Student Attitudes and Interests in STEM in Qatar through the Lens of the Social Cognitive Theory

STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) has taken center stage as a priority policy agenda for Qatar’s leadership. At present, STEM stands as a fundamental catalyst for Qatar’s sustainable economic, environmental, human, and social development goals, as is outlined in the Qatar National Vision 2030. The aim of this exploratory study was to investigate the determinants of students’ interest in pursuing Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics (STEM) studies and eventual careers in Qatar. This study used a survey involving a representative sample of a total of 425 students from public (government-funded) middle schools in the country. Data for this research were gathered using a survey distributed to students in grades 7, 8, and 9. Guided by the Social Cognitive Theory, a survey was implemented with a view to investigating the intrinsic and extrinsic factors likely to contribute to student STEM educational and career interest. Two main statistical tests were carried out: independent sample t-tests and one way ANOVA. Results derived from the study reveal that gender, nationality, and parental education and occupation served as predictors of student interest in a STEM degree or profession. The results derived from this study have important implications for STEM-related fields of study and career. This study was made possible by an NPRP-C # Subproject (NPRP12C-33955-SP-93), which is part of a cluster project (NPRP12C-0828-190023) from the Qatar national research fund (a member of the Qatar foundation). The funders had no role in study design, data collection and analysis, decision to publish, or preparation of the manuscript.