Date

2016

Author

Toker, Yonca
Gültaş, Mehmet

Metadata

Show full item record

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.

Item Usage Stats

169
views

178
downloads

Cite This

Aim of the study was to investigate the validity of the STEM Interest Complexity Inventory with university samples in Turkey, which was previously developed and validated in the US. The measure with 127-items in its original version was subjected to Item Response Theory item analyses. Items with lower discrimination and differential functioning across genders based on Graded Response Models were taken out. The measure was shortened to include 37-items covering the sub-factors and 12-items in the general STEM interests measure. The Short Form produced a 4-factor structure; suporting the construct validity hypothesis. Of the 4-factors, numeric interests are now measured with six-items, symbolic interests with 13-, spatial interests with seven-, and STEM-ideas with 11-items. The Short Form yielded moderate associations with the vocational fit criteria of satisfaction with being in a STEMmajor, intentions to graduate from a STEM-major, intentions to pursue a STEM graduate degree, intentions to pursue a career in a STEM-field, and intentions to work in a STEM occupation with relatively higher levels of complexity. The measure yielded small-tomoderate associations with academic success criteria of STEM-course CGPA and grades in mathematics, physics, and chemistry. Thus, the second hypothesis about the criterionrelated validity of the Short Form found support. Albeit with small differences, men displayed higher STEM interests as compared to women, supportng the third hypothesis. Implicit achievement motivation was measured and found moderately associated with academic success and added incremental variance above self-reported achievement motivation; providing support for the fourth and fifth hypotheses. The last hypothesis which stated that STEM interests would channel implicit achivement motivation into being successful did not find support. The relative contribution of achievement motivation, test anxiety, and STEM interests in explaining vocational fit criteria variance were reported. STEM Interest Complexity Inventory Short Form is the major contribution of the study to the scientific literature.

Subject Keywords

Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM), Vocational interests, Occupational complexity levels, Item Response Theory (IRT), Differential Item Functioning (DIF), Implicit achievement motivation

URI

https://app.trdizin.gov.tr/publication/project/detail/TVRVek5qWTI
https://hdl.handle.net/11511/49995

Collections

Department of Psychology, Project and Design