Science identity and science capital: new challenges for education and didactic research
Downloads
- PDF (Español (España)) 177
- EPUB (Español (España)) 17
- VISOR (Español (España))
- MÓVIL (Español (España))
- XML (Español (España)) 18
DOI
https://doi.org/10.25267/Rev_Eureka_ensen_divulg_cienc.2025.v22.i3.3102Info
Authors
- María Antonia Manassero-Mas (ES) Departamento de Psicología, Universidad de las Islas Baleares https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7804-7779
- Ángel Vázquez Alonso (ES) Universidad de las Islas Baleares http://orcid.org/0000-0001-5830-7062
Abstract
Concerns around the world about the lack of interest and participation in STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) among young people, as well as the effects of social inequality based on gender, ethnicity, and class have led researchers to look into science identity (SI) and science capital (SC). Both emerge as research answers to those global concerns to learn more about the reasons and goals behind study choice decisions. This study develops a conceptual analysis of SI and SC, their psychosocial theoretical basis, and their mutual relationships on the basis of their generative studies. Next, the primarily qualitative results of the foundational SI and SC programs are explored and compared with the extensive analytical research on the interests, attitudes, and experiences of young people towards STEM disciplines and their aspirations for a career in STEM, where the inclusion of women and minorities represents a key factor that connects both research programs. The nascent development of quantitative studies on SI and SC, along with the various challenges this orientation faces, the potential benefits for improving the understanding of aspirations and participation in STEM, and the differential impacts of STEM education on social groups are also presented. The emergence of SI and SC is interpreted as a paradigm shift in the research of affective aspects in STEM education, moving from previous analytical research focused on multiple interests, attitudes, and experiences to synthetic research centered on two broad and global, yet diffuse, constructs, SI and SC, which more intensely reiterate the inclusive goal of STEM teaching in a more equitable and socially just manner.
Keywords
Downloads
Supporting Agencies
How to Cite
License
Copyright (c) 2025 María Antonia Manassero-Mas, Ángel Vázquez Alonso
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License.
Require authors to agree to Copyright Notice as part of the submission process. This allow the / o authors / is non-commercial use of the work, including the right to place it in an open access archive. In addition, Creative Commons is available on flexible copyright licenses (Creative Commons).
Reconocimiento-NoComercial
CC BY-NC
References
Aguilera, D. y Perales-Palacios, F. J. (2019). Actitud hacia la Ciencia : desarrollo y validación estructural del School Science Attitude Questionnaire (SSAQ). Revista Eureka Sobre Enseñanza y Divulgación de Las Ciencias, 16(3). https://doi.org/10.25267/Rev_Eureka_ensen_divulg_cienc.2019.v16.i3.3103
Arandia Aldalur, E., Zuza Elosegi, K. y Guisasola Aranzabal, J. (2016). Actitudes y motivaciones de los estudiantes de ciencias en Bachillerato y Universidad hacia el aprendizaje de la Física. Revista Eureka Sobre Enseñanza y Divulgación de Las Ciencias, 13(3), 558-573. https://revistas.uca.es/index.php/eureka/article/view/2990
Archer Ker, L., DeWitt, J., Osborne, J. F., Dillon, J. S., Wong, B. y Willis, B. (2013). ASPIRES Report: Young people’s science and career aspirations, age 10-14. King's College London.
Archer, L., Dawson, E., Dewitt, J., Seakins, A. y Wong, B. (2015). ‘‘Science capital’’: A conceptual, methodological, and empirical argument for extending Bourdieusian notions of capital beyond the arts. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 52(7), 922–948. https://doi.org/10.1002/tea.21227
Archer, L., Dewitt, J., Osborne, J., Dillon, J., Willis, B. y Wong, B. (2010). “Doing” science versus “Being” a scientist: Examining 10/11-year-old schoolchildren’s constructions of science through the lens of identity. Science Education, 94(4). https://doi.org/10.1002/sce.20399
Archer, L., Godec, S. y Moote, J. (2022). “My love for it just wasn’t enough to get me through”: A longitudinal case study of factors supporting and denying black British working-class young women’s science identities and trajectories. En H. T. Holmegaard y L. Archer (Eds.), Science identities: Theory, method and research (pp. 23-45). Springer International Publishing.
