CoChat
Sign Up
Cited by 169Career Development and DiversityHigher Education Research StudiesScience Education and Perceptions

Structural Precursors to Identity Processes: The Role of Proximate Social Structures

Open access
Merolla, David M., Serpe, Richard T., Stryker, Sheldon, Schultz, P. Wesley·2012·Social Psychology Quarterly
DOI 10.1177/0190272511436352
Open this paper in CoChat — free accountOpen PDF

Abstract

This research investigates how participation in college-based science-training programs increases student intention to pursue a scientific career. Using identity theory, we delineate three levels of social structure and conceptualize science-training programs as proximate social structures. Results from a sample of 892 undergraduate science students are supportive of identity theory and indicate that participation in proximate social structures leads to increased commitment to a science identity, increased salience of a science identity, and increased intention to pursue a scientific career. This study contributes to the literature on identity theory by demonstrating how participation in proximate social structures can lead to subsequent identity processes, thus refining the understanding of how society shapes the self and clarifying how social positioning affects choices for behavior. Additionally, the conceptualization of proximate social structures provides an avenue for applications of identity theory to investigations of other social interventions as well as mechanisms leading to social inequality.

The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.

Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.

A few free checks a day · papers already verified open instantly · results are public

Integrity signals

Registry

Crossref · 10.1177/0190272511436352

Cites

3 of 3 references verified0 citation errors · 0 not checkable

Statistics

Claims the paper makes

The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.

Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.

A few free checks a day · papers already verified open instantly · results are public

Claims other papers make about this one

Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?

Self-check

Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.

The self-check needs the paper’s full text.

