By Katie Frey
“Increasing diversity in economics is really essential,” said MSU Department of Economics Professor Stacy Dickert-Conlin, Ph.D. “Thirty percent of undergrad majors nationally are women, only about 12-15% are underrepresented minorities.”
Dickert-Conlin was part of a team from the MSU Department of Economics that decided to try to move the needle, starting with student recruitment. The other team members were Steven Haider, Ph.D., department chairperson, and Carey Elder, undergraduate advisor, Scott Imberman, Ph.D., professor, and Andrea Chambers, economics graduate student.
“The discipline has long recognized our difficulties in appealing to a broader audience. This study is our attempt to move the needle and we hope it works,” Haider said.
The team put together a series of videos with current students and alumni speaking about their choices to study economics and their experiences. The videos feature diverse speakers and highlight the breadth of topics economics majors study and the wide range of careers economics majors pursue. In 2020, the year of a global pandemic, a randomized control trial delivered these videos/infographics and letters to students in Michigan State University's introductory classes.
Their research hypothesis was that an information campaign featuring diverse representation would increase diversity among undergraduate economics students. Their hypothesis was built on research showing that exposure to academic fields and information helped diverse students with understanding opportunities available to them.
“We found that viewing the videos increased the intentions of female and underrepresented minority students to take additional courses and major in economics,” he said.
The research team submitted their work to the American Economic Association, and it was published in the AEA Papers and Proceedings in May 2021.
The department is continuing to share the videos widely with incoming MSU students and other settings where students can learn about more about what economics is.
“We are hopeful that the video project is a step towards making our department a more diverse and welcoming place. Our MSU community will be more dynamic, productive, and exciting if we succeed!” Dickert-Conlin said.