Academic social comparison: a promising new target to reduce fear of negative evaluation in large-enrollment college science courses

Fear of negative evaluation, defined as a sense of dread associated with being unfavorably evaluated in a social situation, is the primary factor underlying student anxiety in college science courses and is disproportionately experienced by students who are underserved in science. Yet, it is unknown why fear of negative evaluation disproportionately affects these students and what can be done to reduce student fear of negative evaluation. Academic social comparison describes how students perceive themselves compared to their peers with regard to desirability as a groupmate, the extent they fit in among others in their major, and academic talent. We hypothesize that academic social comparison mediates the relationship between student identities and fear of negative evaluation, where individuals with underserved identities in science may perceive themselves as “less than” their peers, contributing to their fear of negative evaluation. We surveyed 909 undergraduate science majors across 15 research-intensive institutions in the United States (U.S.) to assess: (1) To what extent do student identities predict fear of negative evaluation among science undergraduates? and (2) For identities that significantly predict fear of negative evaluation, to what extent does academic social comparison mediate the relationship? We used regression, single-mediator models, and multi-mediator models to address our research questions. Women/non-binary and LGBTQ + science majors reported disproportionately high fear of negative evaluation compared to men and non-LGBTQ + science majors. Women/non-binary and LGBTQ + students also expressed lower academic social comparison relative to their respective counterparts, meaning they perceive themselves as less than their peers with regard to their desirability as a groupmate, the extent to which they fit in among others in their major, and their academic talent. Academic social comparison partially mediated the relationship between fear of negative evaluation and both gender and LGBTQ + status. Major fit, defined as the extent to which students perceive they fit in among others in their major, was found to be the primary mediating subconstruct of academic social comparison for both gender and LGBTQ + identities. Women/non-binary and LGBTQ + science majors perceive themselves as less than their peers to a greater extent than men and non-LGBTQ + science majors, contributing to their higher fear of negative evaluation in college science course. Major fit, defined as the extent to which students feel they fit in with others in their major, is the subconstruct of academic social comparison that had the strongest influence on fear of negative evaluation in our sample. Academic social comparison is a promising target for future efforts aimed at decreasing fear of negative evaluation in active learning college science courses.