american culture research paper

American Cultural Studies

Cite this chapter.

• Winfried Fluck  

3705 Accesses

1 Citations

The recent cultural turn in the humanities provides a belated support for the direction the newly established field of American Studies took after its formation in the 1930s. American Studies emerged as a synthesis of intellectual history and literary studies, and from the very beginning, culture was a key concept of the new field—so much so, in fact, that one of its pioneers, Henry Nash Smith, could define American Studies as “the study of American culture” in a programmatic essay entitled “Can American Studies Develop a Method?” Against a then dominant approach in literary studies, the formalism of the New Criticism, scholars in American Studies insisted that literary texts can only be adequately understood and appreciated if they are seen as part of their culture (whereas the New Criticism focused exclusively on the literary text itself; cf. section II.1.3). Intellectual historians had traditionally inquired what traditions and ideas were crucial in forming society. Now they argued that societies gain their identity and cohesion not primarily through ideas but through myths and symbols, that is, cultural forms .

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this chapter

• Available as PDF
• Read on any device
• Instant download
• Own it forever
• Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
• Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Institutional subscriptions

Unable to display preview.  Download preview PDF.

Select Bibliography

Anzaldúa, Gloria. Borderlands/La Frontera: The New Mestiza . San Francisco: Aunt Lute Books, 1987.

Google Scholar  

Arac, Jonathan. “The Politics of The Scarlet Letter.” Bercovitch and Jehlen 247–66.

Baym, Nina. “Melodramas of Beset Manhood: How Theories of American Fiction Exclude Women Authors.” American Quarterly 33 (1981): 123–39.

Article   Google Scholar  

Bercovitch, Sacvan. “America as Canon and Context: Literary History in a Time of Dissensus.” American Literature 58 (1986): 99–108.

Bercovitch, Sacvan. “The Problem of Ideology in American Literary History.” Critical Inquiry 12. 4 (1986): 631–53.

Bercovitch, Sacvan. The Rites of Assent . London: Routledge, 1993.

Bercovitch, Sacvan, and Myra Jehlen, eds. Ideology and Classic American Literature . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1988.

Blassingame, John W. The Slave Community: Plantation Life in the Antebellum South . Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1972.

Bourne, Randolph. “Trans-National America.” The American Intellectual Tradition . Eds. David A Hollinger and Charles Capper. Vol. 2. New York: Oxford University Press, 1989. 2 vols. 153–63.

Brodhead, Richard H. Cultures of Letters: Scenes of Reading and Writing in Nineteenth­Century America . Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1993.

Burgett, Bruce, and Glenn Hendler, eds. Keywords for American Cultural Studies . New York: New York University Press, 2007.

Carby, Hazel V. Reconstructing Womanhood . Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987.

Cawelti, John. “Myths of Violence in American Popular Culture.” Critical Inquiry 1 (1975): 521–41.

Cawelti, John. Adventure, Mystery, and Romance: Formula Stories as Popular Art and Popular Culture . Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1976.

Engler, Bernd, and Oliver Scheiding, eds. Key Concepts in American Cultural History from the Colonial Period to the End of the 19th Century . Trier: WVT, 2007.

Fisher, Philip, ed. The New American Studies: Essays from “Representations.” Berkeley: University of California Press, 1991.

Fluck, Winfried. “American Literary History and the Romance with America.” American Literary History 21. 1 (2009): 1–18.

Fluck, Winfried. “Das ästhetische Vorverständnis der American Studies.” Jahrbuch für Amerikastudien 18 (1973): 110–29.

Fluck, Winfried. “California Blue: Americanization as Self-Americanization.” Americanization and Anti­Americanism: The German Encounter with American Culture after 1945 . Ed. Alexander Stephan. New York: Berghahn Books, 2005. 221–37.

Fluck, Winfried. “The Humanities in the Age of Expressive Individualism and Cultural Radicalism.” Pease and Wiegman 211–30.

Fluck, Winfried. “A New Beginning? Transnationalisms.” New Literary History 42. 3 (2011): 365–84.

Fluck, Winfried. Romance with America? Essays on Culture, Literature, and American Studies . Heidelberg: Winter, 2009.

Fluck, Winfried, and Werner Sollors, eds. German? American? Literature? New Directions in German­American Studies . New York: Peter Lang, 2002.

Fluck, Winfried, Donald Pease, and John Carlos Rowe, eds. Re ­framing the Transnational Turn in American Studies . Hanover: Dartmouth College Press, 2011.

Fredrickson, George M. The Arrogance of Race . Hanover: Wesleyan University Press, 1988.

Gates, Henry Louis, ed. Black Literature and Literary Theory . New York: Methuen, 1984.

Gates, Henry Louis. The Signifying Monkey: A Theory of African American Literary Criticism . Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1988.

Gates, Henry Louis. “The Trope of a New Negro and the Reconstruction of the Image of the Black.” Fisher 319– 45.

Gilmore, Michael T. American Romanticism and the Marketplace . Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1985.

Book   Google Scholar  

Gilroy, Paul. The Black Atlantic: Modernity and Double Consciousness . Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1993.

Gunning, Tom. “The Cinema of Attractions.” Early Cinema . Ed. Thomas Elsaesser. London: British Film Institute, 1990. 56–62.

Gutman, Herbert G. The Black Family in Slavery and Freedom: 1750–1925 . New York: Pantheon, 1976.

Hall, Stuart. “New Ethnicities.” Critical Dialogues in Cultural Studies . Eds. David Morley and Kuan-Hsing Chen. New York: Routledge, 1996. 441–49.

Hollinger, David A. Postethnic America . New York: Basic Books, 1995.

Jacobson, Matthew F. Whiteness of a Different Color . Cambridge: Harvard Unversity Press, 1998.

Jehlen, Myra. “Beyond Transcendence.” Bercovitch and Jehlen 1–18.

Kaplan, Amy. The Anarchy of Empire in the Making of U.S. Culture . Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 2002.

Kaplan, Amy, and Donald Pease, eds. Cultures of United States Imperialism . Durham: Duke University Press, 1993.

Kerber, Linda. “Diversity and the Transformation of American Studies.” American Quarterly 41 (1989): 415–31.

Kimmel, Michael. Manhood in America: A Cultural History . New York: Oxford UP, 2011.

Kolodny, Annette. The Lay of the Land: Metaphor as Experience and History in American Life and Letters . Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1975.

Levine, Lawrence W. Black Culture and Black Consciousness: Afro­American Folk Thought from Slavery to Freedom . Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1977.

Levine, Lawrence W. Highbrow/Lowbrow: The Emergence of Cultural Hierarchy in America . Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1988.

Lott, Eric. Love and Theft: Blackface Minstrelsy and the American Working Class . Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1993.

Lowe, Lisa. Immigrant Acts . Durham: Duke University Press, 1996.

Maase, Kaspar. BRAVO Amerika: Erkundungen zur Jugendkultur der Bundesrepublik in den fünfziger Jahren . Hamburg: Junius, 1992.

Martschukat, Jürgen, and Olaf Stieglitz, eds. Väter, Soldaten, Liebhaber: Männer und Männlichkeiten in der Geschichte Nordamerikas . Bielefeld: transcript, 2007.

Marx, Leo. “American Studies: A Defense of an Unscientific Method.” New Literary History 1 (1969): 75–90.

Marx, Leo. The Machine in the Garden: Technology and the Pastoral Idea in America . Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1964.

Marx, Leo , Bernard Bowron, and Arnold Rose. “Literature and Covert Culture.” Studies in American Culture . Ed. Joseph Kwiat. Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 1960. 84–95.

Matthiessen, F. O. American Renaissance: Art and Expression in the Age of Emerson and Whitman . Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1941.

Mayer, Ruth. Diaspora: Eine kritische Begriffsbestimmung . Bielefeld: transcript, 2005.

Michaels, Walter Benn. The Trouble with Diversity: How We Learned to Love Identity and Ignore Inequality . New York: Henry Holt, 2006.

Morrison, Toni. Playing in the Dark: Whiteness and the Literary Imagination . Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1992.

Opfermann, Susanne. Diskurs, Geschlecht und Literatur: Amerikanische Autorinnen des 19. Jahrhunderts . Stuttgart: Metzler, 1996.

Pease, Donald. The New American Exceptionalism . Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Press, 2009.

Pease, Donald, and Robyn Wiegman, eds. The Futures of American Studies . Durham: Duke University Press, 2002.

Porter, Carolyn. “What We Know That We Don’t Know: Re-mapping American Literary Studies.” American Literary History 6 (1994): 467–526.

Radway, Janice A. Reading the Romance: Women, Patriarchy, and Popular Literature . Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1984.

Radway, Janice A. “What’s in a Name?” Pease and Wiegman 45–75.

Roediger, David R. The Wages of Whiteness: Race and the Making of the American Working Class . London: Verso, 1991.

Rotundo, E. Anthony. American Manhood: Transformations in Masculinity from the Revolution to the Modern Era . New York: Basic Books, 1993.

Samuels, Shirley, ed. The Culture of Sentiment: Race, Gender, and Sentimentality in Nineteenth Century America . Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1992.

Seltzer, Mark. Henry James and the Art of Power . Ithaca: Cornell University Press, 1984.

Showalter, Elaine. “The Feminist Critical Revolution.” Introduction. The New Feminist Criticism . Ed. Elaine Showalter. New York: Pantheon, 1985. 3–17.

Slotkin, Richard. Regeneration Through Violence: The Mythology of the American Frontier: 1600–1860 . Middletown: Wesleyan University Press, 1973.

Smith, Henry Nash. “Can American Studies Develop a Method?” American Quarterly 9 (1957): 97–208.

Smith, Henry Nash. Virgin Land: The American West as Symbol and Myth . Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1950.

Smith-Rosenberg, Carroll. Disorderly Conduct: Visions of Gender in Victorian America . New York: Oxford University Press, 1985.

Sundquist, Eric J. To Wake the Nations: Race in the Making of American Literature . Cambridge: Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 1993.

Takaki, Ronald. A Different Mirror: A History of Multicultural America . Boston: Little, Brown & Co., 1993.

Tompkins, Jane. Sensational Designs: The Cultural Work of American Fiction 1790–1860 . Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1985.

Voelz, Johannes. Transcendental Resistance: The New Americanists & Emerson’s Challenge . Hanover: Dartmouth College Press, 2010.

Wald, Alan. “Theorizing Cultural Difference.” Melus 14. 2 (1987): 21–33.

Download references

You can also search for this author in PubMed   Google Scholar

Editor information

Editors and affiliations.

University of Augsburg, Deutschland

Martin Middeke ( Professor of English Literature, Visiting Professor of English ), Timo Müller ( Assistant Professor of American Studies ), Christina Wald ( Assistant Professor of English Literature ) & Hubert Zapf ( Professor of American Literature ) ( Professor of English Literature, Visiting Professor of English ),  ( Assistant Professor of American Studies ),  ( Assistant Professor of English Literature ) &  ( Professor of American Literature )

University of Johannesburg, South Africa

Martin Middeke ( Professor of English Literature, Visiting Professor of English ) ( Professor of English Literature, Visiting Professor of English )

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2012 Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany

About this chapter

Fluck, W. (2012). American Cultural Studies. In: Middeke, M., Müller, T., Wald, C., Zapf, H. (eds) English and American Studies. J.B. Metzler, Stuttgart. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-476-00406-2_21

Download citation

DOI : https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-476-00406-2_21

Publisher Name : J.B. Metzler, Stuttgart

Print ISBN : 978-3-476-02306-3

Online ISBN : 978-3-476-00406-2

eBook Packages : J.B. Metzler Humanities (German Language)

Share this chapter

Anyone you share the following link with will be able to read this content:

Sorry, a shareable link is not currently available for this article.

Provided by the Springer Nature SharedIt content-sharing initiative

• Publish with us

Policies and ethics

• Find a journal
• Track your research

Explore our publications and services.

University of michigan press.

Publishes award-winning books that advance humanities and social science fields, as well as English language teaching and regional resources.

Michigan Publishing Services

Assists the U-M community of faculty, staff, and students in achieving their publishing ambitions.

Deep Blue Repositories

Share and access research data, articles, chapters, dissertations and more produced by the U-M community.

A community-based, open source publishing platform that helps publishers present the full richness of their authors' research outputs in a durable, discoverable, accessible and flexible form. Developed by Michigan Publishing and University of Michigan Library.

• shopping_cart Cart

Browse Our Books

• See All Books
• Distributed Clients

Feature Selections

• New Releases
• Forthcoming
• Bestsellers
• Great Lakes

English Language Teaching

• Companion Websites
• Subject Index
• Resources for Teachers and Students

By Skill Area

• Academic Skills/EAP
• Teacher Training

For Authors

Prospective authors.

