STEM Inqueery: How Belonging in STEM Might Differ Depending on LGBTQ Identities and Identity Openness

Science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) studies have investigated gender (women versus men; Kim et al., 2018), race (Latinx and Black; Unfried et al., 2015), and culture differences (Asian versus American; Brown et al., 2018); however, few studies have looked at the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) community (Stout & Wright, 2016). STEM has been stereotyped as a cis (same gender as birth) straight male field (Miller et al., 2020); STEM is viewed as an agentic (self-focused, achievement-oriented) field and lacking communal (other-oriented) opportunities (Diekman et al., 2010). When communal opportunities are integrated into fields that are stereotyped as being noncommunal, STEM interest is boosted (Brown et al., 2018). This raises the question: what happens to LGBTQ individuals in STEM? LGBTQ individuals may feel less open or out about their LGBTQ identity in a STEM field when it is more male-dominated (Yoder & Mattheis, 2016). Further, LGBQ students are less likely to stay in STEM compared to non-LGBQ students (Hughes, 2018); transgender students presenting feminine within STEM are not respected as much by their peers compared to other students (Kersey, 2018). This study will explore whether LGBTQ individuals’ desire for communal opportunities within STEM careers shapes their motivation to pursue STEM, their expectations for success in STEM, and their feelings of belonging in STEM. We hypothesize that LGBTQ individuals with low-openness about their LGBTQ identity will have less motivation, expectations for success, and feelings of belonging in STEM than LGBTQ individuals with high-openness and non-LGBTQ individuals