Motivation and Persistence in STEM Education: Addressing Attrition in the STEM Pipeline
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.46328/ijemst.5688Keywords:
STEM, Motivation, Growth mindset, Self-efficacyAbstract
Despite job growth in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) careers and an educational emphasis on developing STEM programs, there is still a shortage of graduates prepared to fill these jobs. This literature review examines the motivational factors that influence persistence in STEM and programs or curricular changes that encourage STEM participation and skill development. The lack of STEM participation threatens the health of national economies and equity, as gender and racial disparities disproportionately affect underrepresented groups. Key motivational factors that impact participation are self-efficacy, growth mindset, and belonging. Active learning that emphasizes personal growth and questioning, along with supportive learning environments, increases engagement. STEM learning should connect to real-life applications, and student benefit from participation in STEM opportunities in their community. Mentorship and role models help students envision themselves in STEM careers, particularly for underrepresented groups, helping them work past perceived barriers. Schools should implement STEM programs at the elementary level and continue to reinforce participation through various programs until graduation.
References
Armutcu, Y., & Bal, A. P. (2023). The effect of mathematical modelling activities on students’ mathematical modelling skills in the context of STEM education. International Journal of Contemporary Educational Research, 10(1), 42–55. https://doi.org/10.33200/ijcer.1131928
Asunda, P. A., & Walker, C. (2018). Integrated STEM: Views and challenges of engineering and technology education K-12 teachers. Career and Technical Education Research, 43(2), 179–194. https://doi.org/10.5328/cter43.2.179
Bandura, A. (1977). Self-Efficacy: Toward a Unifying Theory of Behavioral Change. Psychological Review, 84(2), 191–215.
Bayanova, A. R., Orekhovskaya, N. A., Sokolova, N. L., Shaleeva, E. F., Knyazeva, S. A., & Budkevich, R. L. (2023). Exploring the role of motivation in STEM education: A systematic review. EURASIA Journal of Mathematics, Science and Technology Education, 18(4) em2250. https://doi.org/10.29333/ejmste/13086
Burnette, J. L., Billingsley, J., Banks, G. C., Knouse, L. E., Hoyt, C. L., Pollack, J. M., & Simon, S. (2023). A systematic review and meta-analysis of growth mindset interventions: For whom, how, and why might such interventions work? Psychological Bulletin, 149(3–4), 174–205. https://doi.org/10.1037/bul0000368
Canning, E. A., Muenks, K., Green, D. J., & Murphy, M. C. (2019). STEM faculty who believe ability is fixed have larger racial achievement gaps and inspire less student motivation in their classes. Science Advances, 5(2), eaau4734. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.aau4734
Chambers, B., Lowe, J., & Muldrow, L. (2022). Dissemination of growth mindset principles and attitudes in the division of science and mathematics at a liberal arts college. Journal of STEM Education: Innovations and Research, 23(1), 35–42. https://www.jstem.org/jstem/index.php/JSTEM/article/view/2536
Clark, S., & Soutter, M. (2022). Growth mindset & intellectual risk-taking: Disentangling conflated concepts. Phi Delta Kappan, 104(1), 50–55. https://doi.org/10.1177/00317217221123650
Dasgupta, N., Thiem, K. C., Coyne, A. E., Laws, H., Barbieri, M., & Wells, R. S. (2022). The impact of communal learning contexts on adolescent self-concept and achievement: Similarities and differences across race and gender. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 123(3), 537–558. https://doi.org/10.1037/pspi0000377
Dweck, C. S., & Yeager, D. S. (2019). Mindsets: A view from two eras. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 14(3), 481–496. https://doi.org/10.1177/1745691618804166
Farrell, R. (2023). Technology elective classes’ effects on middle school students’ self-efficacy and learning engagement in science. [Doctoral dissertation, Liberty University]. Scholars Crossing, Liberty University. https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/doctoral/4504/
Flores, A. (2023). The impact of a STEM education program on female and racial minorities’ knowledge and attitude. [Doctoral dissertation, Liberty University]. Scholars Crossing, Liberty University. https://digitalcommons.liberty.edu/doctoral/4470/
Galanti, T. M., & Miller, A. D. (2021). From high school to college calculus: Beliefs about sense-making and mistakes. Journal for STEM Education Research, 4(1), 73–94. https://doi.org/10.1007/s41979-020-00039-7