• Why Publish with Michigan?
• Open Access
• Our Publishing Program
• Submission Guidelines

Author's Guide

• Introduction
• Final Manuscript Preparation
• Production Process
• Marketing and Sales
• Guidelines for Indexing

For Instructors

• Exam Copies
• Desk Copies

For Librarians and Booksellers

• Our Ebook Collection
• Ordering Information for Booksellers
• Review Copies

Background and Contacts

• About the Press
• Customer Service
• Staff Directory

News and Information

• Conferences and Events

Policies and Requests

• Rights and Permissions
• Accessibility

Researching American Culture

A guide for student anthropologists.

Applies anthropological techniques to the study of contemporary American behavior

Description

Conducting original fieldwork is a science and an art.  Anthropology students can easily get an A in Aborigines without ever understanding their own tribal behavior.  American culture, like all others, has its share of ritual and myths, ranging from singles bars to sports events.  This volume guides undergraduate students to correct scientific methods and successful personal approaches in their work. Researching American Culture covers the universe of ethnography: the researcher’s role, interviewing, questionnaire construction, ethics, coping with the limitations of time and space.  Guides for researchers, original research papers by undergraduates, and essays by professional anthropologists are all included. By applying anthropological techniques to today’’s behavior, students learn to be objective about their own culture and skeptical about practices rarely questioned.  

Conrad Phillip Kottak holds a doctorate from Columbia University and is chairman of the graduate program in anthropology at the University of Michigan.  He is author of two major introductory textbooks, Anthropology: The Exploration of Human Diversity and Cultural Anthropology , and an advanced study, The Past in the Present: History, Ecology, and Cultural Variation in Highland Madagascar.

• Search Menu

Sign in through your institution

• Browse content in Arts and Humanities
• Browse content in Archaeology
• Anglo-Saxon and Medieval Archaeology
• Archaeological Methodology and Techniques
• Archaeology by Region
• Archaeology of Religion
• Archaeology of Trade and Exchange
• Biblical Archaeology
• Contemporary and Public Archaeology
• Environmental Archaeology
• Historical Archaeology
• History and Theory of Archaeology
• Industrial Archaeology
• Landscape Archaeology
• Mortuary Archaeology
• Prehistoric Archaeology
• Underwater Archaeology
• Urban Archaeology
• Zooarchaeology
• Browse content in Architecture
• Architectural Structure and Design
• History of Architecture
• Residential and Domestic Buildings
• Theory of Architecture
• Browse content in Art
• Art Subjects and Themes
• History of Art
• Industrial and Commercial Art
• Theory of Art
• Biographical Studies
• Byzantine Studies
• Browse content in Classical Studies
• Classical Literature
• Classical Reception
• Classical History
• Classical Philosophy
• Classical Mythology
• Classical Art and Architecture
• Classical Oratory and Rhetoric
• Greek and Roman Archaeology
• Greek and Roman Papyrology
• Greek and Roman Epigraphy
• Greek and Roman Law
• Late Antiquity
• Religion in the Ancient World
• Digital Humanities
• Browse content in History
• Colonialism and Imperialism
• Diplomatic History
• Environmental History
• Genealogy, Heraldry, Names, and Honours
• Genocide and Ethnic Cleansing
• Historical Geography
• History by Period
• History of Agriculture
• History of Education
• History of Emotions
• History of Gender and Sexuality
• Industrial History
• Intellectual History
• International History
• Labour History
• Legal and Constitutional History
• Local and Family History
• Maritime History
• Military History
• National Liberation and Post-Colonialism
• Oral History
• Political History
• Public History
• Regional and National History
• Revolutions and Rebellions
• Slavery and Abolition of Slavery
• Social and Cultural History
• Theory, Methods, and Historiography
• Urban History
• World History
• Browse content in Language Teaching and Learning
• Language Learning (Specific Skills)
• Language Teaching Theory and Methods
• Browse content in Linguistics
• Applied Linguistics
• Cognitive Linguistics
• Computational Linguistics
• Forensic Linguistics
• Grammar, Syntax and Morphology
• Historical and Diachronic Linguistics
• History of English
• Language Variation
• Language Families
• Language Evolution
• Language Reference
• Language Acquisition
• Lexicography
• Linguistic Theories
• Linguistic Typology
• Linguistic Anthropology
• Phonetics and Phonology
• Psycholinguistics
• Sociolinguistics
• Translation and Interpretation
• Writing Systems
• Browse content in Literature
• Bibliography
• Children's Literature Studies
• Literary Studies (Modernism)
• Literary Studies (Romanticism)
• Literary Studies (American)
• Literary Studies (Asian)
• Literary Studies (European)
• Literary Studies (Eco-criticism)
• Literary Studies - World
• Literary Studies (1500 to 1800)
• Literary Studies (19th Century)
• Literary Studies (20th Century onwards)
• Literary Studies (African American Literature)
• Literary Studies (British and Irish)
• Literary Studies (Early and Medieval)
• Literary Studies (Fiction, Novelists, and Prose Writers)
• Literary Studies (Gender Studies)
• Literary Studies (Graphic Novels)
• Literary Studies (History of the Book)
• Literary Studies (Plays and Playwrights)
• Literary Studies (Poetry and Poets)
• Literary Studies (Postcolonial Literature)
• Literary Studies (Queer Studies)
• Literary Studies (Science Fiction)
• Literary Studies (Travel Literature)
• Literary Studies (War Literature)
• Literary Studies (Women's Writing)
• Literary Theory and Cultural Studies
• Mythology and Folklore
• Shakespeare Studies and Criticism
• Browse content in Media Studies
• Browse content in Music
• Applied Music
• Dance and Music
• Ethics in Music
• Ethnomusicology
• Gender and Sexuality in Music
• Medicine and Music
• Music Cultures
• Music and Culture
• Music and Media
• Music and Religion
• Music Education and Pedagogy
• Music Theory and Analysis
• Musical Scores, Lyrics, and Libretti
• Musical Structures, Styles, and Techniques
• Musicology and Music History
• Performance Practice and Studies
• Race and Ethnicity in Music
• Sound Studies
• Browse content in Performing Arts
• Browse content in Philosophy
• Aesthetics and Philosophy of Art
• Epistemology
• Feminist Philosophy
• History of Western Philosophy
• Metaphysics
• Moral Philosophy
• Non-Western Philosophy
• Philosophy of Action
• Philosophy of Law
• Philosophy of Religion
• Philosophy of Language
• Philosophy of Mind
• Philosophy of Perception
• Philosophy of Science
• Philosophy of Mathematics and Logic
• Practical Ethics
• Social and Political Philosophy
• Browse content in Religion
• Biblical Studies
• Christianity
• East Asian Religions
• History of Religion
• Judaism and Jewish Studies
• Qumran Studies
• Religion and Education
• Religion and Health
• Religion and Politics
• Religion and Science
• Religion and Law
• Religion and Art, Literature, and Music
• Religious Studies
• Browse content in Society and Culture
• Cookery, Food, and Drink
• Cultural Studies
• Customs and Traditions
• Ethical Issues and Debates
• Hobbies, Games, Arts and Crafts
• Natural world, Country Life, and Pets
• Popular Beliefs and Controversial Knowledge
• Sports and Outdoor Recreation
• Technology and Society
• Travel and Holiday
• Visual Culture
• Browse content in Law
• Arbitration
• Browse content in Company and Commercial Law
• Commercial Law
• Company Law
• Browse content in Comparative Law
• Systems of Law
• Competition Law
• Browse content in Constitutional and Administrative Law
• Government Powers
• Judicial Review
• Local Government Law
• Military and Defence Law
• Parliamentary and Legislative Practice
• Construction Law
• Contract Law
• Browse content in Criminal Law
• Criminal Procedure
• Criminal Evidence Law
• Sentencing and Punishment
• Employment and Labour Law
• Environment and Energy Law
• Browse content in Financial Law
• Banking Law
• Insolvency Law
• History of Law
• Human Rights and Immigration
• Intellectual Property Law
• Browse content in International Law
• Private International Law and Conflict of Laws
• Public International Law
• IT and Communications Law
• Jurisprudence and Philosophy of Law
• Law and Society
• Law and Politics
• Browse content in Legal System and Practice
• Courts and Procedure
• Legal Skills and Practice
• Primary Sources of Law
• Regulation of Legal Profession
• Medical and Healthcare Law
• Browse content in Policing
• Criminal Investigation and Detection
• Police and Security Services
• Police Procedure and Law
• Police Regional Planning
• Browse content in Property Law
• Personal Property Law
• Study and Revision
• Terrorism and National Security Law
• Browse content in Trusts Law
• Wills and Probate or Succession
• Browse content in Medicine and Health
• Browse content in Allied Health Professions
• Arts Therapies
• Clinical Science
• Dietetics and Nutrition
• Occupational Therapy
• Operating Department Practice
• Physiotherapy
• Radiography
• Speech and Language Therapy
• Browse content in Anaesthetics
• General Anaesthesia
• Neuroanaesthesia
• Clinical Neuroscience
• Browse content in Clinical Medicine
• Acute Medicine
• Cardiovascular Medicine
• Clinical Genetics
• Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics
• Dermatology
• Endocrinology and Diabetes
• Gastroenterology
• Genito-urinary Medicine
• Geriatric Medicine
• Infectious Diseases
• Medical Oncology
• Medical Toxicology
• Pain Medicine
• Palliative Medicine
• Rehabilitation Medicine
• Respiratory Medicine and Pulmonology
• Rheumatology
• Sleep Medicine
• Sports and Exercise Medicine
• Community Medical Services
• Critical Care
• Emergency Medicine
• Forensic Medicine
• Haematology
• History of Medicine
• Medical Ethics
• Browse content in Medical Skills
• Clinical Skills
• Communication Skills
• Nursing Skills
• Surgical Skills
• Browse content in Medical Dentistry
• Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery
• Paediatric Dentistry
• Restorative Dentistry and Orthodontics
• Surgical Dentistry
• Medical Statistics and Methodology
• Browse content in Neurology
• Clinical Neurophysiology
• Neuropathology
• Nursing Studies
• Browse content in Obstetrics and Gynaecology
• Gynaecology
• Occupational Medicine
• Ophthalmology
• Otolaryngology (ENT)
• Browse content in Paediatrics
• Neonatology
• Browse content in Pathology
• Chemical Pathology
• Clinical Cytogenetics and Molecular Genetics
• Histopathology
• Medical Microbiology and Virology
• Patient Education and Information
• Browse content in Pharmacology
• Psychopharmacology
• Browse content in Popular Health
• Caring for Others
• Complementary and Alternative Medicine
• Self-help and Personal Development
• Browse content in Preclinical Medicine
• Cell Biology
• Molecular Biology and Genetics
• Reproduction, Growth and Development
• Primary Care
• Professional Development in Medicine
• Browse content in Psychiatry
• Addiction Medicine
• Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
• Forensic Psychiatry
• Learning Disabilities
• Old Age Psychiatry
• Psychotherapy
• Browse content in Public Health and Epidemiology
• Epidemiology
• Public Health
• Browse content in Radiology
• Clinical Radiology
• Interventional Radiology
• Nuclear Medicine
• Radiation Oncology
• Reproductive Medicine
• Browse content in Surgery
• Cardiothoracic Surgery
• Gastro-intestinal and Colorectal Surgery
• General Surgery
• Neurosurgery
• Paediatric Surgery
• Peri-operative Care
• Plastic and Reconstructive Surgery
• Surgical Oncology
• Transplant Surgery
• Trauma and Orthopaedic Surgery
• Vascular Surgery
• Browse content in Science and Mathematics
• Browse content in Biological Sciences
• Aquatic Biology
• Biochemistry
• Bioinformatics and Computational Biology
• Developmental Biology
• Ecology and Conservation
• Evolutionary Biology
• Genetics and Genomics
• Microbiology
• Molecular and Cell Biology
• Natural History
• Plant Sciences and Forestry
• Research Methods in Life Sciences
• Structural Biology
• Systems Biology
• Zoology and Animal Sciences
• Browse content in Chemistry
• Analytical Chemistry
• Computational Chemistry
• Crystallography
• Environmental Chemistry
• Industrial Chemistry
• Inorganic Chemistry
• Materials Chemistry
• Medicinal Chemistry
• Mineralogy and Gems
• Organic Chemistry
• Physical Chemistry
• Polymer Chemistry
• Study and Communication Skills in Chemistry
• Theoretical Chemistry
• Browse content in Computer Science
• Artificial Intelligence
• Computer Architecture and Logic Design
• Game Studies
• Human-Computer Interaction
• Mathematical Theory of Computation
• Programming Languages
• Software Engineering
• Systems Analysis and Design
• Virtual Reality
• Browse content in Computing
• Business Applications
• Computer Games
• Computer Security
• Computer Networking and Communications
• Digital Lifestyle
• Graphical and Digital Media Applications
• Operating Systems
• Browse content in Earth Sciences and Geography
• Atmospheric Sciences
• Environmental Geography
• Geology and the Lithosphere
• Maps and Map-making
• Meteorology and Climatology
• Oceanography and Hydrology
• Palaeontology
• Physical Geography and Topography
• Regional Geography
• Soil Science
• Urban Geography
• Browse content in Engineering and Technology
• Agriculture and Farming
• Biological Engineering
• Civil Engineering, Surveying, and Building
• Electronics and Communications Engineering
• Energy Technology
• Engineering (General)
• Environmental Science, Engineering, and Technology
• History of Engineering and Technology
• Mechanical Engineering and Materials
• Technology of Industrial Chemistry
• Transport Technology and Trades
• Browse content in Environmental Science
• Applied Ecology (Environmental Science)
• Conservation of the Environment (Environmental Science)
• Environmental Sustainability
• Environmentalist Thought and Ideology (Environmental Science)
• Management of Land and Natural Resources (Environmental Science)
• Natural Disasters (Environmental Science)
• Nuclear Issues (Environmental Science)
• Pollution and Threats to the Environment (Environmental Science)
• Social Impact of Environmental Issues (Environmental Science)
• History of Science and Technology
• Browse content in Materials Science
• Ceramics and Glasses
• Composite Materials
• Metals, Alloying, and Corrosion
• Nanotechnology
• Browse content in Mathematics
• Applied Mathematics
• Biomathematics and Statistics
• History of Mathematics
• Mathematical Education
• Mathematical Finance
• Mathematical Analysis
• Numerical and Computational Mathematics
• Probability and Statistics
• Pure Mathematics
• Browse content in Neuroscience
• Cognition and Behavioural Neuroscience
• Development of the Nervous System
• Disorders of the Nervous System
• History of Neuroscience
• Invertebrate Neurobiology
• Molecular and Cellular Systems
• Neuroendocrinology and Autonomic Nervous System
• Neuroscientific Techniques
• Sensory and Motor Systems
• Browse content in Physics
• Astronomy and Astrophysics
• Atomic, Molecular, and Optical Physics
• Biological and Medical Physics
• Classical Mechanics
• Computational Physics
• Condensed Matter Physics
• Electromagnetism, Optics, and Acoustics
• History of Physics
• Mathematical and Statistical Physics
• Measurement Science
• Nuclear Physics
• Particles and Fields
• Plasma Physics
• Quantum Physics
• Relativity and Gravitation
• Semiconductor and Mesoscopic Physics
• Browse content in Psychology
• Affective Sciences
• Clinical Psychology
• Cognitive Neuroscience
• Cognitive Psychology
• Criminal and Forensic Psychology
• Developmental Psychology
• Educational Psychology
• Evolutionary Psychology
• Health Psychology
• History and Systems in Psychology
• Music Psychology
• Neuropsychology
• Organizational Psychology
• Psychological Assessment and Testing
• Psychology of Human-Technology Interaction
• Psychology Professional Development and Training
• Research Methods in Psychology
• Social Psychology
• Browse content in Social Sciences
• Browse content in Anthropology
• Anthropology of Religion
• Human Evolution
• Medical Anthropology
• Physical Anthropology
• Regional Anthropology
• Social and Cultural Anthropology
• Theory and Practice of Anthropology
• Browse content in Business and Management
• Business History
• Business Ethics
• Business Strategy
• Business and Technology
• Business and Government
• Business and the Environment
• Comparative Management
• Corporate Governance
• Corporate Social Responsibility
• Entrepreneurship
• Health Management
• Human Resource Management
• Industrial and Employment Relations
• Industry Studies
• Information and Communication Technologies
• International Business
• Knowledge Management
• Management and Management Techniques
• Operations Management
• Organizational Theory and Behaviour
• Pensions and Pension Management
• Public and Nonprofit Management
• Strategic Management
• Supply Chain Management
• Browse content in Criminology and Criminal Justice
• Criminal Justice
• Criminology
• Forms of Crime
• International and Comparative Criminology
• Youth Violence and Juvenile Justice
• Development Studies
• Browse content in Economics
• Agricultural, Environmental, and Natural Resource Economics
• Asian Economics
• Behavioural Finance
• Behavioural Economics and Neuroeconomics
• Econometrics and Mathematical Economics
• Economic Methodology
• Economic History
• Economic Systems
• Economic Development and Growth
• Financial Markets
• Financial Institutions and Services
• General Economics and Teaching
• Health, Education, and Welfare
• History of Economic Thought
• International Economics
• Labour and Demographic Economics
• Law and Economics
• Macroeconomics and Monetary Economics
• Microeconomics
• Public Economics
• Urban, Rural, and Regional Economics
• Welfare Economics
• Browse content in Education
• Adult Education and Continuous Learning
• Care and Counselling of Students
• Early Childhood and Elementary Education
• Educational Equipment and Technology
• Educational Strategies and Policy
• Higher and Further Education
• Organization and Management of Education
• Philosophy and Theory of Education
• Schools Studies
• Secondary Education
• Teaching of a Specific Subject
• Teaching of Specific Groups and Special Educational Needs
• Teaching Skills and Techniques
• Browse content in Environment
• Applied Ecology (Social Science)
• Climate Change
• Conservation of the Environment (Social Science)
• Environmentalist Thought and Ideology (Social Science)
• Natural Disasters (Environment)
• Social Impact of Environmental Issues (Social Science)
• Browse content in Human Geography
• Cultural Geography
• Economic Geography
• Political Geography
• Browse content in Interdisciplinary Studies
• Communication Studies
• Museums, Libraries, and Information Sciences
• Browse content in Politics
• African Politics
• Asian Politics
• Chinese Politics
• Comparative Politics
• Conflict Politics
• Elections and Electoral Studies
• Environmental Politics
• European Union
• Foreign Policy
• Gender and Politics
• Human Rights and Politics
• Indian Politics
• International Relations
• International Organization (Politics)
• International Political Economy
• Irish Politics
• Latin American Politics
• Middle Eastern Politics
• Political Theory
• Political Behaviour
• Political Economy
• Political Institutions
• Political Methodology
• Political Communication
• Political Philosophy
• Political Sociology
• Politics and Law
• Politics of Development
• Public Policy
• Public Administration
• Quantitative Political Methodology
• Regional Political Studies
• Russian Politics
• Security Studies
• State and Local Government
• UK Politics
• US Politics
• Browse content in Regional and Area Studies
• African Studies
• Asian Studies
• East Asian Studies
• Japanese Studies
• Latin American Studies
• Middle Eastern Studies
• Native American Studies
• Scottish Studies
• Browse content in Research and Information
• Research Methods
• Browse content in Social Work
• Addictions and Substance Misuse
• Adoption and Fostering
• Care of the Elderly
• Child and Adolescent Social Work
• Couple and Family Social Work
• Direct Practice and Clinical Social Work
• Emergency Services
• Human Behaviour and the Social Environment
• International and Global Issues in Social Work
• Mental and Behavioural Health
• Social Justice and Human Rights
• Social Policy and Advocacy
• Social Work and Crime and Justice
• Social Work Macro Practice
• Social Work Practice Settings
• Social Work Research and Evidence-based Practice
• Welfare and Benefit Systems
• Browse content in Sociology
• Childhood Studies
• Community Development
• Comparative and Historical Sociology
• Economic Sociology
• Gender and Sexuality
• Gerontology and Ageing
• Health, Illness, and Medicine
• Marriage and the Family
• Migration Studies
• Occupations, Professions, and Work
• Organizations
• Population and Demography
• Race and Ethnicity
• Social Theory
• Social Movements and Social Change
• Social Research and Statistics
• Social Stratification, Inequality, and Mobility
• Sociology of Religion
• Sociology of Education
• Sport and Leisure
• Urban and Rural Studies
• Browse content in Warfare and Defence
• Defence Strategy, Planning, and Research
• Land Forces and Warfare
• Military Administration
• Military Life and Institutions
• Naval Forces and Warfare
• Other Warfare and Defence Issues
• Peace Studies and Conflict Resolution
• Weapons and Equipment

