Parental beliefs mediating the occurrence of stereotype threat effects in young children

Mathematics performance, as a function of gender, appears to diverge as children grow into adolescence. One explanation for these differences is the theory of stereotype threat (ST). ST theory states that once individuals become aware of stereotypes regarding the abilities of other in-group members, their performance on a given task may be impacted. For example, research has consistently shown that from adolescence through normal developmental trajectories, females tend to underperform on difficult math tests in relation to men while under conditions of ST. When the threat is removed, females tend to perform at a level equal with matched male counterparts. It is argued that ST effects are not evident in elementary school children because young children do not possess knowledge about social stereotypes. This argument implies that if they did have this knowledge, ST effects would occur, and gender differences in mathematics ability would be evident with this age group.;This study examined the education-related beliefs of elementary school age children in relation to the occurrence of stereotype threat effects. Parents' beliefs about gender and mathematics ability were investigated as a mediating influence on child beliefs, as prior research suggests that the belief systems of very young children are often informed by their parents' beliefs. It was hypothesized that elementary school-aged children would hold similar beliefs to those of their parents regarding gender and mathematics ability. It was further expected children at this age would be resilient to ST effects if their parents expressed no opinion on gender differences in mathematics abilities. We expected to find that parent neutrality, and not childhood chauvinism, was responsible for resiliency to ST effects with this age group. The data were analyzed using a 2 x 2 x 3 ANOVA. No significant interactions or main effects were realized. Being that ST effects were not realized, and parents were not neutral in their beliefs, paired T-tests were performed to investigate the chauvinism hypothesis. It was found that young girls were significantly more chauvinistic in their beliefs about their abilities than were young boys. These findings suggest that chauvinism may serve to insulate young girls from stereotype threat effects where mathematics performance is concerned.