Abstract

LOURENS, A.. The development of co-curricular interventions to strengthen female engineering students' sense of self-efficacy and to improve the retention of women in traditionally male-dominated disciplines and careers. S. Afr. J. Ind. Eng. [online]. 2014, vol.25, n.3, pp.112-125. ISSN 2224-7890.

Self-efficacy relates to positive outcomes for women studying and working in traditionally male-dominated fields such as engineering, science, and technology. Many women engineering students (WES) experience fear and insecurity about how they will be treated and perceived in this traditionally male-dominated field, either as a WES or as a working engineer. This study provides support for the development of co-curricular interventions to improve the self-efficacy of WES at a South African tertiary institution. The research design for this study is based on a phenomenological approach that uses a process of critical analysis of evaluation and feedback documents relating to the various co-curricular interventions and their perceived influence on selected WES's self-efficacy. Finally, as there has been no other South African research on WES and the sources of self-efficacy, this research is unique in the South African context.