American Cultural History: A Very Short Introduction

Associate Professor of Chicano Studies, Urban Planning, and History

Author webpage

• Cite Icon Cite
• Permissions Icon Permissions

American Cultural History: A Very Short Introduction provides a chronological look at American culture—the values, attitudes, beliefs, and myths of a particular society and the objects through which they are organized—addressing literature, music, art, architecture, theater, film, television, and the Internet. In doing so, it emphasizes culture’s role in the shaping of national identity and how previous generations of Americans have imagined themselves, their nation, and their relationship to rest of the world. Across the lines of race, class, gender, sexuality, religion, ethnicity, generation, and geography, diverse Americans have forged a national culture with a global reach, inventing stories to underscore the problems and possibilities of an American way of life.

Signed in as

Institutional accounts.

• GoogleCrawler [DO NOT DELETE]
• Google Scholar Indexing

Personal account

• Sign in with email/username & password
• Get email alerts
• Save searches
• Purchase content
• Activate your purchase/trial code
• Add your ORCID iD

Institutional access

Sign in with a library card.

• Sign in with username/password
• Recommend to your librarian
• Institutional account management
• Get help with access

Access to content on Oxford Academic is often provided through institutional subscriptions and purchases. If you are a member of an institution with an active account, you may be able to access content in one of the following ways:

IP based access

Typically, access is provided across an institutional network to a range of IP addresses. This authentication occurs automatically, and it is not possible to sign out of an IP authenticated account.

Choose this option to get remote access when outside your institution. Shibboleth/Open Athens technology is used to provide single sign-on between your institution’s website and Oxford Academic.

• Click Sign in through your institution.
• Select your institution from the list provided, which will take you to your institution's website to sign in.
• When on the institution site, please use the credentials provided by your institution. Do not use an Oxford Academic personal account.
• Following successful sign in, you will be returned to Oxford Academic.

If your institution is not listed or you cannot sign in to your institution’s website, please contact your librarian or administrator.

Enter your library card number to sign in. If you cannot sign in, please contact your librarian.

Society Members

Society member access to a journal is achieved in one of the following ways:

Sign in through society site

Many societies offer single sign-on between the society website and Oxford Academic. If you see ‘Sign in through society site’ in the sign in pane within a journal:

• Click Sign in through society site.
• When on the society site, please use the credentials provided by that society. Do not use an Oxford Academic personal account.

If you do not have a society account or have forgotten your username or password, please contact your society.

Sign in using a personal account

Some societies use Oxford Academic personal accounts to provide access to their members. See below.

A personal account can be used to get email alerts, save searches, purchase content, and activate subscriptions.

Some societies use Oxford Academic personal accounts to provide access to their members.

Viewing your signed in accounts

Click the account icon in the top right to:

• View your signed in personal account and access account management features.
• View the institutional accounts that are providing access.

Signed in but can't access content

Oxford Academic is home to a wide variety of products. The institutional subscription may not cover the content that you are trying to access. If you believe you should have access to that content, please contact your librarian.

For librarians and administrators, your personal account also provides access to institutional account management. Here you will find options to view and activate subscriptions, manage institutional settings and access options, access usage statistics, and more.

Our books are available by subscription or purchase to libraries and institutions.

External resource

• In the OUP print catalogue
• About Oxford Academic
• Publish journals with us
• University press partners
• What we publish
• New features  
• Open access
• Rights and permissions
• Accessibility
• Advertising
• Media enquiries
• Oxford University Press
• Oxford Languages
• University of Oxford

Oxford University Press is a department of the University of Oxford. It furthers the University's objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education by publishing worldwide

• Copyright © 2024 Oxford University Press
• Cookie settings
• Cookie policy
• Privacy policy
• Legal notice

This Feature Is Available To Subscribers Only

Sign In or Create an Account

This PDF is available to Subscribers Only

For full access to this pdf, sign in to an existing account, or purchase an annual subscription.

American Culture: American Culture Research Guide

American culture research guide.

• Religious Studies

Search for Books

Search for books by title, author, or subject in our library catalog

Or, use WorldCat to see what books are available in any library. With Interlibrary Loan , you can order books from other libraries

American Centuries

Britannica Online Academic Edition

The American Years

Encyclopedia of American Cultural and Intellectual History

Citation resources.

Citation Help Guide - Information, tips, and examples of different citations styles

Zotero - A free citation-management tool that keeps sources organized and generates in-text citations and bibliographies

Research Databases

• Academic Search Ultimate This link opens in a new window A comprehensive database that covers research across all academic fields
• Ethnic Diversity Source This link opens in a new window Contains full-text ebooks, journals, primary source documents (including speeches, letters, and interviews), historical documents, and videos from the Associated Press for researching the culture, traditions, social treatment, and lived experiences of multiple ethnic groups in America.

