et al., 2022). When receiving the negative information of their group(such as gender stereotypes), these information may guide their attitude and instruct them to approve the negative information about their group (Trusz, 2020).

Master and Meltzoff (2020) proposed a new conceptual model, which call the Stereotypes, Motivation, and Outcomes (STEMO) developmental model. The STEMO developmental model highlights how social factors (e.g., pervasive stereotypes about one’s own social identities, such as gender) influence students’ interest and academic outcomes in STEM through self-representations. When students have a social identity that is the target of negative stereotypes in a domain such as a STEM field, they may experience more negative self-representations in that domain, such as reduced identification, reduced belief in their ability to succeed, and a lower sense of belonging. These negative self-representations lead to less interest and poorer academic outcomes in STEM (e.g., choosing not to enroll in optional STEM courses).

2.1.The relationships among gender stereotypes, gender and academic self-efficacy in math and physics

Discipline gender stereotypes affect people’s performance in the discipline, gender is related to individuals’ academic performance. According to a large-scale survey, implicit gender stereotypes can predict gender differences in eighth-grade students' scientific and math achievements. Brown (2019) suggested that females are more likely to be influenced by gender stereotypes on academic self-efficacy and academic achievement, and there was a positive feedback loop between gender stereotypes and academic achievement. Some studies have also found that girls who hold the concept of gender equality have more positive self-efficacy in math and science studies and are less negatively affected by gender stereotypes (Leaper, Farkas,& Brown, 2012). Both implicit and explicit gender stereotypes affect female recognition of STEM disciplines, and the association between implicit gender stereotypes and STEM disciplines directly affects women's emphasis on STEM (Starr, 2018).

Many studies have reported that gender stereotypes affect people’s performance, including tests of math ability (Galdi, Cadinu, & Tomasetto, 2014) and physics (Marchand & Taasoobshirazi, 2013). Gender stereotypes actually reduce the efficiency of solving math tasks, and this effect is adjusted through self-efficacy (Gulevich et al., 2017). The stereotypes of gender and math ability holds that women's math ability is inferior to that of men (Gulevich et al., 2017). Increasing research evidence shows that gender stereotypes in math can affect women's interest and performance in the field of math (Davies et al., 2002). Gender differences in math scores occur in an environment that triggers gender stereotypes (Beilock, 2008), and highlighting the gender of participants is enough to create a threatening environment in which women's performance on highly demanding math tasks falls below the best level (Franceschin et al., 2014).

Due to the stereotypes and prejudice of society about who can succeed in physics, women tend to have lower motivation and belief in physics than men (Li et al., 2021). Nurulwati et al. (2020) found that there is a positive correlation between self-efficacy and students' physics learning achievements in their study of the impact of self-efficacy on students' physics learning achievements. Kalender et al. (2020) studied the relationship between physics self-efficacy and learning results and proposed that gender stereotyping would make students' self-efficacy different and further affect learning results. Some studies have also found that physics academic self-efficacy mediates the relationship between physics gender stereotypes and physics achievement (Li, 2019). Malespina et al. (2022) found women to have higher physics gender stereotypes than men and to be more likely to agree that it was their ability that caused the difference in the physics performances of them and men.

Based on social cognitive theory, social identity theory and the STEMO model, subjects’ gender stereotypes affect the performance of academic self-efficacy, but the effects are different for boys and girls. Specifically, girls are disadvantaged in the traditional gender stereotypes of math and physics. Since girls can recognize this negative impression, they generate psychological pressure, which affects their academic performance in math and physics (Brown, 2019; Malespina et al., 2022). Gender also has various effects on the academic performance of girls and boys in math and physics (Leaper et al., 2012; Brown, 2019).

As mentioned earlier, many studies have shown that gender stereotypes affect physical and mathematical achievement and self-efficacy, and consequently performance in STEM fields. This study aims to explore the influence of gender stereotypes on academic self-efficacy and the role of gender in it. It seems that women are consistently disadvantaged by stereotypes in STEM fields. This study put forward the following hypotheses:

Hypothesis 1

There is a significant negative correlation between middle school students' gender stereotypes in math and physics and their academic self-efficacy.

