Can Holland’s Person-Environment Fit Theory Produce Troubling Outcomes for Racial/Ethnic Underrepresented Students in STEM? An Analysis of Social Agency

Increasing the success of Underrepresented Students of Color (USC) in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) is a central concern to many researchers, policymakers, and educators. To help understand STEM college student success, many studies have utilized Holland’s (1966, 1973, 1985, 1997) person-environment fit framework applying it uncritically to all students. Using Quantitative Criticalism, this study engages the racial realities of USC while investigating several assumptions of Holland’s theory and their implications for USC pursuing STEM fields. Utilizing a national, lo... Mehr ...