Gender expression appraisals in introductory physics courses: A cross-institutional replication

Quantitative studies of gender in physics education have often used categorical gender identity measures, which are valuable for documenting broad inequities across gender groups but less suited for capturing variation within groups or for examining how students perceive and express their gender in particular contexts.

Metrics targeting gender expression, such as gradational self- and reflected appraisal measures of femininity, masculinity, and androgyny, offer a complementary approach.

Prior work using this approach in introductory physics identified substantial within-gender variation in students' appraisals and gender-patterned self-reflected appraisal discrepancies.

Building on this work, the present study provides a cross-institutional replication by examining whether these patterns recur in a second institutional context.

We examined students' self- and reflected appraisals of femininity, masculinity, and androgyny, self-reflected appraisal discrepancies, and associations between these discrepancies, sense of belonging, and gender stigma consciousness.

Across institutional contexts, both studies showed substantial within-gender variation in all three appraisal dimensions and recurring directional discrepancy patterns.

Higher gender stigma consciousness was consistently associated with the directional discrepancy patterns observed across institutions.

Lower sense of belonging was consistently associated with negative femininity discrepancy across institutions and was also associated with positive masculinity discrepancy in the present study.

These findings suggest that students' appraisals along gendered dimensions are both patterned and context-sensitive.

More broadly, self-reflected appraisal discrepancy may offer a useful quantitative lens for examining students' perceptions of gender, with implications for understanding belonging and inclusion in physics learning environments.