Behav. Res. The humanities crisis is multifaceted. Given that we are interested in exploring the most important predictors of well-being outcomes, we also conducted relative weight analysis (RWA; Johnson and Lebreton, 2004; Tonidandel and LeBreton, 2015). Their chosen field of study, or hopefully multiple fields of study, should expand both their academic knowledge and understanding of who they are as a person. University of Houston. Introduction 2. Despite a rich, ancient history attesting to the intimately connected nature of these disciplines, society slowly began cleaving them from one another, often claiming practical superiority of STEM. J. Couns. Table 2: STEM (narrowly defined) doctoral degrees awarded by broad field and sex in the US (2016-17) On this definition that excludes health sciences, social and behavioural sciences and biological and agricultural sciences from counting as science, one can present a “problem” in that women are “only” 27 percent of STEM PhDs thus defined. Regression results and relative weight analysis predicting well-being outcomes (Study 1). We used data from 8,151 college-educated employed adults from the United States as surveyed in the Gallup-Purdue Index (GPI) since 1985. For instance, a report by the American Academy of Arts Sciences (2013) claimed that the humanities “go beyond the immediate and instrumental to help us understand the past and future…They are critical to our pursuit of life, liberty, and happiness” (p. 13). Jebb, A. T., Tay, L., Diener, E., and Oishi, S. (2018). Person–environment Congruence and Holland's theory: a review and reconsideration. Studies also suggest that when students can relate course materials to their own lives, they have higher motivation and performance in class (Hulleman and Harackiewicz, 2009). Between 2009 and 2015, the number of STEM major in bachelors-and-above programs grew by 43%, while humanities declined negative 0.4%. While proponents of STEM majors rely heavily on the economic advantages of STEM degrees, we argue that such an emphasis on solely economic outcomes may omit or even mislead what is valued by individuals and societies (Diener and Seligman, 2004); therefore, a broader metrics of human well-being should be considered. Science 326, 1410–1412. With rapid technological and scientific advances and a growing demand for modernization, a stronger emphasis has been placed on science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) majors and careers. The focus on STEM has also provided the United States with a tenuous advantage in science and technology. Psychol. The data were used under license for the current study and are not publicly available. J. Statistics published by Eurostat in June 2017 show similar trends in subjects studied by male and female students in higher education across the EU. STEM is as much a humanist field as it is a scientific one and, in denying this, “STEM Only” advocates are inhibiting the very field they feign to promote. Research with a more diverse sample can establish the generalizability of these results. In other words, we argue that it is not the choice of major or educational track (i.e., STEM vs. humanities) per se, but whether individuals' interests are congruent with the major or occupation that leads to enhanced individual outcomes. doi: 10.1016/0001-8791(72)90012-7, Chatman, J. Furthermore, individuals may craft their jobs (either cognitively or behaviorally) so that it fits better with their interests (Wrzesniewski and Dutton, 2001). Governors have talked about or taken steps to defund college programs that don’t lead to jobs. Despite a growing number of studies demonstrating the importance of fit between interests and major/career, an increasing discordant rhetoric can be heard emphasizing either STEM or the humanities in education and work. Available online at: https://www.usnews.com/news/us/articles/2016-01-29/in-kentucky-a-push-for-engineers-over-french-lit-scholars (accessed October 17, 2017). Incentives for STEM vs. non-STEM majors 3. Public Interest 5, 1–31. Available online at: https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2013/01/30/north-carolina-governor-joins-chorus-republicans-critical-liberal-arts. Within the humanities, one can learn another language, which can open the window into a new culture, a new worldview.”. Front. 37, 522–553. Psychol. 26, 179–201. and Political Science hold that STEM degrees do not. Psychol. Available online at:https://www.humanitiesindicators.org/content/indicatordoc.aspx?i=34 (accessed October 17, 2017). American Academy of Arts Sciences (2013). Sci. Happiness, income satiation and turning points around the world. Rev. The development, evolution, and status of holland's theory of vocational personalities: reflections and future directions for counseling psychology. U.S. News. Campbell, D. P., and Holland, J. L. (1972). doi: 10.1177/0963721414522812, Spokane, A. R., Meir, E. I., and Catalano, M. (2000). Psychol. Such a proposal is in line with past career theories (e.g., Holland's theory of career choice), suggesting that the fit between the individual's values, interests, and abilities and his/her career is a major determinant of success and satisfaction (Campbell and Holland, 1972; Spokane et al., 2000; Nauta, 2010). How Do We Solve the STEM vs. Between 2009 and 2015, the number of STEM major in bachelors-and-above programs grew by 43%, while humanities declined negative 0.4%. The rhetoric from