Hypothesis 2

Girls had significantly lower academic self-efficacy in math and physics than boys, and girls had higher levels of math gender stereotypes and physics stereotypes than boys.

Hypothesis 3

(a) Math gender stereotypes could negatively predict math academic self-efficacy, and gender can significantly moderate the relationship between them. For boys, math gender stereotypes positively affected math academic self-efficacy; for girls, math gender stereotypes negatively affected math academic self-efficacy. (b) Physics gender stereotypes could negatively predict physics academic self-efficacy, and gender could significantly moderate the relationship between them. For boys, physics gender stereotypes positively affected physics academic self-efficacy; For girls, physics gender stereotypes negatively affected physics academic self-efficacy.

3.1.Participants and Procedure

In this study, students in 8th Grade and 9th Grade from two middle schools in Shandong Province were recruited by cluster sampling. A total of 629 subjects were recruited, and 626 valid questionnaires were returned. The questionnaire response rate was 99.53%, including 302 girls (48.24%). The average age was 14.38 ± 0.67 years old. This study was approved by the Institutional Review Board of xxx University. All participants volunteered to participate in the study. Each participant signed an informed consent form as well as their parents and school head teachers.

3.2.Measures

3.2.1.Math gender stereotype

Math gender stereotypes were measured by a subscale consisting of 11 items from the Fennema-Sherman Math Attitude Scale (Song, 2017), measuring on a 5-point scale (1 = "strongly disagree" to "5 = strongly agree") the extent to which participants held the gender stereotype towards math. Example item reads, "Girls and boys do just as well in math." Song (2017) revised the scale and tested its validity in Chinese sample. The scale has good reliability (α = 0.85). A total score of the 11 items was calculated as math gender stereotypes, and a higher score indicated a higher level of math gender stereotypes.

3.2.2. Physics gender stereotype

Physics Gender Stereotype Scale is an 11-item scale adapted from the Math Gender Stereotype Scale (Li, 2019), which uses a 5-point scale ("1 = strongly disagree" to "5 = strongly agree") to measure the gender stereotype towards learning physic. Example item reads, "Girls and boys do just as well in physics. “The scale has good reliability (α = 0.86). Atotal score of the 11 items was calculated as math gender stereotypes, and a higher score indicated a higher level of math gender stereotypes.

3.2.3. Math academic self-efficacy

Li and Zhang (1999) revised 7 items in the self-efficacy part of the learning motivation strategy questionnaire (Garcia, Pintrich, 1996) to form the math academic self-efficacy questionnaire, which measured participants on a 5-point scale ("1 = very inconsistent" to "5 = very consistent"). Example item reads, "I believe I can do well in math. " The scale has good reliability (α = 0.95). The total score of the 11 items was calculated as self-efficacy for math academic, and higher score indicated higher self-efficacy for math academic.

3.2.4. Physics academic self-efficacy

Physics academic self-efficacy was assessed by seven items. Those seven items were adapted from the Math self-efficacy scale (Li, 2019) by changing the word “math” to “physics”. The items ask participants’ self-belief of their ability in using physics a 5-point scale ("1 = very inconsistent" to "5 = very consistent"). Example item reads, " I believe I can do well in physics." The scale has good reliability (α = 0.97). A total score of the items was calculated as physics academic self-efficacy, and a higher score indicated a high level of higher physics academic self-efficacy.

3.2.5. Data analysis

SPSS 22.0 software was used for data analysis. Descriptive statistics analysis and correlation analysis were used to test hypothesis 1, and t-test was used to test hypothesis 2. The process plug-in (Bolin, 2014) was used for linear regression analysis, moderation effects were tested, and Models 1 was used in this study. To test hypothesis 3, gender was used as a moderating variable, and model 1 in the process plug-in was used to conduct moderation analysis to investigate the moderating effect of gender on the relationship between math gender stereotypes and math academic self-efficacy. Before the data analysis, this study encoded the gender, with male set as 0 and female set as 1.

4.1. Common method bias

Harman's one-factor test was used to test for common method bias. The results showed that the eigenvalues of nine factors were greater than 1, and the first factor without rotation explained 17.61% of the total variation, less than 40%, indicating that there was no serious common method deviation in the data.

