The use of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) mentors in public school systems and other organizations has grown comparably with our economy's increasing demand for STEM industry professionals. However, inspiring students to pursue STEM careers by using STEM industry professionals as mentors requires an understanding of…

Biodiversity loss and rising global challenges are directly linked to the current climate crisis. Peoples' behaviors and lives are being negatively impacted daily, ushering in a new wave of physiological and emotional distress referred to as eco-anxiety, which is being experienced by young people. Urgent concerns for the need for environmental…

This study explored factors that influence the postsecondary career decisions of 427 11th and 12th grade students in a guaranteed tuition-based school district in a Midwestern state. Since 2005, this district has had a "Promise" program where eligible students can get up to 100% of their postsecondary tuition paid to attend a college,…

The United States has a shortage of qualified workers in the science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields (Zhang & Barnett, 2015). There is a critical shortage of underrepresented students seeking science majors and possible science-based careers. The purpose of the study was to examine the perceptions of underrepresented…

This mixed-method double-blind study was designed to examine the relationship and impact of mindset, grit, and the influence of family members in the postsecondary goal selection process of students in one rural high school in Berks County, Pennsylvania. The population for this study consisted of twelfth grade students (N = 135). The study was…

Latino/as are an increasingly large subset of the United States population; however, they continue to be underrepresented in science careers. Because of this increase, research regarding Latino/as has improved, but there are still many gaps in regards to gender-specific predictors to pursue science careers. To address this lack of literature, the…

In an effort to understand the viability of inner-city adolescents' career choice goals, the purpose of this study was to predict relationships among person factors, environmental factors, career maturity, career decision-making self-efficacy, vocational outcome expectations, and viable career choice goals within this population. I predicted that…

Perceptions of instrumentality (PI) are the connections one sees between a current activity and a future goal. With high PI, one is motivated to persist with quality effort because the current activity, even when difficult, is perceived as aligned with, and progress toward, the goal. Conversely, with low PI, one is motivated to relinquish effort…

The history of American schooling is replete with the interplay between politics, economics and social behavior. This has never been more evident than in the current environment of high stakes testing on core subjects that largely ignores other important noncognitive outcomes of education. Within this context, the present study built on previous…