Goos, M., Carreira, S., & Namukasa, I. K. (2023). Mathematics and interdisciplinary STEM education: Recent developments and future directions. ZDM, 55(7), 1199–1217. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11858-023-01533-z
Hargreaves, E., Quick, L., & Buchanan, D. (2021). Systemic threats to the growth mindset: Classroom experiences of agency among children designated as “lowerattaining.” Cambridge Journal of Education, 51(3), 283–299. https://doi.org/10.1080/0305764X.2020.1829547
Havice, W., Havice, P., Waugaman, C., & Walker, K. (2018). Evaluating the effectiveness of integrative STEM education: Teacher and administrator professional development. Journal of Technology Education, 29(2), 73–90. http://dx.doi.org/10.21061/jte.v29i2.a.5
Jarrard, C., Richardson, D., & Bledsoe, R. (2025). Student perceptions of faculty mindset. Journal of the Scholarship of Teaching and Learning, 25(1). https://doi.org/10.14434/josotl.v25i1.36374
Jiang, S., Shen, J., & Smith, B. E. (2019). Designing discipline-specific roles for interdisciplinary learning: Two comparative cases in an afterschool STEM + L programme. International Journal of Science Education, 41(6), 803–826. https://doi.org/10.1080/09500693.2019.1581958
Koehler, M. J., Mishra, P., & Cain, W. (2013). What is technological pedagogical content knowledge (TPACK)? Journal of Education, 193(3), 13–19. https://doi.org/https://www.bu.edu/journalofeducation/
Kramer, A., Dringenberg, E., Morris, C., & McCarthy, D. (2023). An intervention to promote growth mindset and STEM self-efficacy of high school students: Exploring the complexity of beliefs. Journal of Pre-College Engineering Education Research, 13(1), 1–19. https://doi.org/10.7771/2157-9288.1355
Kristensen, M. A., Larsen, D. M., Seidelin, L., & Svabo, C. (2024). The role of mathematics in STEM activities: Syntheses and a framework from a literature review. International Journal of Education in Mathematics, Science and Technology, 12(2), 418–431. http://doi.org/10.46328/ijemst.3357
Kroeper, K. M., Fried, A. C., & Murphy, M. C. (2022). Towards fostering growth mindset classrooms: Identifying teaching practices that signal instructors’ fixed and growth mindsets beliefs to students. Social Psychology of Education, 25(2-3), 371-398. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11218-022-09689-4
Maass, K., Geiger, V., Ariza, M. R., & Goos, M. (2019). The role of mathematics in interdisciplinary STEM education. ZDM, 51(6), 869–884. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11858-019-01100-5
Macnamara, B. N. & Burgoyne, A. P. (2023). Do growth mindset interventions impact students’ academic achievement? A systematic review and meta-analysis with recommendations for best practices. Psychological Bulletin, 149(3-4), Article 133173. https://doi.org/10.1037/bul0000352
Makonye, J. P., & Moodley, N. P. (2023). Connecting mathematics to STEM education: Interdisciplinary teaching and learning facilitation. ZDM, 55(7), 1365–1373. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11858-023-01522-2
Manalaysay, E. G. (2024). Students’ engagement in a mathematical investigation through online problem-based learning. International Journal on Studies in Education, 6(1), 51–66. https://doi.org/10.46328/ijonse.175
Margot, K. C., & Kettler, T. (2019). Teachers’ perception of STEM integration and education: A systematic literature review. International Journal of STEM Education, 6, 2. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40594-018-0151-2
Mujumdar, S. B., Acharya, H., Shirwaikar, S., & Bafna, P. B. (2024). Assessing impact of problem-based learning using data mining to extract learning patterns. Journal of Applied Research in Higher Education, 16(2), 610–628. https://doi.org/10.1108/JARHE-05-2022-0165
Mulvey, K. L., Cerda-Smith, J., Joy, A., Mathews, C., & Ozturk, E. (2023). Factors that predict adolescents’ engagement with STEM in and out of school. Psychology in the Schools, 60(9), 3648–3665. https://doi.org/10.1002/pits.22946
Nicol, C., Thom, J. S., Doolittle, E., Glanfield, F., & Ghostkeeper, E. (2023). Mathematics education for “STEM as place.” ZDM: Mathematics Education, 55(7), 1231–1242. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11858-023-01498-z
Ozturk, E., Zhao, M., Joy, A., Marlow, C. S., Law, F., Deutsch, A. R., Mathews, C. J., Hoffman, A. J., McGuire, L., Winterbottom, M., Balkwill, F., Burns, K., Butler, L., Drews, M., Fields, G., Smith, H., Rutland, A., Hartstone-Rose, A., & Mulvey, K. L. (2024). The relations between growth mindset, motivational beliefs, and career interest in math intensive fields in informal STEM youth programs. PLoS ONE, 19(4). https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0294276
Parkay, F. W., Anctil, E. J., & Hass, G. (2014), Curriculum leadership (10th ed.). Pearson.