proponents of each field reinforces the idea that either STEM or humanities careers would provide higher values to individuals and societies when compared to the other. Empirical studies also suggest that the congruence or fit between individuals' interests, and their environment not only relates to higher levels of performance, persistence, and career success (Terence and Robbins, 2006; Nye et al., 2012, 2017; Rounds and Su, 2014) but also results in better well-being outcomes for individuals (Assouline and Meir, 1987; Tsabari et al., 2005). What is surprising, however, is that despite the recognition of the importance of fit in prior research, as a society, we are moving toward a climate in which studying in STEM majors are overemphasized, humanities majors are undervalued, and more competent individuals are channeled and pressured into STEM careers. doi: 10.5465/amr.2001.4378011, Keywords: STEM, humanities, interest fit, well-being, income, Citation: Vaziri H, Tay L, Parrigon S, Bradburn NM and Pawelski JO (2019) STEM or Humanities? Dir. Pythagoras, whom you can thank for the Pythagorean Theorem of right triangles, founded a religious brotherhood whose studies included the metaphysics of numbers, music, astronomy and even the nature of souls. For example, an RS-RW of 50% means that the predictor accounts for 50% of the explained variance in the outcome. STEM Attrition: College Students’ Paths Into and Out of STEM Fields Statistical Analysis Report NOVEMBER 2013 Xianglei Chen RTI International Matthew Soldner Project Officer National Center for Education Statistics NCES 2014-001 U.S. DEPARTMENT OF Humanities Report Card. Bivariate correlations among study variables are reported in Supplementary Table 1. Bellwether institutions such as Harvard have also noted the decline in the number of undergraduate humanities majors — the percentage fell there from about 24% in 1964 to 17% in 2012. Analysis of a national data set of college graduates (N = 8,151) shows that … Well-being metrics expand our notions of societal progress beyond economic outcomes and reflect additional valued qualities such as psychological health, participation in democracy, and respect for human rights (Diener and Seligman, 2004; Helliwell et al., 2015). Our results suggest that while majoring in STEM fields may result in slightly higher levels of personal income, the perception of fit between individual's interests and his/her job also plays a significant role in personal income and a more important role in their well-being. STEAM investigates the same concepts, but does this through inquiry and problem-based learning methods used in the creative process. Explore our catalog of online degrees, certificates, Specializations, & MOOCs in data science, computer science, business, health, and dozens of other topics. Accordingly, we argue that the person-centric perspective in major and occupational choice may be more important than a top-down directive of channeling students to STEM careers or conversely to careers in the humanities. Available online at: https://www.humanitiescommission.org/_pdf/Hum_Report_Card.pdf (accessed October 17, 2017). Bus. (2006). Behav. The years following the Great Recession only heightened this rhetoric of divergence. “Within the sciences, one can learn about what happens when tiny particles collide, which can open the window into the universe,” Gerald Greenberg observed. STEM provides job specific training but, in isolation, fails to offer a broad foundation for further career development, leaving students at risk when jobs in their designated STEM fields are unavailable — which is a looming possibility. (2003). 69, 64–89. Here, we report rescaled relative weights (RS-RW) which represent the weights as the percentage of explained variance. “The opportunity to become better able to understand and grapple with complex moral issues, the complexities and intricacies of humanity.”. RWA decomposes the predicted variance in a regression model into weights that indicate the relative contribution of the predictor variables. 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As such, we hypothesize that: Hypothesis 1: Educational track is a more important predictor of personal income than interest fit. To address this, we used a sample of 636 employed, recent graduates from a large Midwestern university utilizing the GPI and controlled for the influence of individuals' personality (Big Five) and ability levels (SAT and GPA). Detailed information about the operationalization of variables is included in the Supplementary Materials. I know that depiction is too simplistic; but, it helps explain why people like Gale don’t view STEM experts as … (2015). Budget of the U.S Government: Fiscal Year 2016. Further, while the major accounted for more variance (15%) in personal income compared to interest fit (3%), the two did not differ in importance in explaining financial satisfaction (3 and 6%, respectively). Though some argue humanities are better defined not by the encompassing subjects but rather by how the field shapes those who take up its study. STEM experts tend to focus on narrower and narrower slices of their areas of expertise while arts and humanities experts often focus on broad challenges facing humanity. Acad. The results of the regression analysis indicated that, STEM majors had higher levels of personal income (b = 0.28, p < 0.001), and slightly higher levels of life satisfaction (b = 0.06, p < 