Date of Award
8-2024
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Master of Science (MS)
Department
Psychology
Committee Chair/Advisor
Dr. Patrick R. Rosopa
Committee Member
Dr. Allison Traylor
Committee Member
Dr. Mary Anne Taylor
Abstract
Despite making up a similar proportion of the workforce, women are grossly underrepresented in STEM occupations compared to men (65% vs. 35%). Prior research suggests that women’s underrepresentation in STEM results in negative consequences, such as increased psychological burnout and decreased work engagement (Hall et al., 2015; Hall et al., 2018), through the mechanism of social identity threat. Academics have yet to explore how experiencing social identity threat impacts silence behaviors for underrepresented women in STEM. Building off social identity theory and prior research on social identity threat, the current study sought to compare women working in STEM occupations who are also outnumbered by male colleagues to women not subjected to this “double dominance”. Specifically, this study investigated their experience of social identity threat and the subsequent impact this experience has on employee silence behaviors, a regulatory response from the behavioral inhibition system. Survey data suggest that individuals who identify more strongly with being a woman experience more social identity threat, which in turn predicts employee silence behaviors. Importantly, this relationship occurred irrespective of a woman’s exposure to double dominance. Though most hypotheses were not confirmed, the supplementary analyses contribute to a growing body of research on differentiating between predictors of employee voice and employee silence.
Recommended Citation
Brumbaugh, Madison, "Silence in STEM? The Impact of Experienced Social Identity Threats on Women" (2024). All Theses. 4338.
https://open.clemson.edu/all_theses/4338