Among Top STEM Graduate Students, What Early Antecedents Distinguish Ultimate STEM Leaders?: A 25-Year Longitudinal Study

In 1992, the Study of Mathematically Precocious Youth (SMPY) surveyed 714 first- and second-year graduate students attending U.S. universities ranked in the top 20 for graduate training in STEM (Lubinski, Benbow, Shea,... [ view full abstract ]

In 1992, the Study of Mathematically Precocious Youth (SMPY) surveyed 714 first- and second-year graduate students attending U.S. universities ranked in the top 20 for graduate training in STEM (Lubinski, Benbow, Shea, Eftekhari-Sanjani, & Halvorson, 2001). Women were over-sampled in order to have equal numbers of men and women represented in this study (48.5% female). These participants completed an extensive biographical survey, as well as the Adjective Check List (Gough & Heilburn, 1983), Strong Vocational Interest Blank (Hansen et al., 1985) and the Study of Values (Allport, Vernon, & Lindzey, 1970). Intellectual ability was measured with the Graduate Record Exam (GRE) General and Subject tests. Now, 25 years later, these early assessments were shown to distinguish those who ultimately became STEM leaders (e.g., Full Professors at R1 universities, n = 60) versus their graduate student peers who pursued other occupational and life paths. For both sexes, STEM leaders differed on key individual differences attributes assessed early in their graduate careers. How these findings psychologically inform the development of excellence in STEM, with particular emphasis on sex differences in STEM fields, are detailed.