The present study assesses the impact of stereotype threat on how women experience digital gaming in an evaluative context. By means of a controlled lab experiment, this study tested the effects of reinforcing stereotypical information suggesting that women are less competent players versus the effects of countering this stereotype. In doing so, game leaderboard scores were manipulated distinguishing between Stereotype Neutral (high scores without gender cues), Stereotype Boost (female-dominated high scores) and Stereotype Threat (male-dominated high scores) conditions. Results indicated that gamer identity, trait competitiveness, and playing habits modulate the experience of social identity threat. Performance and affective responses elicited by the Stereotype Threat Condition were more negatively affected in case of strongly identified gamers, highly competitive women, and/or avid players when compared with the other conditions. However, virtually no differences were observed when comparing the Stereotype Neutral and Stereotype Boost conditions. Overall, the present study demonstrates the existence of the stereotype threat mechanism and how this undermines the game experience of female players within digital game culture.
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Questions we care about (objectives) This study contributes to the body of knowledge of entrepreneurial educators’ strategies to work towards gender inclusion in entrepreneurial education (EE). By illustrating how gender stereotypes and gender bias are constructed and reconstructed in EE. An important insight is taken from the study by (Jones, 2014), this author shows that entrepreneurs are presented in EE as a homogeneous group with similar character traits and an equal 'entrepreneurial mindset' (p. 244). This description portraits a right way to be an entrepreneur which is traditionally been associated with a white western man, masculine behaviour and masculine abilities (Jones, 2014). As a consequence, a paradox in EE appears; training and education reduces the gender gap on the one hand (Cheraghi and Schøtt, 2015), but at the same time it is also the place where the gender gap is maintained because these gender stereotypes are intertwined in this training and education (Korhonen, Komulainen and Räty, 2012). The aim of this paper is to use Social Role Theory in order to better understand the dynamics of gender in EE. This leads to the following research questions: what are the main mechanisms that contribute to gender-inclusive entrepreneurship education (EE) and how are the different mechanisms that contribute to gender inclusive entrepreneurship education (EE) integrated into the current curriculum?Approach In-depth interviews with 12 lecturers that teach/coach in the field of EE from across various faculties in a large University for Applied Sciences combined with newsletters created by one of largest EE programs at this institution (267 pages in 2020) is carried out. A semi-structured questionnaire was used to guide the in-depth interviews. Subsequently, discourse analysis gives insight into gendering in EE at the investigated institution. Results The main findings suggests that when questioned about the topic all respondents stressed the importance of gender equally, only a few seem to be aware of the need to address the issue in their classroom(s) while none of the programs currently adopt a gender perspective while coaching their potential entrepreneurs or when addressing how the entrepreneurial ecosystem functions. Implications These findings and perspectives point to the importance of recognizing that a “one size fits all” approach to curricula may not be appropriate, and that gender-sensitive programming, especially related to dealing with these gender stereotypes and gender bias, are needed. This means that in educational development there are opportunities to create better education and create equal opportunities for male and female students. Value/originalityWomen still form the minority amongst the population of (potential) entrepreneurs and find it more difficult to grow their venture due to a range of (institutional) barriers. This study shows that, thus far, EE insufficiently addresses this topic and points to opportunities for interventions for increasing the gender inclusiveness of the entrepreneurial ecosystem, especially for female ones, instilling in them the awareness and knowledge that as a female entrepreneur starting a business isn’t without gendered challenges. This research therefore adds to the body of knowledge on the construction and reconstruction of gender stereotypes and gender bias in the field of EE.
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This paper conducted a preliminary study of reviewing and exploring bias strategies using a framework of a different discipline: change management. The hypothesis here is: If the major problem of implicit bias strategies is that they do not translate into actual changes in behaviors, then it could be helpful to learn from studies that have contributed to successful change interventions such as reward management, social neuroscience, health behavioral change, and cognitive behavioral therapy. The result of this integrated approach is: (1) current bias strategies can be improved and new ones can be developed with insight from adjunct study fields in change management; (2) it could be more sustainable to invest in a holistic and proactive bias strategy approach that targets the social environment, eliminating the very condition under which biases arise; and (3) while implicit biases are automatic, future studies should invest more on strategies that empower people as “change agents” who can act proactively to regulate the very environment that gives rise to their biased thoughts and behaviors.
