Barriers to STEM Efficacy and Outcome Expectations Among Native American College Students

Native Americans are severely underrepresented in science, technology, engineering, and math (STEM). In this study, we examined the construal, salience, and relevance of the barriers that Native American college students believe could impact their STEM career preparation. An exploratory factor analysis of the Perceptions of Educational Barriers Scale conducted with 152 Native American college students yielded 8 perceived barrier factors: school expensive, lack of access, lack of preparation, not smart enough, not good at math/science, family responsibilities, discrimination, and lack of support. School expense was by far their greatest barrier, and for men, this barrier negatively predicted their STEM career self-efficacy, with self-efficacy positively predicting their STEM career outcome expectations. For women, lack of support positively predicted their STEM career self-efficacy, with self-efficacy positively predicting and discrimination negatively predicting their STEM career outcome expectations. Results are interpreted in light of social cognitive career theory.