Understanding Context to Influence Women with Disabilities to Consider STEM Careers via Targeted Radio Programs

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Understanding Context to Influence Women with
Disabilities to Consider STEM Careers via
Targeted Radio Programs

• Action Research Associates, Inc.
• Kris Juffer, Ph.D.
• Access to Advancement was developed by
• WAMC Northeast Public Radio under a grant from
  the
• National Science Foundations
• Division of Research on Disability Education
• (HRD-0833247).

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Access to Advancement (A2A)

• NSF-RDE - Division of Research in Disabilities
  Education
• WAMC Northeast Public Radio (NPR)
• Access to Advancement -
• 10 radio segments
• 5 embedded in The Best of Our Knowledge
• 5 in 51
• Action Research Associates, Inc.-Independent
  Evaluator

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Access to AdvancementIssues Addressed

• Talented women with disabilities need to be
  encouraged to enter the STEM field.
• Historically, the media's treatment of disability
  issues and individuals with disabilities has been
  strongly criticized by the disability community
  and others for its perpetuation of negative
  stereotypes.

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Purpose-A2A Radio Programs

• Effectively reach
• Women with Disabilities (WWDs)
• Gatekeepers Parents, Educators, Counselors,
  Scientists, Employers
• General Public
• To disseminate key information
• To support talented WWDs considering pursuing and
  entering STEM careers

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BroadcasterWAMC Northeast Public Radio

• 7 New England/Mid Atlantic states-21 freqs
• 58 yrs - Producer of public-radio style prgrmg
• 500 radio stations nationwide,
• on the Internet via audio on-demand
• 177 countries via Armed Forces Radio
• 6 NSF grants2001-2009 - 5-GSE, 1-RDE
• Awards - Gracie Awards-AWRT Foundation

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Original Context WAMC-Public Radio Broadcasting

• Highly skilled producers, writers, on-air
• Informative, relevant, creative
• Producing news/info stories
• General audience
• Previous 5 NSF grants - women in science
• Not targeted to WWDs specifically
• Broadcasting - 1-way communication

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Usual Broadcasting Context 1-Way Communication

• WAMC ? Programming ? WWDs

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NSF RDE GrantChanged Broadcasting Context

• NSF RDE Grant Funding Requirements Introduced
• Focus on WWDs in STEM
• A2A Advisory Committee
• Independent Evaluator
• NSF Federal Program Evaluator
• Media Audience Research
• WAMC added Disability Business Technical
  Assistance Center (DBTAC) -Trainer/Consultant
• Change Agents

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Change Agent 1 A2A Advisory Committee

• No Advisory Committee-previous NSF projects
• 10 MembersSTEM, Education, Disabilities
• M/F - with/without Disabilities
• Scientists, Professors, Minority/Disability
  Advocates
• Links-WWD community, programs, resources

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Change Agent 2Disability Business Training
Assistance Center (DBTAC)

• Disability Awareness Training/consultations
• Invaluable resource
• Helped eliminate stereotypes, inaccuracies
• Raised comfort level-navigating relationships
• Program - Balanced, accurate image of people with
  disabilities to national audiences
• Evaluator - gather program evaluation data

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Examples - Courtesies

• Visual
• Dont pet working dog/pet
• Identify self first when speaking
• When referring to graphic or physical object,
  provide short oral description before talking
  about it
• Hearing
• Talk directly to individual, not assistant or
  interpreter

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Change Agent 3 Program Evaluation Process

• Evaluator Proposed
• A2A Program Logic Model
• Focus on Outcomes of their program
• Formative Focus Groups
• Summative- A2As impact on WWDs
• Surveys
• Case studies Control and Treatment

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Participants Interactive Context
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Implications of Responding to Contextual Factors

• To achieve goal-
• Effective radio programming
• To change WWDs interest in STEM field
• We first had to change ourselves

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Context 1 Evaluation Design

• Worked within WAMCs media context
• NSFs education/program goals increase STEM
  pool
• Changed Evaluation Design
• Multi-Theory
• Communication Theory
• Social Change Model
• A2A Program Evaluation Logic Model focused on
  Programs Outcomes

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Multiple TheoriesCommunication TheoryIterative
2-Way Communication
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Multiple TheoriesSocial Change Model
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Multiple TheoriesA2A Project Logic Model
Inputs ? Intervention ? Outputs ?
Outcomes/Impacts
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Context 2Broadcast Staff Context

• Audience research-historical concerns
• Focus groups
• Ultimately accepted/added to quality
• Provided direction to optimize
• Structure
• Content
• Sequence
• Built confidence
• Assured positive impact and outcomes

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Context 3WWDs ContextInfluenced Program
Content Design

• DBTAC Training
• FGs with WWDs
• FindingsVerbatim Evidence Recommendations
• A2A Broadcast Team very responsive
• Changed both programs
• Recs addressed in Annual Report

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Context and Changes

• FGs on stories revealed A2A was
• Attention-getting, informative, enjoyable,
  inspiring
• Encouraged WWDs interest in STEM careers
• Effective in interesting educators, counselors,
  parents

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Context 4Psychological Needs

• WWDs Context Discouraged
• Needed to address psychological needs
• Only I can put limits on myself.
• I earned my degree and I deserve to be here.
• Build self-confidence
• Effective self-advocacy
• Provide powerful WWD role models
• Human interest stories

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Context 5Human interest

• Universal audience appeal WWDs interests
• Used a layered approach to build picture

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Context 5Human interest

• Person First Approach
• Introduced personal aspects first
• Personal interestsEx
• Sports/Activities
• Charity work
• Career
• Problem-solving
• Disability a side issue

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Context 5Human interest

• Id have to remind myself that she couldnt see!
  She doesnt let anything stand in her way!
• Not typical story format on TV/radio

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Context 6Informative Intros Ineffective

• Written vs. Audio formatsdifferent contexts!
• Written Script Intro re STEM program
• Audio Nothing recalled
• Audience recalled facts only after interviewee
  began to talk for herself
• Audience needed a mental picture of interviewee
  to start building a framework to understand
  programs and assistive devices, etc.

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Context 7Mentors

• Lay public-confused different types-mentors
• Lacked understanding of importance of
  professional scientist mentor vs. other mentors
• Advisory Committee experienced evaluator
  understood importance
• A2A Team reworked issue
• Made into an on-going program theme
• Much clearer

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Lessons Learned

• MANY interesting compelling stories about
• WWDs STEM achievement
• Opportunities in STEM

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Lessons Learned

• Emerging issue High school counselors appear to
  be frequently redirecting WWDs away from STEM
  careers
• Emerging issue Interesting relationship between
  gender vs. disability self-identities changes
  with age

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Thank you!

• Kris Juffer, Ph.D.
• Action Research Associates, Inc.
• P.O. Box 494
• Ellicott City, MD 21041-0494
• 410-465-1299
• drkjuffer_at_actionresearchinc.com