Family matters! The influence of family, peers, mentors, and professors on STEM college students motivational beliefs and career decision making

Abstract

Support from family, peers, mentors, and professors has a crucial role in the development of students motivational beliefs about learning. However, the relative importance of each of these social supports in affecting students motivation, and the precise processes through which these social factors motivate students, are not well understood at the college level. The present study examined how family, peers, mentors, and professors shaped science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) college students motivational beliefs for career decision making, defining motivational beliefs in accordance with situated expectancy-value theory. We collected survey and open-ended responses from a large sample of college students (n = 2,229) in 42 unique STEM courses at a large, public southeastern university in the United States. We examined how, why, and for whom different social supports influenced students task-value and/or competence related motivational beliefs for career-decision making. Results indicated that students most often selected interactions with family members as influencing their career decision-making, both in terms of overall influences and as the strongest influence, relative to interactions with peers, mentors, or professors. For all social influences, most students reported being attracted in a positive way towards certain careers as a result of social interactions, as opposed to socializers making students disenchanted with careers. Most students described how social supports influenced motivational beliefs related to task values, with comparatively fewer referencing social influences on competence-related beliefs. Findings highlight the important role of multiple social supports, particularly family, in shaping students motivational beliefs and career decision-making throughout emerging adulthood. Educational Impact and Implications StatementPreparing a qualified and diverse STEM workforce requires a robust understanding of the factors that influence college students motivational beliefs and decisions about their career paths. We examined how, why, and for whom support from family, peers, mentors, and professors impacted STEM college students career motivation and decision making, using both qualitative and quantitative data. Results suggest that family plays a particularly crucial role in shaping college students career motivation, especially by helping them see the positive value of particular career paths. Findings help illustrate the importance of different kinds of social support in guiding career choices throughout emerging adulthood.