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Gender<br />

TABLE IID-6<br />

CHANGE IN SELF-CONFIDENCE IN MECHANICAL ABILITY FROM FALL TO SPRING<br />

BY ENGINEERING ACTIVITIES AND GENDER a<br />

Change in<br />

Confidence that<br />

Engineering<br />

Right Major<br />

Mean score on<br />

ACTACAD<br />

Mean score on<br />

ACTCOUNS<br />

Mean score on<br />

ACTSTUDY<br />

Mean score on<br />

ACTNONENG<br />

% Member of<br />

professional<br />

organization<br />

IID-150<br />

Member of<br />

Society for<br />

Women<br />

Engineers<br />

Males Decreased -.043 -.143 .102 .206 54.8 na<br />

Same .014 -.098 -.241 .031 54.1 na<br />

Increased -.358 .036 .232 -.117 58.5 na<br />

Females Decreased .056 .031 -.014 -.155 64.3 64.3<br />

Same .349 -.146 .076 -.092 66.7 29.1<br />

Increased .264 .192 .321 -.342 64.3 30.8<br />

a Activity fac<strong>to</strong>rs are explained above in Chapter II-B.<br />

CHANGES IN SELF-CONFIDENCE AND ENGINEERING GRADES<br />

It is reasonable <strong>to</strong> expect that <strong>the</strong> change in engineering self-confidence is related<br />

<strong>to</strong> academic performance during <strong>the</strong> same academic year, with those who perform less<br />

well lowering <strong>the</strong>ir self-confidence and those who perform better increasing <strong>the</strong>ir self-<br />

confidence (Table IID-5). In terms of confidence <strong>to</strong> stay in engineering, however, this is<br />

true for males but not for females. Males who decreased <strong>the</strong>ir self-confidence had lower<br />

grades in <strong>the</strong>ir engineering classes than did males whose self-confidence increased or<br />

stayed <strong>the</strong> same over <strong>the</strong> course of <strong>the</strong> academic year. However, academic performance<br />

does not <strong>see</strong>m <strong>to</strong> explain changes in engineering self-confidence for women in <strong>the</strong><br />

program.

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