Aschbacher, P. R., Li, E. y Roth, E. J. (2010). Is science me? High school students’ identities, participation and aspirations in science, engineering, and medicine. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 47(5), 564-582. https://doi.org/10.1002/TEA.20353
Avraamidou, L. (2020). Science identity as a landscape of becoming: rethinking recognition and emotions through an intersectionality lens. Cultural Studies of Science Education, 15, 323-345. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11422-019-09954-7
Avraamidou, L. y Schwartz, R. (2021). Who aspires to be a scientist/who is allowed in science? Science identity as a lens to exploring the political dimension of the nature of science. Cultural Studies of Science Education, 16(2), 337-344. https://doi.org/10.1007/S11422-021-10059-3/FIGURES/2
Barton, A. C. y Tan, E. (2010). We be burnin’! Agency, identity, and science learning. Journal of the Learning Sciences, 19(2), 187-229. https://doi.org/10.1080/10508400903530044
Barton, A. C., Kang, H., Tan, E., O’Neill, T. B., Bautista-Guerra, J. y Brecklin, C. (2013). Crafting a future in science: tracing middle school girls’ identity work over time and space. American Educational Research Journal, 50(1), 37-75. https://doi.org/10.3102/0002831212458142
Bourdieu, P. (1986). The Forms of Capital. In J. Richardson (Ed.), Handbook of Theory and Research for the Sociology of Education (pp. 241-258). Greenwood.
Butterfield, S. M. J. y Marshall, K. B. (2022). Using qualitative metasynthesis to understand the factors that contribute to science identity development across contexts in secondary and post-secondary students from underrepresented groups. En H. T. Holmegaard y L. Archer (Eds.), Science identities: Theory, method and research (pp. 273-298). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-17642-5
Carlone, H. B. y Johnson, A. (2007). Understanding the science experiences of successful women of color: Science identity as an analytic lens. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 44(8), 1187-1218. https://doi.org/10.1002/TEA.20237
Chang, M. J., Kevin Eagan, M., Lin, M. H. y Hurtado, S. (2011). Considering the Impact of Racial Stigmas and Science Identity: Persistence Among Biomedical and Behavioral Science Aspirants. The Journal of Higher Education, 82(5), 564. https://doi.org/10.1353/JHE.2011.0030
Chemers, M. M., Zurbriggen, E. L., Syed, M., Goza, B. K. y Bearman, S. (2011). The role of efficacy and identity in science career commitment among underrepresented minority students. Journal of Social Issues, 67, 469-491.
Chen, S. y Wei, B. (2022). Development and Validation of an Instrument to Measure High School Students’ Science Identity in Science Learning. Research in Science Education, 52(1), 111-126. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11165-020-09932-y
Cohen, S. M., Hazari, Z., Mahadeo, J., Sonnert, G. y Sadler, P. M. (2021). Examining the effect of early STEM experiences as a form of STEM capital and identity capital on STEM identity: A gender study. Science Education, 105(6), 1126-1150. https://doi.org/10.1002/SCE.21670
Danielsson, A. T., King, H., Godec, S. y Nyström, A. S. (2023). The identity turn in science education research: a critical review of methodologies in a consolidating field. Cultural Studies of Science Education, 18(3), 695-754. https://doi.org/10.1007/S11422-022-10130-7/TABLES/4
de Pro Bueno, A. y Pérez Manzano, A. (2014). Actitudes de los alumnos de Primaria y Secundaria ante la visión dicotómica de la Ciencia. Enseñanza de Las Ciencias. Revista de Investigación y Experiencias Didácticas, 32(3), 111-132. https://doi.org/10.5565/rev/ensciencias.1015
DeWitt, J., Archer, L. y Osborne, J. (2013a). Nerdy, brainy and normal: Children’s and parents’ constructions of those who are highly engaged with science. Research in Science Education, 43(4), 1455-1476. https://doi.org/10.1007/S11165-012-9315-0/METRICS
DeWitt, J., Osborne, J., Archer, L., Dillon, J., Willis, B. y Wong, B. (2013b). Young children’s aspirations in science: The unequivocal, the uncertain and the unthinkable. International Journal of Science Education, 35(6), 1037-1063.
Dou, R., Hazari, Z., Dabney, K., Sonnert, G. y Sadler, P. (2019). Early informal STEM experiences and STEM identity: The importance of talking science. Science Education, 103(3), 623-637.