0.001). More important than careers and job success, however, is the interest of students. Career Assess. Helliwell, J., Layard, R., and Sachs, J. Assessing the relationship between industry characteristics and organizational culture: how different can you be? doi: 10.1038/s41562-017-0277-0, Johnson, J. W., and Lebreton, J. M. (2004). One concern in the first study is that individuals' personality and ability level may confound with perception of interest fit. Indicator 26: STEM Degrees (Last Updated: February 2019) Overall, a higher percentage of bachelor’s degrees were awarded to females than to males in 2015–16 (58 vs. 42 percent). J.K. Rowling, weaver of magical worlds, majored in classical studies and French. The Supplementary Material for this article can be found online at: https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feduc.2019.00143/full#supplementary-material. Speaking to the interdependent nature between STEM and humanities, Turner continues, saying, “I don’t believe we can understand the humanities without understanding something about human biology. HV and LT wrote the paper. doi: 10.1016/0001-8791(89)90042-0. Accordingly, longitudinal research is needed to better understand how interest fit during college would affect future well-being outcomes. Vocational interests and performance: a quantitative summary of over 60 years of research. The results of the regression analysis (Table 2) suggested that even after controlling for cognitive ability and ability/motivation, perception of interest fit was a significant predictor of work satisfaction (b = 0.53, p < 0.001), life satisfaction (b = 0.35, p < 0.001), and financial satisfaction (b = 0.07, p < 0.05), but not personal income (b = 0.05, p > 0.05). Therefore, the purpose of this study was to examine a person-centric approach in occupational choice rather than a top-down unilateral channeling of individuals into these fields. The data that support the findings of this study are available from Gallup, but restrictions apply to their availability. The same is true of STEM and humanities — with only mathematicians and engineers, who will record our history? Why STEM Students Need Humanities Courses The more science and technology dominate our culture, the more we need the humanities By John … Multiple regression was used to examine the influence of major choice and interest fit on each well-being outcome, while controlling for demographic and individual characteristics. Weighing in at 555,545 U.S. graduates in 2016, STEM is a fierce opponent whose curriculum seeks proficiency in traditionally hard sciences, which rely on testable predictions, controlled experiments, mathematical models, quantifiable data and objectivity. doi: 10.1177/1094428104266510. Finally, another limitation of our study is the generalizability of the results. doi: 10.1006/jvbe.2000.1771, Stanford Humanities Center (2017). The results also indicated that the interaction between interest fit and major was only a significant predictor of work satisfaction (b = 0.04, p < 0.001), such that the effect of interest fit on work satisfaction was stronger for STEM majors (b = 0.65, p < 0.001) compared to those in the humanities (b = 0.58, p < 0.001). The Prepared U Project: An in-Depth Look at Millennial Preparedness for Today's Workforce. Those with applied STEM majors earned nearly 50 percent more than social science and history majors at ages 23 to 25, but only 10 percent more by ages 38 to 40. Assouline, M., and Meir, E. I. Office of Management Budget (2016). Waiters? As a sociology teacher of mine once noted, a society that only produces doctors and lawyers is doomed to fail. “Within the social sciences, one can learn about how resources are used by people and companies, which can lead to an understanding of how the economy might develop. Perspect. The interest-major congruence and college success relation: a longitudinal study. Interaction plot (Supplementary Figure 1) and regions of significance analysis suggested that when the perception of fit is high, there is no difference in work satisfaction of STEM majors compared to humanities; however, when the fit is low, individuals with STEM majors have lower work satisfaction compared to those in the humanities. Challenge our politics? doi: 10.1016/0001-8791(87)90046-7. Psychol. Behav. Interest congruence and performance: revisiting recent meta-analytic findings. |, Association of American Colleges and Universities, 2013, https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/feduc.2019.00143/full#supplementary-material, https://www.humanitiescommission.org/_pdf/Hum_Report_Card.pdf, http://www.aacu.org/leap/presidentstrust/compact/2013SurveySummary, https://www.usnews.com/news/us/articles/2016-01-29/in-kentucky-a-push-for-engineers-over-french-lit-scholars, https://www.bentley.edu/files/prepared/1.29.2013_BentleyU_Whitepaper_Shareable.pdf, https://www.burning-glass.com/research-project/stem/, https://www.humanitiesindicators.org/content/indicatordoc.aspx?i=34, https://www.insidehighered.com/news/2013/01/30/north-carolina-governor-joins-chorus-republicans-critical-liberal-arts, https://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/BUDGET-2016-BUD/pdf/BUDGET-2016-BUD.pdf, http://shc.stanford.edu/why-do-humanities-matter, http://nscresearchcenter.org/snapshotreport-degreeattainment3/#more-2111, Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). 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