Critical mass or critical culture? Gendered perceptions of women and men in an engineering school

Your school reached its target percentage for women in engineering. So what? And now what? With all the discussion and reporting of percentages of women in engineering, educators may be tempted to assume that attaining a target number, or ‘critical mass,’ alone solves the problems related to engagement of a gender diverse student body. We argue that while critical mass may be necessary, it is insufficient. We submit that a thriving and diverse learning ecosystem must recognize the importance of interactions, associations, values, and identities in shaping a culture of inclusiveness. To that end, in this study we characterized the motivations, professional identities, basic needs satisfaction, and self-efficacy of undergraduate students in an engineering school with a relatively high percentage of enrolled women. In this environment that passes common critical mass thresholds, we observed gendered responses that call into question the use of simple percentages as proxies for inclusiveness in engineering. Specifically, we found that women and men held some common values, and similarly endorsed certain identity traits such as problem solving and practicality. Compared to men, however, women reported lower self-efficacy, lower endorsement of technological leadership, higher emphasis on social consciousness, and less freedom to express their ideas and opinions. These findings raise important questions about inclusive design of engineering cultures, and they help illustrate where women and men may find personal and professional alignment versus misalignment in their programs.