In their research, Park et al. (2011) held three different studies to test their hypotheses that women who viewed images or overheard conversations related to romantic goals would report less positive attitudes towards math. In study 1, participants first reported their interest in pursuing a degree or career in STEM fields. Then, half of the participants viewed images related to romantic desirability while the other half viewed images related to intelligence. Finally, all participants completed a filler questionnaire and again reported their interest in STEM. Study 2a was similar to study , as the only difference was the use of a different method to activate romantic goals. Participants either overheard the experimenter and research assistant having a conversation about a recent date the experimenter had (romantic goal prime), or a recent test they had taken (intelligence goal prime). Study 2b simply replaces the intelligence goal prime with a friendship goal prime, changing the overheard conversation be about a visit from a same-sex friend. Lastly, study 3 used only female participants and used PDA's to monitor their daily goal striving, feelings of desirability, and activities they engaged in (all among other filler items) (Park et al. 2011).
The results of each study supported the researchers' hypotheses. Study 1 found that females who viewed the images related to romantic desirability showed a significantly lower in interest in STEM than females that viewed the intelligence images. Furthermore, participants in both study 2a and 2b that heard the romantic goal prime also felt significantly less positive towards STEM than did participants who heard the friendship or intelligence goal primes. Finally, study 3 showed that daily romantic pursuit predicted engaging in fewer math activities, more romantic activities, and greater feelings of desirability. Daily intelligence goal pursuit, however, predicted engaging in more math activities, but was not related to romantic activities or feelings of desirability (Park et al. 2011).
Since STEM domains are stereotypically male domains, participating in them are likely to make females feel less feminine, thus leading to the negative attitude towards the subjects. Females, according to study 3, are also likely to engage in fewer math activities. Although it may not directly affect math scores, it is likely to help keep the stereotype going.
Park, L. O., Young, A. F., Troisi, J. D., & Pinkus, R. T. (2011). Effects of everday romantic goal pursuit on women's attitudes toward math and science.Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 37(9), 1259-1273.
This is really interesting! Maybe women who are thinking about romance are less interested in math because of the stereotype that a women can just marry a smart man and be a housewife? Considering the fact that women still don't earn as much as men, it is possible that academics aren't as important to women because even if they are smart and work hard, they may not earn as much money as a man would.
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