Burns, H. D., & Lesseig, K. (2017, June), Infusing Empathy Into Engineering Design: Supporting Under-represented Student Interest and Sense of Belongingness  Paper presented at 2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Columbus, Ohio. 10.18260/1-2--28529

\bibitem{asee_peer_28529}
  Burns, H. D., \& Lesseig, K. (2017, June), \emph{Infusing Empathy Into Engineering Design: Supporting Under-represented Student Interest and Sense of Belongingness}
  Paper presented at 2017 ASEE Annual Conference \& Exposition, Columbus, Ohio.
  10.18260/1-2--28529

Henriette D Burns and Kristin Lesseig.  "Infusing Empathy Into Engineering Design: Supporting Under-represented Student Interest and Sense of Belongingness".  2017 ASEE Annual Conference & Exposition, Columbus, Ohio, 2017, June.  ASEE Conferences, 2017.  https://peer.asee.org/28529 Internet.  11 Mar, 2025

\bibitem{asee_peer_28529}
  Henriette D Burns and Kristin Lesseig.
  "Infusing Empathy Into Engineering Design: Supporting Under-represented Student Interest and Sense of Belongingness".
  \emph{2017 ASEE Annual Conference \& Exposition, Columbus, Ohio, 2017, June}.
  ASEE Conferences, 2017.
  https://peer.asee.org/28529 Internet.  11 Mar, 2025

@INPROCEEDINGS{asee_peer_28529
author = "Henriette D Burns and Kristin Lesseig"
title = "Infusing Empathy Into Engineering Design: Supporting Under-represented Student Interest and Sense of Belongingness"
booktitle = "2017 ASEE Annual Conference \& Exposition"
year = "2017"
month = "June"
address = "Columbus, Ohio"
publisher = "ASEE Conferences"
note = {https://peer.asee.org/28529}
number = {10.18260/1-2--28529}
}

TY  - CPAPER
AB  - In our Work-In-Progress Study we explored the influence of empathy-based lessons on student interest and their sense of belongingness in an urban middle school that offered a mixed-gender after-school science club program. These are the preliminary results of that study. This is part of a larger mixed method study that utilized STEM interest surveys, observations, interviews, and focus groups. 
Girls, women and minorities remain under-represented among students and within the workforce of STEM. Numerous studies suggest affects, like identity, interest and belongingness, rather than ability, are responsible for the overall lack of diversity in advanced degrees or employment in STEM fields. 
Results from our previous study at an urban middle school indicated girls are interested in life sciences and other empathic, social topics rather than the more analytical areas like physics, computer and mechanical engineering. This is problematic since physics, for example, is considered a gateway to engineering. One method to improve the inclusion of affects in STEM is to fully utilize an engineering design process which begins with empathy. A focus on empathy may broaden the perspective of and more fully engage the designer with human aspects of the problem. 
So far, the study indicated empathy-based lessons influence both girls' and boys sense of belongingness and interest in STEM, especially in engineering. These findings may have implications for how to predict STEM interest, and improve persistence and self-efficacy in schools and in the workplace. We hope to offer the educator instructional methods to infuse empathy into engineering design lessons.This embrace of empathy in STEM education may validate the interests of diverse students and improve their sense of belongingness. A more socio-technical viewpoint in STEM education could provide diverse students an opportunity to showcase their unique funds of knowledge, improve their STEM agency and obtain a seat at the STEM table. It may also improve the reputation of STEM, especially engineering, as more approachable and caring professions.
AU  - Henriette D Burns
AU  - Kristin Lesseig
CY  - Columbus, Ohio
DA  - 2017/06/24
PB  - ASEE Conferences
TI  - Infusing Empathy Into Engineering Design: Supporting Under-represented Student Interest and Sense of Belongingness
UR  - https://peer.asee.org/28529
DO  - 10.18260/1-2--28529
ER  -