Drymiotou, I., Constantinou, C. P. y Avraamidou, L. (2021). Enhancing students’ interest in science and understandings of STEM careers: the role of career-based scenarios. International Journal of Science Education, 43(5), 717-736. https://doi.org/10.1080/09500693.2021.1880664
Eccles, J. S., Fredricks, J. A. y Baay, P. (2015). Expectancies, values, identities, and self-regulation. En G. Oettingen y P. M. Gollwitzer (Eds.), The Jacobs Foundation Series on Adolescence (pp. 30-56). Cambridge University Press.
European Commission. (2004). Europe needs more scientists. Office for Official Publications of European Communities.
European Commission. (2012). Rethinking education: Investing in skills for better socio-economic outcomes. COM(2012) 669. European Commission.
Gee, J. P. (2000). Identity as an analytic lens for research in education. Review of Research in Education, 25(1), 99-125.
Grimalt-Álvaro, C. y Couso, D. (2022). ¿Qué sabemos del posicionamiento STEM del alumnado? Una revisión sistemática de la literatura. Revista de Investigación Educativa, 40(2), 531-547. https://doi.org/10.6018/RIE.467901
Hazari, Z., Sadler, P. M. y Sonnert, G. (2013). The Science Identity of College Students: Exploring the Intersection of Gender, Race, and Ethnicity. Journal of College Science Teaching, 42(5), 82-91. https://doi.org/10.2505/4/jcst13_042_05_82
Hazari, Z., Sonnert, G., Sadler, P. M. y Shanahan, M. C. (2010). Connecting high school physics experiences, outcome expectations, physics identity, and physics career choice: a gender study. Journal of Research in Science Teaching, 47(8), 978-1003.
Hill, C., Corbett, C. y St. Rose, A. (2010). Why So Few? Women in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics. Report Published by the American Association of University Women (AAUW).
Hill, J. L., van Driel, J., Seah, W. T. y Kern, M. L. (2024). Students’ values in science education: a scoping review. Studies in Science Education, 1-53. https://doi.org/10.1080/03057267.2024.2412456
Jenkins, E. W. (2006). The Student Voice and School Science Education. Studies in Science Education, 42, 49-88. https://doi.org/10.1080/03057260608560220
Jenkins, E. W. y Nelson, N. W. (2010). Important but not for me: Students’ attitudes towards secondary school science in England. Research in Science y Technological Education, 23(1), 41-57. https://doi.org/10.1080/02635140500068435
Jiang, Z. y Wei, B. (2025). Understanding Science Identity Development Among College Students A Systematic Literature Review. Science & Education, 34, 1797-1824. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11191-023-00478-9
Jones, M. G., Chesnutt, K., Ennes, M., Macher, D. y Paechter, M. (2022). Measuring science capital, science attitudes, and science experiences in elementary and middle school students. Studies in Educational Evaluation, 74, 101180. https://doi.org/10.1016/J.STUEDUC.2022.101180
Jones, S. R. y McEwen, M. K. (2000). A conceptual model of multiple dimensions of identity. Journal of College Student Development, 41(4), 405-414.
Kim, A. Y. y Sinatra, G. M. (2018). Science identity development: An interactionist approach. International Journal of STEM Education, 5, 51. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40594-018-0149-9
Kim, A. Y., Sinatra, G. M. y Seyranian, V. (2018). Developing a STEM identity among young women: A social identity perspective. Review of Educational Research, 88(4), 589-625. https://doi.org/10.3102/0034654318779957
Kontkanen, S., Koskela, T., Kanerva, O., Kärkkäinen, S., Waltzer, K., Mikkilä-Erdmann, M. y Havu-Nuutinen, S. (2025). Science capital as a lens for studying science aspirations–a systematic review. Studies in Science Education, 61(1), 89-115. https://doi.org/10.1080/03057267.2024.2388931
Krapp, A. y Prenzel, M. (2011). Research on Interest in Science: Theories, Methods, and Findings. International Journal of Science Education, 33(1), 27-50. https://doi.org/10.1080/09500693.2010.518645
Lyons, T. y Quinn, F. (2010). Choosing science. Understanding the declines in senior highschool science enrolments. University of New England. http://simerr.une.edu.au/pages/projects/131choosingscience.pdf
Manassero-Mas, M. A., Bonnín, S. O. y Vázquez-Alonso, Á. (2025). Science Identity and Science Capital: Empirical Mapping from the Participation in Science at Secondary Schools. Journal of Baltic Science Education, 24(2), 326-339. https://doi.org/10.33225/jbse/25.24.326
Manstead, A. S. R., Hewstone, M., Fiske, S. T., Hogg, M. A., Reis, H. T. y Semin, G. R. (Eds.), (1995). The Blackwell encyclopaedia of social psychology. Blackwell.
