Purpose Stereotype threat is an important psychological phenomenon in which fear of fulfilling negative stereotypes about one’s group impairs performance. The effects of stereotype threat in medical education are poorly characterized. This study examined the prevalence of racial/ethnic stereotype threat amongst fourth-year medical students and explored its impact on students’ clinical experience. Method This was an explanatory sequential mixed methods study at 2 institutions in 2019. First, the authors administered the quantitative Stereotype Vulnerability Scale (SVS) to fourth-year medical students. The authors then conducted semistructured interviews among a purposive sample of students with high SVS scores, using a qualitative phenomenographic approach to analyze experiences of stereotype threat. The research team considered reflexivity through group discussion and journaling. Results Overall, 52% (184/353) of students responded to the survey. Collectively, 28% of students had high vulnerability to stereotype threat: 82% of Black, 45% of Asian, 43% of Latinx, and 4% of White students. Eighteen students participated in interviews. Stereotype threat was a dynamic, 3-stage process triggered when students experienced the workplace through the colored lens of race/ethnicity by standing out, reliving past experiences, and witnessing microaggressions. Next, students engaged in internal dialogue to navigate racially charged events and workplace power dynamics. These efforts depleted cognitive resources and interfered with learning. Finally, students responded and coped to withstand threats. Immediate and deferred interventions from allies reduced stereotype threat. Conclusions Stereotype threat is common, particularly among non-White students, and interferes with learning. Increased minority representation and developing evidence-based strategies for allyship around microaggressions could mitigate effects of stereotype threat.
The regression equations for second quarter freshman grade point averages on SAT scores were calculated for Anglo‐American and Mexican‐American students at the University of California, Riverside. These regression equations differed significantly for the two groups. However, the use of the regression equation derived from the Anglo‐American sample to predict grades of Mexican‐American students resulted in overprediction. An examination of the standardized regression weights revealed a significant difference in the weight given to SATM. A replication on a much larger sample revealed a similar outcome. These results were considered as a possible heuristic to suggest a scholastic “'strategy” difference between the two ethnic groups.
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