Cites

Flagged first, then by citations

Research works printed but not linked: 50

  1. Ajzen, Icek and Martin Fishbein. 1969. ''The Prediction of Behavioral Intentions in a Choice Situation.'' Journal of Experimental Social Psychology 5(4):400-416.
  2. Blau, Peter. 1977. ''A Macrosociological Theory of Social Structure.'' American Sociological Review 83(1):26-54.
  3. Burke, Peter. 2004. ''Identities and Social Structure: 2003 Cooley-Mead Award Address.'' Social Psychology Quarterly 67(1):1-15.
  4. Burke, Peter and Jan E. Stets. 2009. Identity Theory. New York: Oxford University Press.
  5. Callero, Peter L. 1985. ''Role Identity Salience.'' Social Psychology Quarterly 48(3):203-214.
  6. Cassidy, Clare and Karen Crew. 2001. ''Assessing Identity Change: A Longitudinal Study of the Transition from School to College.'' Group Processes and Intergroup Relations 4(1):49-60.
  7. Cassidy, Clare and Karen Crew. 2004. ''Identity Change in Northern Ireland: A Longitudinal Study of Students' Transition to University.'' Journal of Social Issues 60(3):523-40.
  8. Collins, Sharon. 2005. ''Blacks on the Bubbles: The Vulnerability of Black Executives in White Corporations.'' The Sociological Quarterly 34(3):429-47. Committee on Women in Science and Engineering of the National Research Council. 1991. Women in Science and Engineering: Increasing Their Numbers in the 1990s. Washington, DC: National Academic Press.
  9. Crisp, Gloria, Amaury Nora, and Amanda Taggart. 2009. ''Student Characteristics, Pre-College, College, and Environmental Factors as Predictors of Majoring in and Earning a STEM Degree: An Analysis of Students Attending a Hispanic Serving Institution.'' American Educational Research Journal 46(4):924- 42.
  10. Erickson, Rebecca J. and Christian Ritter. 2001. ''Emotional Labor, Burnout, and Inauthen-ticity: Does Gender Matter?'' Social Psychology Quarterly 64(2):146- 63.
  11. Fenske, Robert H., John Porter, and Caryl DuBrock. 2000. ''Tracking Financial Aid and Persistence of Women, Minority, and Needy Students in Science, Engineering, and Mathematics.'' Research in Higher Education 41(1):67-94.
  12. Fishbein, Martin and Icek Ajzen. 2010. Predicting and Changing Behavior: The Reasoned Action Approach. New York: Psychology Press.
  13. Government Accountability Office. 2005. Federal Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics Programs and Related Trends. Washington, DC: US Government Press.
  14. Heise, David R. 1979. Understanding Events: Affect and the Construction of Social Action. Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
  15. Hoff, Timothy, Winthrop F. Whitcomb, and John R. Nelson. 2002. ''Thriving and Surviving in a New Medical Career: The Case of Hospitalist Physicians.'' Journal of Health and Social Behavior 43(1):72-91.
  16. Hurtado, Sylvia, M. Kevin Eagan, Nolan Cabrera, Monica Lin, Julie Park, and Miguel Lopez. 2008. ''Training Future Scientists: Predicting First-Year Minority Student Participation in Health Science Research.'' Research in Higher Education 49(2):126-52.
  17. Jackson, Shirley A. 2006. The Quiet Crisis: Falling Short in Producing American Scientific and Technical Talent. Washington, DC: Building Engineering and Science Talent. Kaufman, Peter. 2005. ''Middle-Class Social Reproduction: The Activation and Negotiation of Structural Advantage.'' Sociological Forum 20(2):245-70.
  18. Lee, James T. 1998. ''Which Kids Can 'Become' Scientists? Effects of Gender, Self-Concepts, and Perceptions of Scientists.'' Social Psychology Quarterly 61(3):199-219.
  19. Lee, James T. 2002. ''More than Ability: Gender and Personal Relationships Influence Science and Technology Involvement.'' Sociology of Education 75(4):349-73.
  20. Lorber, Judith. 1995. Paradoxes of Gender. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.
  21. Maton, Kenneth I. and Freeman A. Hrabowski III. 2004. ''Increasing the Number of African American PhDs in Science and Engineering: A Strengths Based Approach.'' American Psychologist 59(6):547- 56.
  22. Mead, George Herbert. 1934. Mind, Self, and Society. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.
  23. Milem, Jeffrey F. 1998. ''Attitude Change in College Students: Examining the Effect of College Peer Groups and Faculty Normative Groups.'' The Journal of Higher Education 69(2):117-40.
  24. National Academy of Sciences, National Academy of Engineering, and the National Academy of Mathematics. 2007. Rising above the Gathering Storm: Energizing and Employing America for a Brighter Future. Washington, DC: National Academies Press.
  25. National Center for Educational Statistics. 2009. Digest of Educational Statistics. Washington, DC: U.S. Government Printing Office. National Institute of Health. 2006. Assessment of NIH Minority Research and Training Programs: Phase 3. Washington, DC: National Academies Press.
  26. Nuttbrock, Larry and Patricia Freudinger. 1991. ''Identity Salience and Mothering: A Test of Stryker's Theory.'' Social Psychology Quarterly 54:146-57.
  27. Owens, Timothy. 2003. ''Self and Identity.'' Pp. 205-232 in The Handbook of Social Psychology, edited by J. DeLamater. New York: Springer.
  28. Owens, Timothy, Dawn Robinson, and Lynee Smith-Lovin. 2010. ''Three Faces of Identity.'' Annual Review of Sociology 36:477-99.
  29. Palmer, Robert and Marybeth Gasman. 2008. '''It Takes a Village to Raise a Child': The Role of Social Capital in Promoting Academic Success for African American Men at a Black College.'' Journal of College Student Development 49 (1):52-70.
  30. Pasley, Kay, Ted G. Futris, and Martie L. Skinner. 2002. ''Effects of Commitment and Psychological Centrality on Fathering.'' Journal of Marriage and the Family 64(1):130-38.
  31. Riegle-Crumb, Catherine and Rebecca M. Callahan. 2009. ''Exploring the Academic Benefits of Friendship Ties for Latino Boys and Girls.'' Social Science Quarterly 90(3):611-31.
  32. Riegle-Crumb, Catherine, George Farkas, and Chandra Muller. 2006. ''The Role of Gender and Friendship in Advanced Course Taking.'' Sociology of Education 79(3):206-228.SAS Institute. 2007. ''The MI Procedure.'' Pp. 3738-829 in SAS/STAT Guide v9. Cary, NC: SAS Publishing.
  33. Schultz, P. Wesley, Paul R. Hernandez, Anna Woodcock, Mica Estrada, Randie Chance, Maria Aguilar, and Richard T. Serpe. 2011. ''Patching the Pipeline: Reducing Educational Disparities in the Sciences through Minority Training Programs.'' Journal of Educational Policy Analysis 33(1):95-114.
  34. Serpe, Richard. 1987. ''Stability and Change in Self: A Structural Symbolic Interactionist Explanation.'' Social Psychology Quarterly 50(1):44-55.
  35. Serpe, Richard T. 1991. ''The Cerebral Self: Thinking and Planning about Identity Relevant Activities.'' Pp. 55-73 in The Self Society Dynamic: Cognition, Emotion, and Action, edited by J. Howard and P. Callero. New York: Cambridge University Press.
  36. Serpe, Richard T. and Sheldon Stryker. 1993. ''Prior Social Ties and Movement into New Social Relationships.'' Pp. 283-304 in Advances in Group Processes: Theory and Research. Vol. 10, edited by E. Lawler, B. Markovsky, and J. O'Brien. Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.
  37. Serpe, Richard T. and Sheldon Stryker. 2011. ''The Symbolic Interactionist Perspective and Identity Theory.'' In Handbook of Identity Theory and Research, edited by S. J. Schwartz, K. Luyckx, and V. L. Vignoles. New York: Springer.
  38. Seymour, Elaine and Nancy Hewitt. 2000. Talking about Leaving: Why Undergradu-ates Leave the Sciences. Boulder, CO: Westview Press.
  39. Stets, Jan E. and Peter J. Burke. 2000. ''Identity Theory and Social Identity Theory.'' Social Psychology Quarterly 63(3):224-37.
  40. Stets, Jan E. and Peter J. Burke. 2005. ''Identity-Verification, Control, and Aggression in Marriage.'' Social Psychology Quarterly 68(2):160-78.
  41. Stryker, Robin. 1989. ''Limits on Technocratization of the Law: The Elimination of the National Labor Relations Board's Division of Economic Research.'' American Sociological Review 54(3):341-58.
  42. Stryker, Robin. 1994. ''Rules, Resources and Legitimacy Processes: Some Implications for Social Conflict, Order and Change.'' American Journal of Sociology 99(4):847-910.
  43. Stryker, Sheldon. 1968. ''Identity Salience and Role Performance: The Relevance of Symbolic Interaction Theory for Family Research.'' Journal of Marriage and Family 15(4):558-64.
  44. Stryker, Sheldon. 2007. ''Identity Theory and Personality Theory: Mutual Relevance.'' Journal of Personality 75(6):1083-1102.
  45. Stryker, Sheldon and Peter Burke. 2000. ''The Past, Present, and Future of Identity Theory.'' Social Psychology Quarterly 63(4):284-97.
  46. Stryker, Sheldon and Richard Serpe. 1982. ''Commitment, Identity Salience, and Role Behavior: Theory and Research Example.'' Pp. 199-218 in Personality Roles and Social Behavior, edited by W. Inkles and E. Knowles. New York: Springer-Verlag.
  47. Stryker, Sheldon and Richard T. Serpe. 1983. ''Toward a Theory of Family Influence in the Socialization of Children.'' Pp. 47-74 in Research in the Sociology of Education and Socialization. Vol. 4, edited by A. Kerckhoff. Greenwich, CT: JAI Press.
  48. Stryker, Sheldon and Richard T. Serpe. 1994. ''Identity Salience and Psychological Centrality: Equivalent, Overlapping or Complimentary Concepts?'' Social Psycho-logy Quarterly 57(1):16-35.
  49. Tanaka, J. S. 1993. ''Multifaceted Conceptions of Fit in Structural Equation Models.'' Pp. 10-30 in Testing Structural Equation Models, edited by K. Bollen and J. S. Long. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
  50. Tinto, Vincent. 1993. Leaving College: Rethinking the Causes and Cures of Student Attrition. 2nd ed. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.