McDonald, M. M., Zeigler-Hill, V., Vrabel, J. K. y Escobar, M. (2019). A Single-Item Measure for Assessing STEM Identity. Frontiers in Education, 4, 466789. https://doi.org/10.3389/FEDUC.2019.00078/BIBTEX
Miles, J. A. y Naumann, S. E. (2021). Science self-efficacy in the relationship between gender y science identity. International Journal of Science Education, 43(17), 2769-2790. https://doi.org/10.1080/09500693.2021.1986647
Moote, J., Archer, L., DeWitt, J. y MacLeod, E. (2021). Who has high science capital? An exploration of emerging patterns of science capital among students aged 17/18 in England. Research Papers in Education, 36(4), 402-422. https://doi.org/10.1080/02671522.2019.1678062
Mulvey, K. L., McGuire, L., Channing, M., Hoffman, A. J., Law, F., Joy, A., Hartstone-Rose, A., Winterbottom, M., Balkwill, F. Fields, G. Butler, L., Burns, K., Drews, M. y Rutland, A. (2022). Preparing the next generation for STEM: Adolescent profiles encompassing math and science motivation and interpersonal skills and their associations with identity and belonging. Youth & Society, 55(6), 1207-1230. https://doi.org/10.1177/0044118X221085296
Muñoz van den Eynde, A. (2021). The image of science: Analyzing the influence of knowledge, interest and perception in the willingness to engage in science in Europe and US. CIEMAT. http://documenta.ciemat.es/handle/123456789/1476
Murphy, K. M. y Kelp, N. C. (2023). Undergraduate STEM students’ science communication skills, science identity, and science self-efficacy influence their motivations and behaviours in STEM community engagement. Journal of Microbiology y Biology Education, 24(1), 1-11. https://doi.org/10.1128/jmbe.00182-22
Nadelson, L. S., McGuire, S. P., Davis, K. A., Farid, A., Hardy, K. K., Hsu, Y.-C., et al. (2015). Am I a STEM professional? Documenting STEM student professional identity development. Studies in Higher Education, 42, 1-20. https://doi.org/ 10.1080/03075079.2015.1070819
Naganuma, S. (2023). Attitudinal decline toward school science: a focus group approach with Japanese undergraduate students. International Journal of Science Education, 45(13), 1053-1073. https://doi.org/10.1080/09500693.2023.2183099
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. (2008). Education at a Glance 2008: OECD Indicators. OECD.
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. (2016). PISA 2015 results (Vol. I): Excellence and equity in education. OECD Publishing. http://dx.doi.org/10.1787/9789264266490-en
Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. (2023). PISA 2025 science framework (draft). OECD Publishing. https://pisa-framework.oecd.org/science-2025/
Osborne, J. y Dillon, J. (2008). Science education in Europe: Critical reflections. A report to the Nuffield Foundation. Nuffield Foundation.
Osborne, J., Simon, S. y Collins, S. (2003). Attitudes towards science: A review of the literature and its implications. International Journal of Science Education, 25(9) 1049-1079. https://doi.org/10.1080/0950069032000032199
Palmer, T. A., Burke, P. F. y Aubusson, P. (2017). Why school students choose and reject science: A study of the factors that students consider when selecting subjects. International Journal of Science Education, 39(6), 645-662. https://doi.org/10.1080/09500693.2017.1299949
Paul, K. M., Maltese, A. V. y Svetina Valdivia, D. (2020). Development and validation of the role identity surveys in engineering (RIS-E) and STEM (RIS-STEM) for elementary students. International Journal of STEM Education, 7(1), 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1186/S40594-020-00243-2/FIGURES/2
Potvin, P. y Hasni, A. (2014). Interest, motivation and attitude towards science and technology at K-12 levels: A systematic review of 12 years of educational research. Studies in Science Education, 50(1), 85-129. https://doi.org/10.1080/03057267.2014.881626
Rodríguez González, E. (2011). Ciencia y tecnología: ¿En qué piensan los jóvenes 2.0? En Fundación Española para la Ciencia y la Tecnología (Ed.), Percepción Social de la Ciencia y la Tecnología en España, (pp. 203-235). Author.