4.2. Descriptive analysis

The mean and standard deviation of overall sample and by gender can be seen in Table 1. The correlation analysis results showed that math gender stereotypes were negatively correlated with math academic self-efficacy, positively correlated with physics gender stereotypes, and negatively correlated with physics academic self-efficacy. Math academic self-efficacy was also positively correlated with physics academic self-efficacy; there was a significant negative correlation between physics gender stereotypes and physics academic self-efficacy. See Table 1.

Table 1

Mean, Standard Deviation and Correlation Coefficient among Variables
	M ± SD			1	2	3	4
1.Math gender stereotype	22.46 ± 8.07	boy	25.27 ± 8.06	1
1.Math gender stereotype	22.46 ± 8.07	girl	19.44 ± 6.91	1
2.Math academic self-efficacy	26.76 ± 6.63	boy	27.98 ± 6.34	-0.11^**	1
2.Math academic self-efficacy	26.76 ± 6.63	girl	25.45 ± 6.70	-0.11^**	1
3.Physics gender stereotype	22.04 ± 8.30	boy	25.14 ± 8.31	0.90^**	-0.07	1
3.Physics gender stereotype	22.04 ± 8.30	girl	18.73 ± 6.91	0.90^**	-0.07	1
4.Physics academic self-efficacy	28.11 ± 6.15	boy	28.73 ± 6.26	-0.14^**	0.74^**	-0.15^**	1
4.Physics academic self-efficacy	28.11 ± 6.15	girl	27.43 ± 5.96	-0.14^**	0.74^**	-0.15^**	1
Note: N = 626, N_boy=324, N_girl=302, p<0.05,*p<0.01.

4.3. Gender differences in gender stereotypes and academic self-efficacy

As for gender difference of math gender stereotypes, t-test revealed that boys hold more math gender stereotypes than girls (t = 9.74; p < 0.001). Similarly, the results of the t-test indicated higher levels of math academic self-efficacy (t = 4.86; p < 0.001), physics gender stereotypes (t = 10.53; p < 0.001), and physics academic self-efficacy (t = 2.76; p = 0.01) in boys.

4.4. The association of math gender stereotypes on math academic self-efficacy: the moderating effect of gender

The results showed that math gender stereotypes have a significant predictive effect on math academic self-efficacy (b =-0.24, p < 0.01), and the interaction item has a significant predictive effect on math academic self-efficacy (b =-0.45, p < 0.01), indicating that gender can play a moderation role in the relationship between math gender stereotypes and math academic self-efficacy. See Table 2.

Table 2

The Moderating Effect of Gender on The Relationship between Math Gender Stereotypes and Math Academic Self-efficacy Results Table
Y	coeff	se	t	p	LLCI	ULCI
constant	-0.08	0.04	-2.01	0.04	-0.16	-0.00
Math gender stereotype	-0.24	0.04	-5.81	0.00	-0.32	-0.16
gender	-0.57	0.08	-6.96	0.00	-0.72	-0.41
Int_1	-0.45	0.08	-5.48	0.00	-0.61	-0.29
R²	0.11
F	26.98
Note: coeff is B, se is standard error, LLCI and ULCI are confidence intervals (confidence intervals without zero are significant), R square is the coefficient of determination, and F is the variance test.

To further test the moderating effect, a simple slope analysis chart (Fig. 1) was constructed. The results showed that the math gender stereotypes of middle school girls (simple slope =-0.47, t =-7.43, p < 0.01) negatively predict math academic self-efficacy, while the math gender stereotypes of boys (simple slope = -0.01, t = -0.38, p = 0.70) do not predict math academic self-efficacy.

4.5.The association of physics gender stereotypes on physics academic self-efficacy: the moderating effect of gender

The results showed that physics gender stereotypes have a significant predictive effect on physics academic self-efficacy (b=-0.25, p < 0.01), and interaction terms have a significant predictive effect on physics academic self-efficacy (b =-0.34, p < 0.01), indicating that gender plays a regulatory role in the relationship between physics gender stereotypes and physics academic self-efficacy. See Table 3.

