Assessing the Relationship Between Neighborhood Inequality and STEM Employment for Underrepresented Minorities With STEM Degrees

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to assess whether there is a relationship between neighborhood inequality in which underrepresented minorities (URMs) with STEM degrees reside and their employment in STEM fields. The current study deploys an Intersectional Theory (IT) research framework and Bourdieu’s Theory of Practice to identify the influence of neighborhood capital on successful matriculation through the STEM pipeline as well as variables that elucidate latent inequities in the STEM pipeline which lead to unequal outcomes for URMs. Generalized Linear Multilevel Models (GLMMs) are used to answer the research questions where the individual variables of gender, race, and age are clustered by neighborhoods with the Social Vulnerability Index (SVI) and the Walkability Index (WI) serving as measures of neighborhood inequality. The current study finds that inequality predicts STEM employment after controlling for gender, race, and age, and that SVI and WI are moderators of the relationship between race and the log-odds of being employed in a STEM field, but differ in their moderating effect. The implication of these findings is that STEM organizations looking to hire URM STEM workers or universities looking to attract URM STEM majors need to change their culture to be more inclusive of URM. Additionally, STEM organization and universities can create outreach programs to support parental STEM education as well as provide STEM experiences beyond neighborhood schools.