Cited by

Sorted by citations

Authors
Merolla, D. M., Serpe, R. T., Stryker, S., & Schultz, P. W.
Affiliations
  • Wayne State University (US)
  • Kent State University (US)
  • Indiana University Bloomington (US)
  • California State University, San Marcos (US)
ORCID
Venue
Social Psychology Quarterly
Publisher
SAGE Publications
Published
2012-04-27
Volume
75
Issue
2
Pages
149-172
ISSN
  • 0190-2725 (ISSN-L)
  • 1939-8999
DOI
10.1177/0190272511436352
OpenAlex
W2149803681
Cited by
169
References
3
Citations by year
2026: 13 · 2025: 11 · 2024: 10 · 2023: 20 · 2022: 11 · 2021: 13 · 2020: 14 · 2019: 8 · 2018: 7 · 2017: 21 · 2016: 13 · 2015: 6 · 2014: 11 · 2013: 8 · 2012: 1
FWCI
20.24
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
journals.sagepub.com/page/policies/text-and-data-mining-license (tdm)
Locations
  • Social Psychology Quarterly (publishedVersion)
  • John Spoor Broome Library Institutional Repository (California State University) (submittedVersion)
  • CSUN ScholarWorks (California State University, Northridge) (submittedVersion)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Safety Research › Career Development and Diversity
  • Social Sciences › Education › Higher Education Research Studies
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Developmental and Educational Psychology › Science Education and Perceptions
Keywords
identity theory, science identity, career intentions, undergraduate science students, social structure, identity salience, social positioning, social inequality

About these checks

Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.

Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.

Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.

What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›

Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review