Table 3

The Moderating Effect of Gender on Physics Gender Stereotypes and Physics Academic Self-efficacy Results Table
Y	coeff	se	t	p	LLCI	ULCI
constant	-0.06	0.04	-1.54	0.12	-0.15	0.02
physics gender stereotype	-0.25	0.04	-5.93	0.00	-0.34	-0.17
gender	-0.42	0.08	-4.96	0.00	-0.58	-0.25
Int_1	-0.34	0.09	-3.92	0.00	-0.50	-0.17
R²	0.08
F	17.03
Note: coeff is B, se is standard error, LLCI and ULCI are confidence intervals (confidence intervals without zero are significant), R square is the coefficient of determination, and F is the variance test.

To further test the moderating effect, a simple slope analysis chart (Fig. 2) was drawn. The results showed that the physics gender stereotypes of middle school girls (simple slope = -0.43, t = -6.38, p < 0.01) negatively predict physics academic self-efficacy, while the physics gender stereotypes of middle school boys (simple slope = -0.09, t =-1.69, p = 0.09) did not negatively predict physics academic self-efficacy.

Many previous studies have explored the effect of gender stereotypes on academic self-efficacy, and they differ in boys and girls. Few studies have explored the moderating role of gender. This study examined the effects of gender stereotypes in math and physics on academic self-efficacy and the moderating role of gender. The study found that gender stereotypes in math and physics were negatively correlated with academic self-efficacy. And there were significant gender differences in both math and physics gender stereotypes and academic self-efficacy. As math gender stereotype scores increased, girls' math academic self-efficacy scores declined, while boys' math academic self-efficacy barely changed. The same is true in physics.

5.1. The characteristics of middle school students' math, physics gender stereotypes and their math, physics academic self-efficacy and gender

The results showed that math and physics gender stereotypes in middle school students were significantly negatively correlated with academic self-efficacy in math and physics, which was the same as previous research results (McKown & Weinstein, 2003; Nosek, Smyth, Sriram,, et al., 2009; Starr, 2018; Kalender et al.,2020). Subject gender stereotypes affect individual performance in those subjects; that is, in math and physics, a higher level of stereotype decreases academic self-efficacy. Gender differences in gender stereotypes and academic self-efficacy in math and physics have reached a significant level, and the scores of girls’ academic self-efficacy in math and physics are significantly lower than those of boys, which is consistent with previous findings (Cvencek et al., 2011; Ismatullina, et al.,2022). Regarding the gender differences in academic self-efficacy shown in the results, it has been noted that girls perform worse in math after the age of 10 due to gender stereotypes (Muzzatti & Agnoli, 2007). Even if they had low gender stereotypes, they would be under gender stereotype pressure from teachers, parents and society. It forces girls to move in the direction expected by traditional gender stereotypes, so girls' academic self-efficacy in math and physics is lower than that of boys. For boys (Smetackova, 2015; Steffens & Jelenec, 2011), math stereotypes can promote their performance in math, while for girls, math stereotypes can reduce their self-efficacy (Jouini et al., 2018).

However, in the research results, the degree of gender stereotype is low for both boys and girls, and students are generally sceptical of traditional gender stereotypes in math and physics, more notably, girls scored lower on gender stereotypes than boys, which is different from previous conclusions. In the last century, the gender differences in career composition and academic performance in the field of math have been very wide; as the "androgyny" education perspective is increasingly respected, this gender difference is gradually narrowing (Hyde et al., 1990). Under the background of the concept of "gender equality" becoming the theme of the times and being deeply rooted in the hearts of the people, Xi et al. (2020) found that the identification of gender stereotypes in middle school girls in early adolescence declines with age, so they are more inclined to report scepticism toward traditional gender stereotypes at the explicit level.

5.2. The association between gender stereotypes and academic self-efficacy: the moderation effect of gender

Gender moderates the relationship between math stereotypes and math academic self-efficacy and the relationship between physics stereotypes and physics academic self-efficacy. For girls, gender stereotypes of math and physics negatively predict academic self-efficacy of math and physics, but for boys, gender stereotypes had no significant effect on academic self-efficacy, no matter for math or physics. Bandura’s (1978) tripartite reciprocity determinism can be used to explain this result, especially the theory that behaviour, environment, and subject interact. That is to say, the students themselves have accepted gender stereotypes, as well as the stereotyped social environment they face, will result in different performance of their academic self-efficacy (Bandura & Walters, 1997). In this study, it is worth noting that the moderating effect of boys is not significant when gender stereotypes negatively predict academic self-efficacy. The result of girls is as shown in the theory, girls are influenced by gender stereotypes, which leads to a low level of academic self-efficacy, but the environment in which boys live is beneficial to their academic self-efficacy, but it does not show this way, that is say, male students' academic self-efficacy was not positively affected by gender stereotypes, which is different from previous studies (Walton & Cohen, 2003; Brown, 2019). One possible reason is that boys have been accustomed to living in a similar environment from childhood to adulthood without the harm of stereotype, which does not particularly affect the change of their academic self-efficacy.