Exploring Race in Society contains scholarly journals and proprietary essays that provide researchers with a deeper understanding of how current issues stem from actions and policies of the past.

• Humanities International Complete This link opens in a new window Research literature from humanities-based publications
• Issues & Controversies This link opens in a new window Topic-based research support promoting the understanding of an economic, political, or historic topic by combining the latest news with key context and background
• JSTOR This link opens in a new window A comprehensive database covering research across fields, with an emphasis on humanities and social sciences
• Google Scholar A freely accessible web search engine that indexes scholarly literature across an array of publishing formats and disciplines

Primary Source Databases

• American Memory Access to the American Memory collections of the Library of Congress, including written and spoken words, sound recordings, still and moving images, prints, maps, and sheet music
• Artstor This link opens in a new window Digital images from world art, architecture, and visual culture
• Chronicling America: Historic American Newspapers This link opens in a new window Full access to America's historic newspaper pages from 1789-1963
• Digital Public Library of America (DPLA) Digitized primary source collections from libraries across the United States. Thousands of images, films, primary documents, and other materials
• Lipscomb Library Primary Source Guide Lipscomb Library's guide to primary source collections and databases
• Virginia Memory The Library of Virginia's collections of print materials, manuscripts, archival records, newspapers, photographs and ephemera, maps and atlases, rare books, and fine art that tell the history of the commonwealth and its people

Other Resources

• Academic Video Online (AVON) This link opens in a new window AVON includes over 72,000 titles spanning a wide range of interdisciplinary subject areas. Included within this product is a set of over 2,000 videos to support student success in areas such as stress management, college life, communication, and success in math.
• Encyclopedia Virginia Explores the people, history, government, economy, and culture of Virginia
• Films on Demand: Digital Educational Video This link opens in a new window Thousands of full-length educational films and video segments on a wide range of topics
• Kanopy BASE This link opens in a new window Kanopy BASE is a multidisciplinary collection of over 10,000 titles supporting arts and the humanities, as well as STEM. Please be aware that not all of the content comes with public performance rights.
• Pew Research Center Current research on United States public opinion
• United States Census Bureau leading source of quality data about the nation's people and economy

• Next: Related Research Guides >>
• Last Updated: Sep 8, 2023 4:09 PM
• URL: https://library.randolphcollege.edu/americanculture

Phone: 434-947-8133 Email: [email protected] Staff Directory

An official website of the United States government

The .gov means it’s official. Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

The site is secure. The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

• Publications
• Account settings

Preview improvements coming to the PMC website in October 2024. Learn More or Try it out now .

• Advanced Search
• Journal List
• Springer Nature - PMC COVID-19 Collection

Cultural identity central to Native American persistence in science

Nizhoni chow-garcia.

1 Department of Inclusive Excellence, California State University, Monterey Bay, CA 93955 USA

2 Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ 86011 USA

Vanessa Svihla

3 Organization, Information and Learning Sciences, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131 USA

Claira Sohn

4 Department of Biology, Northern Arizona University, Flagstaff, AZ 86011 USA

Scott Willie

5 Department of Pathology, University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, NM 87131 USA

Maija Holsti

Angela wandinger-ness.

6 Department of Pediatrics, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, UT 84112 USA

Native Americans are the least represented population in science fields. In recent years, undergraduate and graduate level summer research programs that aimed to increase the number of Native Americans in science have made some progress. As new programs are designed, key characteristics that address science self-efficacy and science identity and provide supports for Native American students’ commitment to a scientific career should be considered. In this study, we used sequential mixed methods to investigate the potential of culturally tailored internship programs on Native American persistence in science. We analyzed surveys ( n  = 47) and interviews ( n  = 4) with Native American students to understand their perceptions of themselves in relation to science research and how summer research experiences might develop science identities. Based on regression modeling, science identity, but not science self-efficacy, predicted intent to persist in science. In turn, science self-efficacy and Native American identity predicted science identity, and this suggests cultural identity is central to Native American persistence in science. In interviews, students’ comments reinforced these findings and shed light on students’ reasoning about the kinds of science experiences they sought; specifically, they chose to participate in culturally tailored internships because these programs provided a sense of belonging to the scientific community that did not conflict with their cultural identities. Based on our analysis, we propose an Indigenous science internship model and recommend that agencies target funding for culturally tailored programs from high school through early-investigator levels as well as provide inclusive programmatic and mentoring guidelines.

Indigenous knowledge systems and more expressly, Indigenous science, is a living of right relations with lands, waters, and each other (Bang 2020 ). Western science traditions and the formal US educational system have spent the last 300 years stripping Native peoples of this worldview (Juneau 2001 ), imbuing power on a supposedly objective, culturally devoid, and human-dominant perspective (Deloria and Wildcat 2001 ). Such dissonant worldviews, as well as widespread distrust of formal US schooling, have impacted Native American higher education achievement (Shotton, Lowe, and Waterman 2013 ), so much so that Natives are the least represented population and the least likely to graduate from college, with the overwhelming majority of bachelor’s, master’s, and doctoral degrees in non-science, technology, engineering, & mathematics (STEM), service-oriented disciplines (NSF 2016 ).

Faced with a science culture steeped in meritocracy and characterized by white, masculine values, and behavioral norms, women and students of color have had more difficulty thriving in undergraduate science than white men (Carlone and Johnson 2007 ). Prior literature on women and students of color in STEM has clarified that gender and culture matter (McGee and Bentley 2017 ); however, only the most recent literature on Natives in STEM, and more often those with Indigenous authors (e.g., Page-Reeves, Marin, Moffett, DeerInWater, and Medin 2019 ), approach their research from an inherently affirming, Indigenous perspective, and one which explicitly explores the interconnected nature of science and Indigenous identity.

In working to increase the number of Native scientists, we approach this study with a critical Indigenous research lens. Critical Indigenous research (1) actively engages in a decolonization process; (2) emphasizes Indigenous knowledge and values; and (3) works toward self-determination and sovereignty (Claw et al. 2018 ). This lens directs analysis toward the ways in which systemic and structural forces shape Native American science educational attainment, as well as honors how Indigenous ways of thinking work to sustain and empower Native peoples, particularly as it relates to science (Kovach 2009 ).

Positionality

Given that the first two study authors are Native American, our use of a critical Indigenous lens offers an epistemological interpretation that is more deeply personal and potentially insightful. The following is a brief summary of our stories—who we are, where we come from, and how we locate ourselves within our work; we have included this for the authors who participated in data collection and analysis only.

Nizhoni Chow-Garcia . I identify as an urban, mixed Native woman. On my maternal side, I am Diné and of the Tódích’íi’nii (Bitter Water People) and Totsohnii (Big Water People) clans. On my paternal side, I am Chinese. I grew up in California in a city east of Los Angeles and spent most summers visiting family on the Navajo Nation. Although I did not grow up on the reservation, I remain closely connected to my familial and cultural ties and have spent most of my professional years supporting Native students and communities as the Director of a Native student support program in higher education while at the same time engaging in research that actively works to increase the number of Natives in higher education and in STEM in particular.

Naomi Lee . I am from the Seneca Nation of Indians and of the bear clan. My siblings and I were raised on our original lands, the Seneca Cattaraugus reservation, located in western New York. Throughout my academic journey I was often the only Native American represented at my university and in my field of study (chemistry and biochemistry). Since completing my doctorate degree, I strive to change that pattern by engaging Native American students into STEM and research at an earlier stage in their academic journey. Thus, I am actively involved with various programs targeted toward Native American high school and undergraduate students. These include the NINDS (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke) of the National Institutes of Health (NIH), UPN (Undergraduate Pipeline Network) and CURE (Continuing Umbrella for Research Experience) at the University of New Mexico. More recently, I am the co-founder for the Summer Program for Yakama Students (SPYS) at Pacific Northwest University of Health Sciences and Heritage University in central Washington. In addition, I am the founder and co-director for the Cultural and Academic Research Experience (CARE) program at Northern Arizona University. Both SPYS and CARE are supported by NINDS with the goal of preparing high school students for college and research careers in STEM.

Vanessa Svihla . I identify as white and descended from early English and French colonizers/settlers and more recent German and Bohemian immigrants to the USA. I was raised in a highly diverse community, with 80 languages and dialects in my elementary school. I received a master’s degree in geology, but I became labeled as part of the “leaky pipeline” when I chose to pursue a PhD in the learning sciences. These experiences fostered in me a desire to be part of designing more just futures.

The purpose of this study is to better understand and characterize, how and in what ways cultural and psychosocial processes increase Native American students’ commitment to science. We recognize STEM to be a construct largely utilized by governmental agencies and thereby subject to certain limitations (e.g., funding and specific disciplines); however, we interpret STEM to be a defined need in Indian Country, especially given the paucity of Natives with STEM degrees (NSF 2016 ) and the limited research exploring this population. We conducted a systematic literature review in order to situate our work within the results of studies that specifically focused on the development and persistence of Indigenous students in STEM and health fields (Fig.  1 ). We identified few studies that investigated science, engineering, or health identity formation among Indigenous students at the secondary or post-secondary levels, especially from a cultural lens. We thereby also draw on the rich literature on students of color in STEM to provide more context for psychosocial and cultural processes that influence STEM success. We use the term students of color—inclusive of Blacks, Native Americans, and Latinx, but not Asian Americans, who tend to have higher test scores, participation and persistence rates in STEM—rather than emphasizing deficit terminologies such as minority and underrepresented populations. We use the terms American Indian Alaska Native (AIAN) to align with summer research internship language, and thereby, governmental agency terminology. We more often prefer and engage the terms Native American, Native, Indigenous, and specific tribal status, recognizing that Native Americans may prefer to self-identify with their tribal status rather than broad pan-ethnic identities such as Native American (Horse 2001 ). To demonstrate the political nature of tribal sovereignty and identification, we intentionally capitalize the term Indigenous.

Overview of systematic literature review

Models of science persistence

We build on existing models of science persistence in higher education that have included students of color, finding that science identity and science self-efficacy directly predict intent to persist. We describe these models, then contextualize science self-efficacy and science identity. Three similar models influenced the field and the current study: Hanauer, Graham, and Hatfull found that in science courses, project ownership, self-efficacy, science identity, scientific community values, and networking explained significant variance in intent to persist in science (Hanauer, Graham, and Hatfull 2016 ). Their participants were overwhelmingly from groups well-represented in science, with only 6% reporting otherwise, and no students identifying as Native American. Estrada, Hernandez, and Schultz, in a longitudinal study of students of color (including an undisclosed number of Native Americans, who were binned with other non-Latinx and Black students), likewise found that in the short term, self-efficacy, science identity, and scientific community values predicted intent to persist, but in the longer term, only science identity was predictive of actual persistence (Estrada, Hernandez, and Schultz 2018 ). Chemers, Zurbriggen, Syed, Goza, and Bearman ( 2011 ) proposed that science supports—participating in research experiences, being mentored, and being involved in the science community—affect psychosocial processes like science self-efficacy and identity, which in turn lead to persistence in a science career. They surveyed members of the Society for the Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans in Science , and through structural equation modeling, they identified three mediators—science self-efficacy, leadership and teamwork self-efficacy, and science identity—as particularly impactful. Their study included Native students, who comprised 38 of their 327 respondents. In a further study of the same setting, they emphasized that research experience contributes to science self-efficacy, which in turn contributes to science identity; however, they also reported that the “model explained less variance in identity as a scientist for participants who identified as African American, Latino, or Native American” (Robnett, Chemers, and Zurbriggen 2015 ).

Other studies have likewise suggested variability in the degree to which science identity and self-efficacy tend to predict persistence. For instance, in engineering, first-generation Latinas showed higher self-efficacy yet low sense of identity in engineering (Verdin and Godwin 2018 ), whereas for students from groups well-represented in engineering, self-efficacy and identity were significantly and positively correlated (Schar et al. 2017 ). Likewise, Byars-Winston et al. ( 2016 ) found that overall, science self-efficacy predicted science identity, but identified intersectional subgroups that showed significant differences, namely that Latinas had higher science identity than other groups. In a study focused on African-American HBCU college students, researchers found that science identity indirectly predicted science achievement and science self-efficacy mediated the relationships between cultural identity measures and science achievement (White, DeCuir-Gunby, and Kim 2019 ). Students’ of color science identity significantly predicted their grades in a science course, a relationship not found for other students in the course (Ballen, Wieman, Salehi, Searle, and Zamudio 2017 ).

