FACTORS INFLUENCING THE SELECTION OF UNIVERSITY MAJORS VARYING IN MATHEMATICAL CONTENT

The purpose of the present research was to examine attitudinal, affective, and performance variables related to mathematics as potential predictors of choice of university majors varying in mathematical content. Subjects completed an arithmetic test and a questionnaire on their math background, perceived skill, interest, and affect towards math. We found that (a) most women avoided majors that required even moderate amounts of mathematics, even though they were as skilled at arithmetic as males and had taken equivalent amounts of math in high school, (b) subjects who were anxious about math avoided majors that had moderate or high math requirements, and (c) subjects who were less skilled at arithmetic chose majors with fewer math requirements. Because gender and negative affect towards math contributed independently to choice of major, interventions to combat math anxiety could be valuable for both male and female students. Similarly, fluency and affect contributed independently to choice of major. The low percentage of women who had chosen majors requiring moderate or high amounts of math (21% vs. 52% Of males) is consistent with other studies showing pervasive and persistent gender differences in career selection.