Understanding Latino Boys’ Motivation to Pursue STEM while Navigating School Inequalities

ABSTRACT

Latino boys’ motivational beliefs in STEM remain under-examined in the literature, especially during middle school when building a strong STEM trajectory is critical for future success in STEM. The current study used Expectancy-Value Theory to analyze how Latino boys interpreted their expectancies and values in order to better understand their motivational beliefs. Furthermore, Critical Race Theory was incorporated to help identify the structural inequalities and familial motivational mechanisms that Latino boys perceived to play a role in their STEM persistence. A total of 89, predominantly low-income, Latino boys in middle school participated in focus groups. We analyzed the focus group data using deductive content analysis to examine students’ expectancies and values and a hybrid inductive and deductive approach to examine perceived barriers and family motivators. The results illustrated boys’ interpretations of their expectancies and subjective task values (i.e., utility, attainment, interest, and cost values) as contributors to their choices and persistence in STEM. Moreover, although boys perceived inequalities in STEM schooling, families served as primary motivators for students to pursue STEM. The results of this study have important implications for middle school educators who are facilitators of students’ achievement motivation and engagement in STEM.

KEYWORDS:

• Expectancy-value theory
• STEM motivation
• middle school
• Latino boys
• Critical Race Theory

Acknowledgments

Special thanks to the principal investigators, research assistants, and program assistants that contributed to this project.

Disclosure statement

The authors confirm that there are no known conflicts of interest associated with this publication and there has been no significant financial support for this work that could have influenced its outcome.