Sandrone, S. (2022). Science identity and its “Identity Crisis”: On science identity and strategies to foster self-efficacy and sense of belonging in STEM. Frontiers in Education, 7, 871869. https://doi.org/10.3389/feduc.2022.871869
Sinclair, S., Nilsson, A. y Cederskär, E. (2019). Explaining gender-typed educational choice in adolescence: The role of social identity, self-concept, goals, grades and interests. Journal of Vocational Behavior, 110, 54-71. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jvb.2018.11.007
Sjøberg, S. y Schreiner, C. (2019). ROSE (The relevance of science education): The development, key findings and impacts of an international low cost comparative project. ROSE Final Report, Part 1. University of Oslo.
Starr, C. R. (2018). “I’m not a science nerd!”. Psycholgy of Women Quarterly, 42, 489-503. https://doi.org/10.1177/0361684318793848
Stets, J. E., Brenner, P. S., Burke, P. J. y Serpe, R. T. (2017). The science identity and entering a science occupation. Social Science Research, 64, 1-14. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssresearch.2016.10.016
Taconis, R. (2022). Representing STEM identities as pragmatic configurations. En H. T. Holmegaard y L. Archer (Eds.), Science identities: Theory, method and research (pp. 299–332). Springer International Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-031-17642-5
Tajfel, H. (1981). Human Groups and Social Categories. Cambridge University Press.
Tang, C., Yi, T., Naumann, S. E. y Dong, J. (2024). The influence of subjective norms and science identity on academic career intentions. Higher Education, 87, 1937-1956. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10734-023-01099-5
Trujillo, G. y Tanner, K. D. (2014). Considering the role of affect in learning: monitoring students’ self-efficacy, sense of belonging, and science identity. Life Sciences Education, 13, 6-15. https://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.13-12-0241
Vázquez, Á. y Manassero, M. A. (1997). Escribir sobre ciencia: la imagen de la ciencia y de los científicos entre los adolescentes. Cultura y Educación, 9(2-3), 181-206. https://doi.org/10.1174/113564097761403571
Vázquez, Á. y Manassero, A. (1998). Dibuja un científico: imagen de los científicos en estudiantes de secundaria. Infancia y Aprendizaje, 21(1), 3-26. https://doi.org/10.1174/021037098320825226
Vázquez, Á. y Manassero, M. A. (2004). Imagen de la ciencia y la tecnología al final de la educación obligatoria. Cultura y Educación, 16(4), 385-398. https://doi.org/10.1174/1135640042802
Vázquez, Á. y Manassero, M. A. (2008). El declive de las actitudes hacia la ciencia de los estudiantes: un indicador inquietante para la educación científica. Revista Eureka Sobre Enseñanza y Divulgación de Las Ciencias., 8(3), 274-292. https://doi.org/10.25267/REV_EUREKA_ENSEN_DIVULG_CIENC.2008.V5.I3.03
Vázquez Alonso, Á. y Manassero Mas, M. A. (2007a). En defensa de las actitudes y emociones en la educación científica (I): evidencias y argumentos generales. Revista Eureka Sobre Enseñanza y Divulgación de Las Ciencias., 4(2), 247-271. https://doi.org/10.25267/rev_eureka_ensen_divulg_cienc.2007.v4.i2.03
Vázquez-Alonso, Á. y Manassero-Mas, M. A. (2007b). En defensa de las actitudes y emociones en la educación científica (II): evidencias empíricas derivadas de la investigación. Revista Eureka Sobre Enseñanza y Divulgación de Las Ciencias., 4(3), 417-441. https://doi.org/10.25267/rev_eureka_ensen_divulg_cienc.2007.v4.i3.03
Vincent-Ruz, P. y Schunn, C. D. (2018). The nature of science identity and its role as the driver of student choices. International Journal of STEM Education, 5(48), 1-12. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40594-018-0140-5
Wagner, C. J. (2024). Toward a Shared Conception of Children’s Content Area Identities in Literacy, Math, and Science: A Systematic Integrative Review. Review of Educational Research, 94(3), 343-375. https://doi.org/10.3102/00346543231184888
Worthington, M., Salamonson, Y., Weaver, R. y Cleary, M. (2013). Predictive validity of the Macleod Clark professional identity scale for undergraduate nursing students. Nurse Education Today, 33, 187-191. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.nedt.2012.01.012