Tobin et al. (2010) proposed that in the middle school stage, middle school students' satisfaction with their gender is still high and is the source of self-esteem. Traditional gender stereotypes help improve the self-esteem level of boys, but they are indeed unfavourable for girls. Thus, according to the social identity theory, because of gender stereotypes, girls do not recognize that they are good at math and physics because of their environment, which leads to the decrease of academic self-efficacy in math and physics. For boys, the environment is less biased against them in math and physics, so gender stereotypes have little effect on their academic self-efficacy. Liu (2018) found gender math stereotypes influence gender differences in students' self-assessments of mathematical abilities, thereby affecting their aspirations for careers in science and engineering, with girls experiencing a stronger impact despite boys maintaining a stronger career preference. Lee, Lee and Bong(2022) found that self-efficacy is easily the most important structure for participation and success in achievement situations, and practices that change young students' math thinking and gender stereotypes can better promote the understanding of theory-driven practices that foster students' self-efficacy beliefs. Therefore, it is necessary to eliminate the stereotypes of gender as much as possible to promote the academic self-efficacy of middle school students, especially girls.

The study preliminarily investigated the relationship between math and physics gender stereotypes, gender and math and physics academic self-efficacy, enriched the research content in related fields, and found some deficiencies in the analysis of results and many places that should be further explored in future research.

For one thing, the sample comprised mainly middle school students in Jinan. Combined with previous studies, China has a vast territory and great regional and cultural differences, and there are great differences between students across regions. We should expand the scope of the survey, increase the number of subjects, and compare more regions to obtain more representative results. Patterson (2012) claimed that more research is needed to evaluate the cross-cultural aspects of self-concept, but caution should be taken when extending the research results from one cultural background to another.

For another thing, the research involved only two subjects, math and physics, in which women are the vulnerable group in traditional gender stereotypes. In actual education and teaching practice, it is not difficult to find that subjects such as English and Chinese, in which men are the "vulnerable group", also have large gender differences in academic self-concept. In the future, we can continue to discuss the interaction mechanism between variables from these perspectives.

It is worth noting that the popularization of education has enabled students of different genders to receive education in schools on an equal footing, and the difference between boys and girls in math test scores is also decreasing annually (Li & Singh, 2021), but few girls choose STEM fields as their career. The research results showed that there are gender differences in the level of gender stereotypes. Compared with the initial discussion of the difference between male and female academic abilities at the physiological level, we are more inclined to give an explanation from the perspective of social culture. Physiological level difference have increased people's attention to gender differences, and the importance of abiding by peer norms has also increased (Brown, 2004). Entering middle school marks that students begin to be able to make academic choices that affect long-term academic outcomes (Eccles et al., 2004). Therefore, it may be particularly harmful to show negative self-efficacy towards subject learning in adolescence. It is necessary to reduce gender stereotypes in daily learning and living environments and reduce their impact on adolescents.

As shown in the results, gender stereotypes in math and physics significantly negatively predict academic self-efficacy in math and physics. Schmitt et al.’s (2002) research results were highly supportive of the rejection-identification model, with perceptions of discrimination harming psychological well-being among women but not among men. The results also support the rejection-identification model's prediction that female partially cope with the negative well-being consequences of perceived discrimination by increasing identification with female as a group; in contrast, perceived discrimination was unrelated to group identification among male. Girls' performance in math and physics tends to decline due to stereotypes, and can influence girls' later career choices related to math and physics (Starr, 2018). Zhang (2021) also found that gender stereotypes in math can also lead to higher math anxiety among girls. In environments with gender stereotypes, parents and teachers who agree with gender stereotypes may have a significant impact on students' academic performance and learning efficacy (Dong, 2019). Therefore, the impact of gender stereotypes on students' learning cannot be underestimated. Therefore, it is necessary to investigate gender stereotypes in math and physics in today's youth groups, especially girls' gender stereotypes in math and physics. This helps students, teachers, and parents to become aware of the adverse effects of this potential concept.