We argue these varied results suggest a continued need to focus on culture in the preparation of science researchers in specific ways. First, cultural and disciplinary norms organize perceptions, often blinding those in privileged roles to the ways they benefit from their privilege (Collins and Bilge 2016 ). STEM cultures, including educational experiences, tend to mirror the oppression seen more broadly in society, in part driven by norms related to holding a positivist epistemology and the pursuit of objectivity (Aikenhead and Ogawa 2007 ). Together, these reproduce inequities in STEM education systems and professions. In contrast, connecting science to Indigenous students’ cultural experiences and epistemologies invites them to take a more expansive view of who produces STEM knowledge, allowing them to see themselves and their communities as already part of the production of STEM knowledge (Bang and Medin 2010 ). While qualitative studies have contributed to and deepened this latter view (Page-Reeves, Marin, DeerInWater, and Medin 2017 ), prominent models of science persistence reflect the influences of the former.

Specifically, the three models of science persistence in higher education raise questions about the role of science self-efficacy in forming science identity, key supports for forming both science self-efficacy and identity and suggest a need for research that investigates the experiences and development in culturally informed ways, and especially with attention to Native student persistence in higher education. Thus, research suggests complex and intersectional relationships exist between cultural identities and common predictors of science persistence, which we detail next.

Science self-efficacy predicts persistence in science

Self-efficacy describes how confident an individual is in their ability to accomplish specific practices (Bandura 1977 ). Self-efficacy is typically linked to success (Pajares 1996 ) and often directly (Hanauer et al. 2016 ). For instance, Native Americans who have higher college self-efficacy are likelier to persist in college (Gloria and Kurpius 2001 ).

Science self-efficacy focuses on confidence related to specific science practices, such as collecting data, writing research questions, and using research literature (Chemers et al. 2011 ) and is typically measured through survey questions that ask individuals to assess their ability (“I can”) or their confidence in their ability (“I am confident that I can”) to perform a specific task. White men tend to report higher science self-efficacy, and this contributes to their higher rates of persistence (Leslie, McClure, and Oaxaca 1998 ) and success, including in attaining faculty positions (Landino and Owen 1988 ). In contrast, people of color hold less than 10% of science faculty positions (Fisher et al. 2019 ). Thus, self-efficacy directly influences persistence in science (Hurtado et al. 2007 ), making the study of factors that influence science self-efficacy important, particularly for Indigenous students.

Science identity predicts persistence in science

Prior research clarified that science identity predicts students’ intent to become a scientist (Hanauer et al. 2016 ). Science identity is the degree to which students position themselves and feel positioned by others as a scientist (Hanauer et al. 2016 ). In this way, identity is double-sided work, dependent on an individual recognizing themselves as having membership in a group and on others recognizing them as belonging to that group (Holland, Lachicotte, Skinner, and Cain 1998 ). This notion of recognition has been cited as central to science identity, with evidence that a senior scientist who fails to recognize women of color as members can have a deleterious impact on their science identity formation (Carlone and Johnson 2007 ).

Identities are inherently relational and reinforce the concept of belonging. In Native cultures, relationships are the foundation to learning environments and are, moreover, the basis of tribal communities (Cajete 1994 ). This term—belonging—is reflective of an Indigenous worldview of our interrelatedness, interdependence, and mutual responsibility to all living beings (Deloria and Wildcat 2001 ). Science identity, thereby, must be understood to be more intimately connected to belonging and more integral to Native persistence in higher education (Flynn, Duncan, and Jorgensen 2012 ).

Support for understanding science identity in concert with Native identity comes from studies that have explored accounts of success primarily from the point of view of Native professionals. For instance, Dvorakova ( 2018 ), a non-Indigenous scholar, interviewed 40 Indigenous faculty (17 of whom worked in STEM fields) to understand how they navigated negative stereotypes. Participants explained that their cultures and worldviews empowered them to put effort into disproving stereotypes by sharing their own experiences or serving as a counter-example. Similarly, analysis (by a team that included Indigenous scholars) of interviews with 38 Indigenous medical students and physicians sought to identify facilitators and barriers in their pathways (Sanchez, Poll-Hunter, Stern, Garcia, and Brewster 2016 ). They found that the opportunity to serve as a role model to younger Native students was motivating, as they hoped such students would have better experiences en route to their careers. Jordan and colleagues (including two Indigenous scholars) interviewed 20 Navajo engineers to understand their work as engineers, finding that they centered Navajo behaviors like showing respect to Elders and valuing listening in their work (Jordan, Foster, Anderson, Betoney, and Pangan 2019 ). They reported this as both a tension and opportunity during their educational pathways, as they encountered cultural norms in engineering that seemed to conflict with as well as be compatible with their values.

Page-Reeves et al. ( 2017 ) and ( 2019 ) provide the most extensive qualitative research on Native professionals in STEM. Their research substantiates Native identity as key to success among Native STEM professionals and offers a more retrospective investigation of lifelong pathways, especially evident in their concept of “wayfinding,” which emphasizes that “through the experience of finding a path for themselves within the context of the dominant science education system, Native STEM professionals are creating new spaces for being Native ” (Page-Reeves et al. 2019a , b , p. 185).

These studies, shared from the perspective of Native professionals, affirm that cultural identity and worldview can serve as a resource as Indigenous students find their ways toward success and build science identities. Such forged identities—that of one’s science and cultural identities—and the role this dynamic plays in Native STEM higher education success are at the heart of our project, and we aim to extend the work of Page-Reeves et al. ( 2019a , b , 2017 ) by focusing on Native students engaged in this wayfinding within their higher educational journeys with the hopes that we may have a more immediate impact on their higher educational experiences.

As we return to the discussion of science and cultural identities, we must consider how science identity has traditionally been studied as developed in school settings, and how dominant, hegemonic science instruction often presents science as an individual, brilliant, linear process—often with an outcome that is well understood prior to starting the investigation. This representation can create a sense of conflict or misfit if students’ first attempts at scientific investigation are not successful. For instance, Indigenous students who more strongly valued communal goals reported lower sense of belonging, which in turn corresponded to decreased intent to persist after just one semester of STEM coursework (Smith, Cech, Metz, Huntoon, and Moyer 2014 ). In contrast, early research experiences that provide opportunities to learn about science processes and practices as iterative and improvable can help students of color see and engage in science as a community, thus helping them to envision themselves as scientists (Villarejo, Barlow, Kogan, Veazey, and Sweeney 2008 ).

This suggests that establishing links between Native American identity and science identity may be particularly powerful for helping to support Native students’ development of a science identity, especially as we consider programs and practices in higher education settings. In this way, students can see connections between facets of their identity, rather than feeling that they must hide aspects of who they are in order to participate in science (Tracy and Trethewey 2005 ).

Culturally tailored programs contribute to Native success in science

Science education should support students’ navigation of multiple epistemologies, inclusive of Native ways of knowing and being (Page-Reeves, Marin, et al. 2019 ). Others recommended that programs involving Native students use Indigenous pedagogical approaches (Kahn et al. 2021 ) and complementary cognitive apprenticeship learning strategies such as instructional scaffolding and experiential and problem-based learning (McMahon, Griese, and Kenyon 2019 ). To this effect, the need to develop culturally tailored programs in tribal (Augare et al. 2017 ) and mainstream schools from primary (Masta 2018 ) through post-secondary education is recognized among academic and government institutions (Estrada et al. 2016 ). As such, some summer research programs encourage Native students to embrace their scientific and cultural identities, rather than treating them as separable or their cultural identities as irrelevant (Holsti et al. 2015 ). Some programs accomplish this by letting mentors know when students might need to return to their communities for religious ceremonies, providing Native mentorship, or creating activities that build on Native cultural traditions (Lee, Nelson, and Svihla 2018 ). Likewise, using an Indigenous model can foster a sense of belonging and competence as biomedical researchers (McMahon et al. 2019 ). Similarly, involving a Native elder as a co-educator in a science course may increase Native students’ science identity (Alkholy, Gendron, McKenna, Dahms, and Ferreira 2017 ).

Research purpose

The purpose of the present study was to investigate Native students’ intent to persist in science fields. We conjectured that, drawing on past research, while science identity and science self-efficacy may be important, cultural identity would also play a role in Native students’ intent to persist in science. By considering Native students’ science commitment through an Indigenous lens, we also aimed to contribute insight for those who develop culturally tailored internship or research programs. Specifically, we sought to investigate how and in what ways cultural and psychosocial processes increase Native students’ commitment to science, guided by the following four research questions:

• What cultural and psychosocial factors explain variance in Native students' intent to pursue a career in the sciences?
• What characterizes Native students' identities as scientists and how do they situate themselves as belonging in a community?
• What cultural and psychosocial factors explain variance in Native students' science identity?
• In what ways do Native students attribute research internships and other science experiences as contributing to their sense of belonging in a science community?

To address the research questions, we used a sequential mixed methods design to first assess Native student perceptions broadly using a survey, and then to understand specific perspectives in more depth using interviews (Creswell and Clark 2007 ). We see mixed methods studies as particularly potent because of their capacity to describe trends related to more situated accounts of particular phenomena (Creswell and Clark 2007 ). We also note how few—only four—of the papers in our review employed mixed methods. These studies have provided insight into both trends and particulars. For instance, Kant, Burckhard, and Meyers ( 2018 ) used a post-survey to characterize the impacts of a culturally responsive program on Native high school students’ interest in STEM careers and a post-focus group to understand how particular aspects of the program supported the students. In the former, students reported increased interest and beliefs that fields like engineering and science are important to their communities. In the latter, students described how activities that supported them to see science in their cultural experiences gave them a sense of pride. The authors connected such activities to the outcomes of the survey. Rawana, Sieukaran, Nguyen, and Pitawanakwat ( 2015 ) used pre and post surveys with five and interviews with 12 Native participants to inform the design of an Indigenous peer mentoring program. Similarly, Pidgeon, Archibald, and Hawkey ( 2014 ) collected 60 survey responses and held six sharing circles to both understand how a peer mentoring program supported graduate students to feel a sense of belonging and accountability, and compare experiences across sites. Smith et al. ( 2014 ) conducted surveys to characterize that Native students at the beginning of their university programs and those who majored in STEM both valued communal goals, which contributed to their sense of not belonging in STEM programs that presented in these degrees as highly individualistic. Interviews with 33 students provided insight into this issue, as many of the students expressed a clear desire to use their degrees to help their communities, which in turn suggests ways STEM degree programs could foreground communal value of STEM careers.

These studies integrate insights in varied ways, reflecting the diversity of practices used in mixed methods to pragmatically shape understandings of what and how (Creswell and Clark 2007 ). Following this approach, we conducted mixed sequential analysis, allowing the results of qualitative analysis of interviews to shape the decisions we made in quantitative analysis. Specifically, when the results from our first regression model differed from trends reported in studies of persistence in science (Chemers et al. 2011 ), we turned to our qualitative analysis—bolstered by the results from qualitative studies reported in our review—to model science identity. Given the minimal research on science persistence among Native American students in higher education (Chow-Garcia 2016 ), interviews that are exploratory in nature can contextually and substantively enrich the quantitative results. Given the consistency of our interviewees’ accounts, we treated their accounts of their particular experiences as informative in conversation with interpretations of our survey data.

Participants & Settings

Participants included students from four summer research internships that provide culturally tailored programs for Native American students: NARI (Native American Summer Research Internship) at the University of Utah, NINDS (National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke) of the National Institutes of Health, UPN (Undergraduate Pipeline Network) and CURE (Continuing Umbrella for Research Experience) both at the University of New Mexico. Students were 16 years or older, high school through graduate/medical students, and all were US citizens or permanent residents. Combined, the summer internships had 162 students from various racial/ethnic groups, and with a majority female (71% of the total, 68% of Native American respondents). Of those students, 47 students self-identified as Native American (NARI = 19; NINDS = 19; UPN/CURE = 9). For our study purposes, we restrict our analysis to the Native American students. Programmatic information on eligibility, training, feasibility, and recruitment can be found in Table ​ Table1 1 .

Programmatic information for each of the four summer programs that include recruitment efforts, research training, and services offered for student feasibility

# CURE students consisted of 12 AIAN HS and undergraduate students. The 7 AIAN undergraduates also were part of the UPN

* Due to changes to NIH policies, as of 2018, all 16- and 17-year-old interns not from the area must be accompanied by a legal guardian

** As of 2018, all students not from the local area are now required to find their own housing. However, students interested in the Health Disparities in American Indian and Alaska Native communities have housing available through American University

The programs shared a commonality in recruitment, using word-of-mouth, social media, and representation at two Native American professional organizations— American Indian Science and Engineering Society (AISES) and the Society for the Advancement of Chicanos and Native Americans in Science (SACNAS). Each program provided culturally tailored experiences for Native American students with professional networking, social networking, and cultural inclusivity events (Table ​ (Table2). 2 ). Nearly all events sought to include Native American professionals and culture in many activities. Formal mentor pairing (Native American and non-Native American) methods varied between each program but all programs aimed to encourage peer-peer mentoring among the Native American students.

