TERMS TO KNOW
This page is designed to give you a better understanding of some terms that may be describing how you are feeling or perhaps why you feel that way.
PRIVILEGEAs an example, privilege is the difference between growing up with money to go to college versus not. It is a special advantage given to a particular individual or group that helps them navigate life's struggles. We all carry privilege in one way or another, for instance, the privilege of being able to attend higher education is one. Privilege has roots in histories of race, gender, socioeconomic status, sexuality, etc.
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INTERSECTIONALITYIntersectionality is a term coined by Kimberle Crenshaw which considers an overlap of social categories (race, class, etc.). This term requires an individual to acknowledge the connection of social groups and patterns of oppression within our society. Intersectionality is often something that is disregarded, when a group acknowledges one form of oppression without making note of other struggles that exist within that same group.
It is worth noting that while it is important to get to know the different identities that we hold, they need not separate us from the chance to better understand each other. |
STEREOTYPE THREAT |
IMPOSTOR SYNDROME |
IMPLICIT BIAS |
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Stereotype threat is the fear of one conforming to the stereotypes about their social group. This is known to be a factor towards academic performance for students of marginalized groups. For example, given the current generalized belief that women aren't good at math, a first-year aspiring mathematican who identifies as female may believe she cannot do well on an exam, and may proceed to fail. These inaccurate beliefs affect our actions in and outside academia.
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Impostor syndrome (or phenomenon) is the belief that a person's success and achievements are undeserved, and that they will be eventually "found out" as a fraud. Impostor syndrome is unfortunately a common experience among many scientists. Do not listen to the negative chatter!
Symptoms may include: perfectionism, overworking, fear of failure, undermining one's own achievements, and discounting praise. |
An implicit bias or stereotype is the unconscious belief that members of a certain social group have a certain set of qualities. It's very important to make note of our own biases, so that we can work on challenging those thoughts that we may or may not have about each other. This is also a concept that is good to note about people's interactions with you and why their behavior is present.
Wanna check out at least some of your biases? |
Check out these papers that discuss more!
This is a good paper that focuses specifically on diversity in physics and includes implicit bias:
physicstoday.scitation.org/doi/10.1063/PT.3.3536
physicstoday.scitation.org/doi/10.1063/PT.3.3536
This paper offers an opinion as to why some minority students leave STEM fields early and mentions a bit on stereotype threat:
www.insidehighered.com/news/2019/02/26/latinx-black-college-students-leave-stem-majors-more-white-students
www.insidehighered.com/news/2019/02/26/latinx-black-college-students-leave-stem-majors-more-white-students
This is another good read on how a disadvantaged background doesn't have to be a barrier to success:
www.nature.com/articles/d41586-019-00617-9
www.nature.com/articles/d41586-019-00617-9