Reinke, L. T. (2019). Toward an analytical framework for contextual problem-based mathematics instruction. Mathematical Thinking and Learning: An Internation al Journal, 21(4), 265–284. https://doi.org/10.1080/10986065.2019.1576004
Samuel, T. S., Buttet, S., & Warner, J. (2023). “I can math, too!”: Reducing math anxiety in STEM-related courses using a combined mindfulness and growth mindset approach (MAGMA) in the classroom. Community College Journal of Research and Practice, 47(10), 613–626. https://doi.org/10.1080/10668926.2022.2050843
Scherer, H. H., McKim, A. J., Wang, H. H., DiBenedetto, C. A., & Robinson, K. (2019). Making sense of the buzz: A systematic review of “STEM” in agriculture, food, and natural resources education literature. Journal of Agricultural Education, 60(2), 28–54. http://dx.doi.org/10.5032/jae.2019.02028
Sisk, V. F., Burgoyne, A. P., Sun, J., Butler, J. L., & Macnamara, B. N. (2018). To what extent and under which circumstances are growth mind-sets important to academic achievement? Two meta-analyses. Psychological Science, 29(4), 549 –571. https://doi.org/10.1177/0956797617739704
Stohlmann, M. (2022). Growth mindset in K-8 STEM education: A review of the literature since 2007. Journal of Pedagogical Research, 6(2), 149-163. https://doi.org/10.33902/JPR.202213029
Sun, K. L. (2018). The role of mathematics teaching in fostering student growth mindset. Journal for Research in Mathematics Education, 49(3), 330–355. https://www.nctm.org/Publications/Journal-for-Research-in-Mathematics-Education/2018/Vol49/Issue3/The-Role-of-Mathematics-Teaching-in-Fostering-Student-Growth-Mindset/
Vongkulluksn, V. W., Matewos, A. M., & Sinatra, G. M. (2021). Growth mindset development in design-based makerspace: A longitudinal study. Journal of Educational Research, 114(2), 139–154. https://doi.org/10.1080/00220671.2021.1872473
Wang, C., Cavanagh, A. J., Bauer, M., Reeves, P. M., Gill, J. C., Chen, X., Hanauer, D. I., & Graham, M. J. (2021). A framework of college student buy-in to evidence-based teaching practices in STEM: The roles of trust and growth mindset. CBE - Life Sciences Education, 20(4). https://doi.org/10.1187/cbe.20-08-0185
Wang, C., Shen, J., & Chao, J. (2022). Integrating computational thinking in STEM education: A literature review. International Journal of Science and Mathematics Education, 20(8), 1949–1972. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10763-021-10227-5
Waters, C. C., & Orange, A. (2022). STEM-driven school culture: Pillars of a transformative STEM approach. Journal of Pedagogical Research, 6(2), 72–90. https://dx.doi.org/10.33902/JPR.202213550
Watson, S., Williams-Duncan, O. M., & Peters, M. L. (2020). School administrators’ awareness of parental STEM knowledge, strategies to promote STEM knowledge, and student STEM preparation. Research in Science & Technological Education, 40(1), 1–20. https://doi.org/10.1080/02635143.2020.1774747
Wieselmann, J. R., Roehrig, G. H., Ring-Whalen, E. A., & Meagher, T. (2021). Becoming a STEM-focused school district: Administrators’ roles and experiences. Education Sciences, 11(12), 805. https://doi.org/10.3390/educsci11120805
Yan, Z., King, R. B., & Haw, Y. H. (2021). Formative assessment, growth mindset, and achievement: examining their relations in the East and the West. Assessment in Education: Principles, Policy & Practice, 28(5-6), 676-702. https://doi.org/10.1080/0969594x.2021.1988510
Yeager, D. S., & Dweck, C. S. (2020). What can be learned from growth mindset controversies? American Psychologist, 75(9), 1269–1284. https://doi.org/10.1037/amp0000794
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2026 International Journal of Education in Mathematics, Science and Technology
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Articles may be used for research, teaching, and private study purposes. Authors alone are responsible for the contents of their articles. The journal owns the copyright of the articles. The publisher shall not be liable for any loss, actions, claims, proceedings, demand, or costs or damages whatsoever or howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with or arising out of the use of the research material.
The author(s) of a manuscript agree that if the manuscript is accepted for publication in the journal, the published article will be copyrighted using a Creative Commons “Attribution 4.0 International” license. This license allows others to freely copy, distribute, and display the copyrighted work, and derivative works based upon it, under certain specified conditions.
Authors are responsible for obtaining written permission to include any images or artwork for which they do not hold copyright in their articles, or to adapt any such images or artwork for inclusion in their articles. The copyright holder must be made explicitly aware that the image(s) or artwork will be made freely available online as part of the article under a Creative Commons “Attribution 4.0 International” license.
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