Methods used by each program for mentor pairing, professional networking, social networking, and cultural inclusivity

* AIAN students participated in the same activities as the CURE students; Other UPN activities were not provided by the program coordinator

For additional information, please contact the individual program coordinators via the contact information online

Data collection

At the beginning of the summer internship, each program coordinator administered the electronic survey via an e-mail (Google Forms™). All survey responses were anonymous. The survey included subscales on science identity, science self-efficacy, and intent to persist in science, drawn from previous validation studies (Hanauer et al. 2016 ), which were themselves based on earlier measures (Estrada, Woodcock, Hernandez, and Schultz 2011 ). The cultural identity subscales were also modified from previous cultural incongruence items among Chicano/a/x students (Gloria and Kurpius 1996 ). We omitted subscales from the survey that focused on specific course-based science experiences because such questions would not be meaningful at the start of the internship. This included 10 questions on project ownership, 5 questions on emotions experience in a science course, and 5 questions about whether they shared their experience in their science course with others.” We also included questions related to cultural identity, drawn from the Lighting the Pathway study (Echohawk, Ondrechen, Megginson, Cornelius, and McClanahan 2014 ). Each question was Likert-scaled using a 5-point strongly agree to strongly disagree scale, with three to five items measuring each construct. Sample questions include:

• Science self-efficacy : I am confident that I can use technical science skills (use of tools, instruments and techniques)
• Science identity : I have a strong sense of belonging to the community of scientists
• Cultural identity : I believe that a career in my STEM field is compatible with my cultural values.
• Intent to persist : I intend to become a scientist.

The survey also included demographic questions (gender identity, educational attainment for self and parent/legal guardian, and race/ethnicity). Data on educational attainment were captured categorically (some high school education, high school graduate, current undergraduate or associate’s degree, bachelor’s degree, current graduate student degree). Participants could check all race and ethnicity groups that applied (white, non-Hispanic; Hispanic, Chicano/a/x, and Latino/a/x; Native American, American Indian, Alaska Native; Asian; Pacific Islander/Native Hawaiian; African or African-American; other). We included any respondent who identified as Native American, including those who also selected other race or ethnicity groups.

As an exploratory follow-up, and to gain further understanding, we chose to recruit Native American students from the same sample surveyed following completion of the internship. We deliberately sought to conduct interviews 1–3 months after the internship concluded such that students had time to reflect on the impact of the internship on their following activities (i.e., classes, research). One author (Lee) had a preexisting and ongoing relationship with many of the interns and with all of the internship directors. Kovach ( 2009 ), in describing the importance of and reciprocity of Indigenous relationships in research, emphasizes the relational aspect of sampling as directly connected to the trustworthiness of the researcher and that people choose to be a part of one’s research because they know the researcher and the researcher’s reputation. She, thereby, recruited students by word-of-mouth and social media in Fall 2017. While no students specifically declined, few volunteered. Four women volunteered to be interviewed—one who remained on campus following the internship and three who attended the AISES national conference held in Denver, CO. Of the interviewees, Chumani participated in one summer internship, Kara and Madalyn in four, and Johona in five (names are pseudonyms).

While we attempted to recruit a larger representation of students, including men, we were not successful due in part to the geographic distribution of students. Nevertheless, we were undeterred, as it is not unusual for studies of Native Americans pursuing STEM degrees to have small samples sizes, especially given that Native Americans are the least represented in STEM, earning just 0.7 percent (1,521) of STEM bachelor’s degrees in 2012 (NSF 2015 ). As part of our systematic literature review, we identified 27 empirical papers that included interviews or focus groups. The sample sizes and durations varied greatly, with five papers including two or fewer Indigenous participants, yet offering insight into possibilities, revealing relationships, or challenging assumptions. Similarly, studies with a small number of interviewees have shed light on ways culturally responsive or Indigenous approaches can support Native students: based on interviews with two Native and three Hispanic students, Evans ( 2004 ) detailed ways a caring curriculum can address challenges these students encounter, including feelings of isolation and coping with racism; using a combination of interviews and journaling, data from one Native faculty and student provided insight into some of the ways they used resistance in navigating their identities in a predominantly white institution (Jaime and Rios 2006 ).

Thus, despite the small sample size, we see these accounts as valuable and capable of shaping our understanding of particular experiences of phenomena. Given that the four women provided accounts that were similar to one another in many ways, and also correspondent with accounts reported for Indigenous participants in informal high school programs (Kant et al. 2018 ) and STEM professions (Page-Reeves et al. 2017 ), we see their accounts as shedding light on particular ways Indigenous students have built forged identities in their navigation of science educational experiences.

We specifically chose to conduct the interviews in-person, on the University of New Mexico campus in Albuquerque, NM or at the AISES national conference held in Denver, CO, which Lee and Svihla attended. Because Lee had prior prolonged experience with the interns but lacked experience conducting interviews, we decided that Lee would introduce the student to Svihla, who reviewed the interview purpose and consent, and conducted all interviews. Semi-structured interviews included questions about what made the internship feasible and attractive, what they perceived of as quality mentorship, their earliest science experiences, and other experiences that affected their journey as a scientist. Interviews ranged from 18 to 27 min, were audio-recorded and transcribed (Descript ® ). The authors reviewed and corrected the transcripts as needed. As discussed, given both the very small sample size and interview length, interview results are exploratory and should be interpreted as a preliminary examination of the lived experiences of individual Native STEM students. We recognize the diversity represented by the 574 federally recognized tribes, as well as the diversity within cultures cannot be captured in our small sample, yet see these young women’s accounts as valuable in providing particular points of view. We consider them in tandem with the results reported elsewhere (Page-Reeves et al. 2017 ).

Statistical analysis

We calculated descriptive statistics for Likert survey items. We used ANOVA to compare survey responses by internship, anticipating that although the survey was completed at the beginning of the internship, applicants may have differed in systematic ways simply by how they selected their internship program. We found no evidence of clustering by internship (intent to persist, F (2, 59) = 1.66, p  = 0.2; science identity, F (2, 58) = 1.66, p  = 0.2); we therefore conducted ordinary least squares regression analysis to account for variance in (1) intent to pursue a career in science and (2) science identity. We confirmed that all assumptions for regression were met (Berry 1993 ) and report regression following APA norms. While several of the past studies that we build upon have used structural equation modeling and presented path diagrams to represent their results, our sample size, endemic to the nature of the topic of study, is not large enough to permit this type of analysis.

To find a parsimonious and comprehensive model, we tested solutions stepwise, retaining variables that explained significant variance; explanatory variables included demographics, science identity, Native American identity, and science self-efficacy. We additionally examined responses for significant differences, such as by gender and education level (e.g., high school, medical school), but found none.

Qualitative analysis

We analyzed interview data using in vivo and values coding (Saldaña 2015 ). Each researcher independently analyzed two transcripts, initially focused on participants’ voice and values, and then identified dominant themes. We then met to compare themes across transcripts. While we refined the coding scheme somewhat, we found a high degree of alignment between coders and across participants. We also sought disconfirming evidence across transcripts. For instance, while interns mentioned recognizing failure as a learning opportunity, we reviewed their accounts of failure for counterexamples. We found the interns only shared examples that illustrated their understanding of failure as endemic to learning and the research process. The consistency across transcripts indicates that although we had a small sample, we reached saturation (Bowen 2008 ), perhaps because of the similarity of experiences these interns reported on in selecting and participating in internships. Yet, we also acknowledge that these four voices do not reflect the full diversity of experiences, especially as we consider the broader set of possible internships and educational opportunities available. To mitigate concerns about a small sample size, we also discuss our findings with those reported in our literature review.

The major themes included aspects of mentoring (i.e. good vs. bad mentoring, Native mentors, and mentoring of others), science identity, and Native American identity (Table ​ (Table3 3 ).

Themes from qualitative analysis

After presenting the descriptive statistics, we report the results linked to each research question in sequence.

Descriptive statistics

A total of 80 respondents represent an overall response rate of ~ 49% (80/162) across the four programs (Table ​ (Table4). 4 ). Of the 80 respondents, a majority identified as Native American ( n  = 47, 59%) with only 22% self-identifying as White or Asian and 8% as “other” that includes African-American, Hispanic/Latino, Native Hawaiian or other Pacific Islander. Of the total respondents, 71% identified as female ( n  = 56 of 80 total), with 68% of Native American respondents identifying as female ( n  = 32). Additional demographic information is provided for all respondents in Table ​ Table4, 4 , but remaining analyses focused only on students that self-reported as Native American only and Native American bi-/multi-racial.

Demographic characteristics of all survey participants ( N  = 80, 49% of total possible) and AIAN participants ( n  = 47) from four summer internships

*One student who responded "Other" for ethnicity self-reported living on tribal lands; two students chose not to respond

**One student chose not to respond

An equivalent percentage of Native American respondents were in the NIH/NINDS summer internship (40%) and NARI (40%), with only 19% in the UNM/UPN programs. Most of the Native American students were current undergraduates (64%) and 23% either just completed high school or were current high school students. Only 13% either recently completed their undergraduate degrees or were in a graduate program. Almost half of the students (43%) reported summer 2017 as their first internship with 38% indicating it was their second. The remainder (17%) of students reported two or more internships. Over half of the Native American students reported living on tribal lands or a reservation (57%) and approximately one-third in urban or suburban settings (34%). Approximately one-half of the students reported their parent or legal guardian’s academic status as a high school graduate or less (43%). However, 21% of the students reported that one or both of their parents/legal guardians had a Master’s degree or higher.

What cultural and psychosocial factors explain variance in Native American students' intent to pursue a career in the sciences?

We modeled variance in Native American students' intent to pursue a career in the sciences (on a scale of 1–5, M  = 3.80; SD = 1.15) as a linear combination of summed scores tied to science identity (on a scale of 6–30, M  = 24.17; SD = 3.98). In model 1, science identity explained significant variance in intent to pursue a career in the sciences, F (1, 44) = 57.37, p  < 0.001. This model explained a significant amount of variance, r 2  = 0.56, p  < 0.001 (Table ​ (Table5 5 ).

Model of intent to pursue a career in science

* p  < .05; ** p  < .01

In model 2, we added a variable for Native American identity (on a scale of 3–15, M  = 12.50; SD = 2.45). Model 2 did not explain significantly more variance in intent to pursue a career in the sciences than model 1, F (2, 43) = 29.98, p  < 0.001, r 2  = 0.58, p  > 0.05. We therefore omitted this variable from the model.

In model 3, we added a variable for science self-efficacy (on a scale of 7–35, M  = 28.54; SD = 3.98). Model 3 did not explain significantly more variance in intent to pursue a career in the sciences than model 1, F (2, 43) = 28.50, p  < 0.001, r 2  = 0.55, p  > 0.05. We therefore omitted this variable from the model. These models suggest that variance in science identity accounted for approximately 56% of variance in Native American students’ intent to persist in science, but that Native American identity and science self-efficacy did not directly explain variance in intent to persist in science.

These models suggest that students who possess stronger science identities are likelier to report that they intend to pursue a career in science, and this aligns with findings in studies using similar methods (e.g., Chemers et al. 2011 ). However, our models also suggested that variance in science self-efficacy did not predict intent to pursue a science career, a finding that does not align with the majority of studies (e.g., Chemers et al. 2011 ), many of which included students from well-represented groups (Hanauer et al. 2016 ). Given that in studies of students of color (primarily Black and Latinx students) only science identity predicted longer-term persistence (Estrada, Hernandez, et al. 2018 ), and that research reporting on successful STEM professional’s accounts of wayfinding and forging intertwined science and Indigenous identities (Page-Reeves et al. 2017 ), we were curious to more deeply investigate Native American students’ identities as scientists using qualitative analysis of interview transcripts.

What characterizes Native American students’ identities as scientists and how do they situate themselves as belonging in a community?

Overall, and correspondent to prior qualitative findings (Page-Reeves et al. 2017 ), students’ identities as scientists were inextricably linked to their identities as members of Native communities and tribes. When describing their identities as scientists, they commonly referenced their Native identity and sense of belonging. They likewise discussed belonging as it related to their home communities, their research labs, and to the broader scientific communities, often in interconnected ways.

Native identity and belonging. All four students recognized being Native as part of their identity. This came out in their introductions, as they introduced themselves by sharing their tribal affiliation(s). The students all made references to the Native experience, such as using the phrase “on the rez.” Even Kara, who explained that she had not grown up on a reservation, talked about connections to her culture and a sense of isolation at being away: “This was my first time not being primarily surrounded by Natives and being so far away from home, and I felt like the minority of minorities… I still felt slightly isolated and I felt like my mentors didn’t understand necessarily, my Native identity there.”

