Culture, Context and Stereotype Threat: A Comparative Analysis of Young Ugandan Women in Coed and Single-Sex Schools

ABSTRACT

Stereotype threat (ST) has been linked to under performance and academic disidentification among girls in mathematics and science as well as African Americans in academics. However, it is still unclear whether ST and its negative effects extend to non-Western cultures. The authors explored the effects of ST on Ugandan females in coed and single-sex (all-girls) schools. Results indicated that although ST did not affect the performance of girls in the single-sex school, it negatively impacted the performance of females in the coed school. Further, these effects appear to have been moderated by school context, with females in single-sex schools reporting higher levels of mathematics identification and mathematics self-efficacy than those in coed schools.

Keywords:

• coeducation
• gender stereotypes
• mathematics
• mathematics self-efficacy
• stereotype threat

ACKNOWLEDGMENTS

The authors thank principals Aisha Lubega and Agnes Nsubuga for access to their schools and teachers John A. Ongom, Jean Kandugoma, and Jim Kooba for handling research-related logistics. They also thank Dr. Jerome M. Katrichis for his critical feedback and comments on the final draft of the article.

Notes

*p < .01.

*p < .05.

***p<.001.

St. Mary's College Kisubi is the equally competitive, all-boys counterpart to the all-girls school from which the research participants were drawn.