Another result that cannot be ignored in this study is that for females, gender moderates not only the relationship between math stereotypes and math self-efficacy but also the relationship between physics stereotypes and physics self-efficacy. This is different from the subject stereotype environment we usually face in reality. In the future, students, parents and teachers should not only focus on equality in the field of math in their daily studies and lives but also pay more attention to gender stereotypes in physics.

The results show that female students are more likely to be affected by gender stereotypes and gender in math and physics learning; that is, girls' academic self-efficacy in math and physics were more negatively affected by gender stereotypes in math and physics, as noted in previous studies, the relationship between gender stereotypes and STEM disciplines will directly affect girl's attention to STEM and their academic and career choices in the future (Starr, 2018). This study enriches the research on STEM related to gender differences in disciplines and self-efficacy and finds that it is necessary to reduce the gender differences in STEM, improve the self-efficacy of girls in STEM and eliminate traditional gender concepts among students. To help students, teachers and parents realize the adverse effects of this potential concept and guide parents and teachers to adhere to the educational concept of gender equality in their study and life to cultivate children's self-confidence in the subject, and make better career plans in the future.

Ethics approval and consent to participate

This study was approved by the Institutional Review Board of xxx University. All participants volunteered to participate in the study. Each participant signed an informed consent form as well as their parents and school head teachers.

Consent for publication

Not applicable

Availability of data and materials

The datasets generated and/or analysed during the current study are not publicly available due to privacy restrictions but are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

Competing Interests

The authors declare that they have no competing interests" in this section

Funding

The research was funded by the 2023 Shandong Provincial Graduate Quality Education Teaching Resource Project (SDJAL2023009), Experimental Teaching and Teaching Laboratory Construction Research Project of Shandong Province in 2024 (No.67), the Third Batch of First-Class Undergraduate Courses in Shandong Province (Psychometrics), Experimental Teaching and Teaching Laboratory Construction Research Project of Shandong Normal University in 2024 (2024ZS05), 2024 Teaching Reform Research Project of Shandong Normal University (2024ZJ41), 2023 Graduate Education and Teaching Reform Research Project of Shandong Normal University (No. 18) and the Project of 2023 Shandong Normal University Graduate Student Course in English (Big Data Psychology and Applications).

Author Contributions

SBG, YM, YTT, XW, and FYW conceptualized the study. YM. developed the methodology. XW performed the formal analysis and investigation. SBG, YM, and TZ prepared the original draft. YM, TZ, XW, and MYZ. reviewed and edited the manuscript. LLD. and MT acquired funding for the study. MT provided resources. SBG, LLD, and MT supervised the project. All authors reviewed the manuscript.

Acknowledgements

Not applicable

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Boys don't benefit, girls still suffer：The role of gender stereotypes of math and physics in academic self-efficacy among Chinese adolescents

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Abstract

Figures

1. Introduction

1.1.Gender stereotypes in math and physics

1.2. Academic self-efficacy in math and physics

2. Theoretical Framework

2.1.The relationships among gender stereotypes, gender and academic self-efficacy in math and physics

3. Methods

3.1.Participants and Procedure

3.2.Measures

3.2.1.Math gender stereotype

3.2.2. Physics gender stereotype

3.2.3. Math academic self-efficacy

3.2.4. Physics academic self-efficacy

3.2.5. Data analysis

4. Results

4.1. Common method bias

4.2. Descriptive analysis

4.3. Gender differences in gender stereotypes and academic self-efficacy

4.4. The association of math gender stereotypes on math academic self-efficacy: the moderating effect of gender

4.5.The association of physics gender stereotypes on physics academic self-efficacy: the moderating effect of gender

5. Discussion

5.2. The association between gender stereotypes and academic self-efficacy: the moderation effect of gender

6. Limitations

7. Scientific and Practical implications

8. Conclusion

Declarations

References

Additional Declarations

Status:

Version 1