Gender and academic intentions: the role of high school, self-concept and gender stereotypes

Abstract Despite women being frequently overrepresented in higher education, their presence across various disciplines is not balanced. They are particularly overrepresented in the humanities and underrepresented in scientific courses. The aim of this study is to examine the contribution of several factors in explaining the gender gap in major intentions in these two domains, including gender-science stereotypes, self-concept, and agentic and communal goals. The study was conducted on a sample of 400 high school students in Italy, a particularly relevant context given the specialization of high schools into either a scientific or humanistic curriculum. The results suggest that, for both STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Math) and the humanities, self-concept and high school track are significantly associated with students’ intentions and largely explain the existing gender differences. Implicit stereotypes are also associated with intentions, but only for young women in science-oriented schools. The implications of these findings, as well as the heterogeneity of these patterns within STEM and humanities disciplines, are discussed.