Native science identity and belonging. All four students discussed their science identities as being motivated by their Native identities. For instance, Kara argued, “We need more Natives treating Natives… I got to help my people… and that’s how I ended up at the Native American Research Internship.” Johona explained that her community “is known for like, like, um with facts or like we have a lot of high teen suicide rates, and um so that’s pretty much like why I wanted to go to public health.” Madalyn explained, “I want to be a pediatrician. And also doing research on diabetes and childhood obesity that is something near and dear to my heart because of my rez… that’s the highest cause of death… my grandma struggles with it and my grandpa struggles with it. And so that’s my goal—to give back and also because growing up on the rez I never had a consistent pediatrician… so I want to be able to go back eventually… and build trust with children especially in the Native community…” In these comments, we see these young women position themselves as future science professionals who serve their Indigenous communities, and this finding concurs with the results of interview studies with successful professionals who described this as a key motivator (Page-Reeves, Cortez, et al. 2019 ).

Students situated themselves as belonging to their lab or the broader science field, yet erstwhile connected this to their Native identities and familial connections. For instance, Kara explained, “a lot of what makes me feel like a scientist is being in the lab specifically … and then being validated by my family, like, my family, like ‘wow, you’re in the lab, and you’re curing cancer. You’re so cool. You’re a scientist,’ and so that kind of, that’s a huge feeling like a scientist thing.”

Madalyn, when reflecting on the increased numbers of Native American students in her program over three years, explained that “going from seeing only five other Native Americans to seeing me and thirty other Native Americans and Latinas” is like “seeing this whole new world beyond the reservation lines. I thought that was pretty cool.”

Native American students viewed science as an important part of who they are and made clear that it is not in conflict with their cultural integrity. Thus, students’ identities as scientists are interconnected to their Native identities and sense of belonging in science. We note that these interpretations are correspondent with findings reported elsewhere. Specifically, Page-Reeves et al. ( 2017 ) and ( 2019 ) showed that successful Indigenous professionals forged intertwined identities, and in particular, noted that while there was great diversity across the particular accounts of their wayfinding, all of these successful professionals strongly expressed a sense of their Indigenous identity (Page-Reeves et al. 2017 ). Indeed, their accounts of wayfinding en route to their successful careers (Page-Reeves, Marin, et al. 2019a , b ) are visible in our interviewees’ in-progress accounts. This suggests that our interviewees, while they faced their own particular journeys, were already on the path these successful professionals described and were engaged in forging their intertwined Native and science identities. Based on this qualitative analysis, paired with past research showing that self-efficacy is typically tied to science identity, we decided to conduct further regression modeling to explain variance in Native American students’ science identity.

What cultural and psychosocial factors explain variance in Native American students' science identity?

Variance in students’ science identity (on a scale of 6–30, M  = 24.17; SD = 3.98) was modeled as a linear combination of summed scores tied to science self-efficacy (on a scale of 7 to 35, M  = 28.54; SD = 3.98). Overall, students reported high science self-efficacy, but those with prior internship experience had significantly higher self-efficacy, t (60) = 2.04, p  < 0.05. In model 1, science self-efficacy explained significant variance in science identity, F (1, 44) = 28.76, p  < 0.001. This model explained a significant amount of variance, r 2  = 0.38, p  < 0.001 (Table ​ (Table6 6 ).

Model of science identity

In model 2, Native American identity (on a scale of 3–15, M  = 12.50; SD = 2.45) was added. Model 2 explained significantly more variance in science identity than model 1, F (2, 43) = 18.51, p  < 0.001, r 2  = 0.44, p  < 0.05.

Thus, Native American students who expressed a strong sense of science identity also had higher science self-efficacy and a stronger sense of Native American identity. This model aligns with findings from qualitative analysis that suggested that science identity is intertwined with Native American identity. This less direct route to persistence situates Native identity as a resource for developing science identity, in line with research that accounts for such work as a form of wayfinding (Page-Reeves, Marin, et al. 2019a , b ).

In what ways do Native American students attribute internship and other science experiences as contributing to their sense of belonging in a science community?

In interviews, Native students elaborated on the significant role mentors played in contributing to their sense of belonging in science. Native American students noted that they benefited from mentors who were approachable and ready to support and value their contributions. This support came in various forms, described in similar ways by all students interviewed. Specifically, they described supportive mentors as those who provided active hands-on experiences; those who emphasized relationship building and belonging; and those who valued diversity and Native American identity. For those students who had a Native American mentor, specifically, they mentioned how impactful the experience was. Each of these is detailed below.

Good mentors engage Native American students in active, hands-on science. All students mentioned the importance of active, hands-on science experiences. Madalyn had multiple research experiences and evaluated her experiences and mentors according to whether or not she participated in an active, hands-on manner. She recounted that in her first summer research experience, she was “mostly doing data sheets and working on Excel” and shared that her mentor “found ways to make it seem like I didn’t know what I was doing and kind of like belittled my intelligence… [which] discouraged me a little from maybe applying the next year because I didn’t want to be treated like that. But then the next year I got put into a lab working with HTLV-1 and my mentor was completely incredible.” Likewise, Kara’s tone elicited affirmation and excitement when describing her active, hands-on science research experiences, such as when she “worked under one of my organic chemistry professors where I helped develop a protocol for extracting ethanol from corn stock.” As Chumani spoke about working in the lab and coming to understand the work she was doing, she explained, “now I know I absolutely want to be here, and I know that I absolutely belong here.” While much research has argued for the value of such experiences in supporting learning, we see alignment here with research on Native STEM professionals’ identity work being connected to having personal agency (Page-Reeves, Marin, et al. 2019a , b ).

See potential and develop it. Mentors can support Native American students simply by seeing potential and building on that potential. Even seemingly small moves left an impression on Johona, who explained “I had like one specific like chemistry professor that was like ‘Hey. I really think you should do this. Here’s what it’s like.’ [He] laid it all out for me, explained the program and it’s like, […] those few like teachers in high school that like show you, like ‘You can do this.’”.

Madalyn described how a mentor helped her take up an agentive role in science by seeing failure as part of the process of science, which in turn made it safer to take risks and fail: “So this may not come off as, like, supportive, but my first summer at the University of South Dakota my mentor, he wasn’t really like a ‘I’m going show you everything.’ He’s like, ‘I want you to figure it out to test yourself.’ And me being who I am was like, ‘No, like this makes me anxious, like I don’t want to mess up’ and he was like, ‘That’s what science is… you’re going to mess up. I did not get here in my career because everything went smoothly.’ I feel like that was the best advice anybody could have given me.” As with offering opportunities for hands-on science, when mentors see and develop potential, students have chances to exercise their personal agency, which others have argued is a critical component of becoming an Indigenous scientist (Page-Reeves, Marin, et al. 2019a , b ).

Relationship building and belonging. Students affirmed the power of relationship building and belonging fostered by mentors. Kara shared: “I was supported by other grad students that I met there and the mentors and directors of the program really wanted me to succeed and they- we still keep in contact, so they still really care and stuff like that…” In discussing her application and search for graduate schools, Kara declared that “wherever I end up there needs to be a support group for Natives… and [when] interviewing at Utah I was like okay, I’m already family and like I’m meeting up with them during my interview weekend. I get to see them and they’re like, ‘You’re doing amazing, you’re going to do great in grad school wherever you go’ and it’s like okay, I’m going to come here now because you say this to me all the time; it’s going to make it that much easier.” Kara explained “something that has made me feel like things are working and are making me happy are things like having a sense of community with the other students so making sure that there are planned activities.”

When talking about how she got her first internship, Madalyn described that “I got the internship through my chemistry teacher, and I excelled at that and I got published… and he thought, you know, I had the potential to do so and I feel like I proved him right…” This same mentor met with her outside the classroom, took her to conferences, and connected her to new people and internship programs. He was the “one who really believed in me” As others have noted, social relations are central to wayfinding (Page-Reeves, Marin, et al. 2019a , b ). Mentors who not only see and develop potential, but do so from a relational stance can reinforce Native students’ sense of belonging even as they navigate their own paths.

Supportive of diversity and Native identity. Students recognized the importance of mentor support for diversity in general and their Native identity in particular. Kara emphasized that “My more recent mentors at Utah have really been very supportive. So my PI is a white old man but he understands like that being Native is my identity and he supports my endeavors in that. So you know I’m at AISES so he lets me come to these conferences. We were just awarded a grant that supports diversity in the lab, so like now I’m free to him. So that’s really exciting. So he’s always been really supportive of it. He hasn’t played a role in any sense of how or what my Native identity is at all, but he supports the idea.”

Mentors enhanced the students’ experience by connecting the research to students’ identity and/or community. As Johona talked about her mentor, she explained that early on, she confessed to her mentor, “I do’'t get this, like, my school’s not this advanced” to which her mentor replied, “Okay. That’s fine.” She related a later conversation with the mentor, which occurred as they reflected on working with depressed patients in their research. She had noticed a patient say “I live in three worlds” and thought “I say I live in two worlds” as a Native person. She brought this up, and her mentor was appreciative of this, acknowledging that she had not even noticed it, and that she was grateful for Johona’s perspective.

Native mentorship. For the students who experienced Native mentorship, this shared identity had a profound and lasting impact. Madalyn disclosed, “My mentor was completely incredible like also because she was Native American and so she could like understand my experiences, and we could like talk about those things together and like I was more comfortable talking to her and she’s incredibly intelligent so anything and everything that she asked of me, she explained in a way I can understand it.”

Similarly, Chumani shared an influential conversation she had with a Native mentor who talked to her about imposter syndrome or feeling like one does not belong: “You made it, but you still feel like you don't belong. And that's exactly where I was. ((laughs)) Sometimes I still feel like that, but just uh with, with her being in the lab being in this really diverse lab and telling me like she goes, ‘I don't feel that way.’ She tells me that uh she says 'I belong here and I worked my butt off to get here. And I know what I'm doing.’ … She still ((up tone)) exists. She exists. She does the job- um, really makes me feel like- like I can keep pushing the outsider syndrome away.”

Past research has commonly viewed Native American people as a statistically insignificant group, citing numbers too small to be studied (Shotton et al. 2013 ). This has often led to Native American people being lumped together with other students of color, made especially apparent when one turns to the science literature, despite noted variance by racial/ethnic subgroups (Byars-Winston et al. 2016 ). Alternatively, and most notably, this study highlights Native American culture by providing a lens into how culturally tailored internship programs can contribute to Native American students’ sense of science identity, self-efficacy, and intent to persist in science fields. Specifically, we investigated how and in what ways cultural and psychosocial processes increase Native American students’ commitment to science.

Study findings. Quantitative analyses show that Native American students’ science commitment was best predicted by science identity, which in turn was predicted by science self-efficacy and Native American identity. Thus, Native American students who expressed a strong sense of science identity also had higher science self-efficacy and a stronger sense of their Indigenous and cultural identity. This model aligns to findings from qualitative analyses—both our own and correspondent with others’ research as noted previously—that further support that science identity is intertwined with Native American identity. More specifically, student’s identities as scientists were inextricably linked to their identities as members of Native communities and tribes, and when, in interviews, describing their identities as scientists, the four women commonly referenced their Native identity and sense of belonging. They likewise discussed belonging as it related to their home communities, their research labs, and to the broader scientific communities, often in interconnected ways. In commenting on supports, not only did they acknowledge research mentors who fostered their sense of belonging in science, they also cited support from their Indigenous communities.

Our findings align with the results of several qualitative studies on Indigenous success in science. First, prior research on successful STEM professionals highlighted that while they navigated diverse and particular experiences, Indigenous identity served as a resource, and through wayfinding (Page-Reeves, Marin, et al. 2019a , b ), became forged with their science identity (Page-Reeves et al. 2017 ). Our results extend this prior body of work by illuminating that students at comparatively early stages of their professional lives have already begun this journey of wayfinding and forging. Our quantitative results also extend these findings, suggesting that, as noted by many qualitative studies, cultural identities are salient in understanding science persistence.

These findings therefore suggest that influential models of science persistence that served as a foundation to the current study may be enhanced by incorporating cultural identity. For instance, Hanauer et al. ( 2016 ) focused on project ownership, self-efficacy, science identity, scientific community values, and networking in science courses with a majority of students from groups well-represented in science. When extending this model to populations that include Native students, including measures of cultural identity may provide greater clarity about the impact of specific course-based interventions on intent to persist. Likewise, Estrada et al. ( 2011 ) found that science identity—more so than other factors—predicted persistence. Incorporating measures of cultural identity, in our study, elucidated a role for self-efficacy, though more research is needed to understand how these factors operate longitudinally. Finally, adding a focus on cultural identity to Chemers’ et al. ( 2011 ) model could provide greater capacity to explain students’ of color persistence. Our mixed methods approach bridges the common psychosocial models of persistence with Indigenous views of this work as a form of wayfinding by treating Native identity as a resource.

Others have proposed that culture and caring environments—much like interactions students in our study described—matter when considering persistence of diverse scholars in science (Estrada, Eroy-Reveles, and Matsui 2018a , b ). Likewise, high school performance and test scores did not predict persistence for Native American students (Benjamin, Chambers, and Reiterman 2010 ), while the “ability to adopt new traits while maintaining a traditional perspective may be a characteristic of persisters” (p. 37). This may be because Native American students tend to hold stronger cultural connections to their communities than their non-Native American peers (Okagaki, Helling and Bingham 2009 ) and to view their families as a top factor in completing college (Guillory and Wolverton 2008 ). For Native American students, strong cultural identity serves as an emotional and cultural anchor that promotes self-confidence and even a sense of purpose, where “they know who they are and why they are engaged in mainstream education” (Huffman 2010 , p. 171). Thus, programs that support students to connect their Indigenous identities to what they are learning provide better support (Jordan et al. 2019 ), and this has been found in studies of Native American student academic success in college (Huffman, Sill, and Brokenleg 1986 ). Researchers have issued calls for better articulation of ways that higher education and Native American communities can provide culturally tailored supports, such as encouraging students to draw on traditional spiritual resources as sources of strength (Jackson, Smith, and Hill 2003 ). Doing so may prevent some of the strife successful Native scientists have described, including needing to work to overcome negative stereotypes and experiences of distancing or dissociating themselves from their cultural identities (Dvorakova 2018 ).

Use of a critical Indigenous lens. As reflected in the quantitative analysis and reinforced by the qualitative analysis, the linkage of Native American cultural and science identities is essential to Native American science commitment. Given such findings and the study population as a whole, it is necessary to examine such conclusions with a critical Indigenous research lens. While qualitative studies have previously provided evidence that Native American cultural and science identities are intertwined (Page-Reeves et al. 2017 ), this knowledge has not been broadly taken up in approaches that use quantitative methods. Westernized models, such as Chemers and colleagues’ ( 2011 ), are linear and seldom integrate culture in a meaningful manner. As such, it is necessary to move beyond Westernized models to one that centers Indigenous knowledges and values by acknowledging an interconnected, relational epistemology, which the authors propose as a guiding framework, the Indigenous science internship model (ISIM) (Fig.  2 ). At the core of this model are Indigenous knowledges and values. With this centering, an Indigenous lens must be integrated into understanding how support components, psychosocial processes, and commitment to science careers create an interdependent, yet self-determining system that reinforces and enhances capacity.

Proposed Indigenous science internship model (ISIM) to increase Natives in science

When informed by Indigenous pedagogy, a research experience should utilize a “learn by doing” model (McKinley, Brayboy, and Castagno 2008 ). This is evident in one of the major qualitative themes—the incorporation of “active, hands on science” and even in the notion of “failure as learning,” which implies an ongoing experiential component that is not only tolerant of errors, but situates these as learning opportunities. Because Indigenous science comprises the processes of knowledge acquisition through human experience in the natural world (Cajete 2000 ), transmitted from one generation to the next, especially orally, through daily social and cultural interactions (Ogwawa 1995 ), mentoring and building that relationship is integral for Native American students. Consistent with the broader literature, McMahon’s ( 2019 ) findings indicate that for Native American undergraduate research students, “mentors played a critical role in cultivating relational attachment and significance, competency, achievement, and self-determination within a communal learning environment” (p. 102). This provides insight into why student interviews (and corresponding themes) emphasized the importance of relationship building by research mentors, and the impact a Native mentor played in their experience.

Chemers and colleagues ( 2011 ) use the term community involvement to reflect opportunities outside the classroom or lab, such as social events and conferences, that might be available for students to develop a sense of being part of the scientific community. To support Native American students, the concept of community involvement must be more expansive so as to include and engage the broader community (family and tribal nations) and the students’ wish to “give back to their tribal community” and be supported by it in the process. For example, in 2015, the NINDS students attended former First Lady Michelle Obama’s speech sponsored by the Center for Native American Youth (CNAY) and the Aspen Institute (see Table ​ Table2). 2 ). More recently, the NINDS program invited families and tribal leaders to Bethesda, MD, to participate in the end-of-summer research symposium. The tribal leaders expressed the empowerment it brought to their community by witnessing their Native American students speak of their research alongside all the other non-Native American students. The NARI students visited the Urban Indian Center in Salt Lake City and frequently met with tribal leaders. The UPN/CURE students participated in feast days hosted by the local Pueblo communities and created educational materials on cancer research projects conducted by each student and shared them with their tribal community members. In addition, each program included cultural, peer- and near-mentors, as well as opportunities to serve as a mentor to others in their own communities. While these are just a few examples, each program ensured frequent community engagement and professional networking via luncheons and panels with Native American professionals.

As noted in the findings, the incorporation of these program support components enhances Native American psychosocial processes of science self-efficacy, Indigenous identity, and science identity. As discussed above, Indigenous pedagogical aspects of learning are inherently experiential, and when Native American students engage in this type of “learn by doing” science guided by a supportive mentor, their science self-efficacy increases. Further, when program support components center Indigenous identity such as through engagement with tribal communities (e.g. visiting the Urban Indian Center in Salt Lake City), having mentors that support Indigenous identities, and even engaging Native mentors, Native American students’ sense of belonging increases—further reinforcing their identities as scientists.

Centering Indigenous identity in the program support components enhances psychosocial processes, that in turn result in an increased commitment to a science career. Qualitative findings, especially considered with the findings of other studies, articulate a greater communal connection, namely one that is not only deeply personal, but moreover relational. All four of the interviewees expressed this commitment. Kara stated that “We need more Natives treating Natives… I got to help my people… and that’s how I ended up at the Native American Research Internship.” Madalyn wants to be a pediatrician because she wants “to give back and also because growing up on the rez I never had a consistent pediatrician.” Reiterated in the qualitative data, Native American students’ commitment to a science career is not an isolated, independent endeavor; rather, it is a personal commitment to their Indigenous communities.

The use of critical Indigenous research provides a framework for understanding the importance of centering Indigenous knowledges and values in internships in order to increase Native Americans in science careers. This relational, interconnected way of being is not only decolonizing in its centering of Indigenous identity, but it is self-determining in its future and cyclical capacities to build and sustain Indigenous individuals and communities.

Implications

In order to reach the goals presented by the Indigenous science internship model (ISIM), recommendations for supportive policies and practices follow.

Policy. As depicted in ISIM, in order to increase the number and capacity of Native Americans in science, scientific organizations such as the NSF and NIH can play a key role. First, such agencies can target funding for culturally tailored programs along the trajectory from high school to early-investigator levels. The summer programs assessed in the present study are but a few of NIH’s extramural programs offered for undergraduates. With the newly formed NIH Tribal Health Research Office (THRO), there may be many more opportunities for Native American student training across the NIH intramural organization such as the NINDS Health Disparities in Tribal Communities Summer Internship Program (SIP) (NINDS 2019 ). Second, providing programmatic and mentoring guidelines (Table ​ (Table7), 7 ), perhaps with supplemental funding to support effective implementation could buoy efforts to mentor Native American students (Werner-Washburne 2018 ). Our guidelines are based on the qualitative analysis that revealed aspects and behaviors of mentors that cultivate a greater sense of belonging through the linkage of cultural and science identities. Such guidelines would support non-Native American mentors to commit to effective Native American mentoring.

Guidelines for supportive mentors of AIAN mentees

Practice. One way to apply policy efforts into institutional practice is through the use of the Indigenous science internship model (ISIM) that combines concepts from Chemers ( 2011 ) and cultural or social supports (Estrada, Zhi, Nwankwo, and Gershon 2019 ) (Fig.  2 ). Many ISIM components are not discipline or population exclusive and can be extended to programs supporting students in science and the health fields more broadly. Of particular value-added praxis to policy-makers, researchers, and any practitioners supporting Native American science students, is the ISIM support component on inclusive mentoring. Typically, internship mentors lack formal training on how to be a mentor, and further, may hold limited understanding of cultural differences that are salient when mentoring across cultures (Prunuske, Wilson, Walls, and Clarke 2013 ).

Regarding guideline 4, practical examples of how this might be accomplished include those previously mentioned regarding community engagement. Other examples include greetings and prayers in traditional language, art/dance to express themselves in ways common to their cultural upbringing, and talking circles (Flyswithhawks 1996 ). An additional aspect of mentors, and one that is intrinsically linked to the benefits of shared identity, is the significance of Native mentors. Although they are few and far between, they exist; and should study objectives be met, such future Native mentors may have the greatest influence yet.

Limitations

Although based on the surveys used by Chemers ( 2011 ), Hanauer ( 2016 ) and Estrada ( 2019 ), the survey and modeling in this study necessarily differed, and this may have impacted the results. First, the addition of questions on Native American identity may have changed how students responded. Further research should be undertaken to validate the survey with additional respondents.

Second, because this study had a smaller sample size, ordinary least squares regression modeling was employed rather than path analysis. This means results are correlative in nature. Future research could expand on the findings of this study by exploring the role of cultural identity with a broader population and disaggregating results by ethnicity. Finally, the data analyses were pooled sample sets rather than within-program analyses. We specifically chose these analyses to avoid any program biases and individual-level data linkage to permit anonymous survey responses. Future research could also employ a pre/post design to track and compare the impacts of different programs. Such studies would provide better direction in terms of the kinds of cultural tailoring that are most beneficial.

While we were able to triangulate findings across and within data sources, additional interviewees may provide alternate perspectives, though additional interviews do not always guarantee this (Bowen 2008 ). Still, consideration of the full dataset suggests additional interviews could reveal more. Of particular note, because 68% of our Native American survey respondents are women and all the interviewees are women, whose experiences cannot be assumed to be the same as those of men (Crenshaw 1989 ), future studies should seek to engage more male participants in order to gain broader insight into their perspectives. Although we mitigated this issue somewhat by considering our qualitative results in tandem with others’ results, the small number of interviewees situates our work as exploratory in nature, yet provides a means to bridge more commonplace qualitative with quantitative studies. Future studies, especially those with external funding, may explore other ways to recruit more participants without concerns of coercion.

Native American students pursuing science degrees are faced with unique challenges that often result in them leaving science fields, in part because they lack a sense of belonging in these fields or feel as if they have to choose between their Native culture or their science identity. By surveying and interviewing Native American students from four culturally tailored summer programs, this research sought to identify cultural and psychosocial processes that increase Native American students’ commitment to science.

For Native American students, commitment to science is fostered by science identity, which in turn is fostered by both science self-efficacy and Native American identity. Thus, cultural identity influences students’ sense of belongingness and persistence in science. Accordingly, science internships should be culturally tailored and provide mentors who both engage Native American students in hands-on aspects of research and value the perspectives Native American students bring (Table ​ (Table7). 7 ). Based on these conclusions, the Indigenous science internship model (ISIM) is proposed (Fig.  2 ). At the core of this model are Indigenous knowledge and values. With this centering, an Indigenous lens must be integrated into understanding how support components, psychosocial processes, and commitment to science careers create an interdependent, yet self-determining system that reinforces and enhances capacity.

We hope this research helps current and future programs better support Native American students, building on the understanding that Native American persistence in science fields ultimately depends on a science identity that is interwoven with one’s Native American identity. Ensuring that Native American students feel secure in expressing both their Native and science identities can build their sense of belonging within the science community; this in turn can increase the number of Native American students who persist in science and ultimately, increase their capacity to serve and sustain their Native communities. May we all, in our perspectives and practices, more deeply affirm the value of Indigenous science—the living of right relations with lands, waters, and each other (Bang 2020 )—for it may hold the futurity of us all.

Acknowledgements

We thank all of those involved in advancing the training and education of Native American students in science and in particular, the many research mentors that worked directly with the students. From the NIH, we would like to specifically identify the current and past NIH Native Scholars, Dr. Katherine Roche (NINDS Training Director), all the staff for the NINDS summer internship program (Dr. Rita Devine, Ms. Mary Kiganda, Ms. Vivian Yang, Mr. Chris Patterson) and Dr. Walter Koroshetz, Director of NINDS, and Dr. Dorothy Castille, Health Science Administrator (NIMHD). From UNM, we thank Ms. Loretta Esquibel for providing support for the CURE program. We gratefully acknowledge the teachers and counselors at Santa Fe Indian School, and the Native American Community Academy for recommending their students to the UNM CURE. We would also like to thank Dr. Raj (Vallabh) Shah and the Zuni Tribal Council members for encouraging student participation in the 2018 CURE and Zuni internship program focused on cancer research. Finally, from NARI, we thank all the staff, dedicated mentors, and tribal advisors.

Biographies

Nizhoni chow-garcia, phd.

is Director in the Office of Inclusive Excellence at California State University Monterey Bay. Her work has recently been recognized as the NASPA Melvene D. Hardee Dissertation of the Year Award and the ACPA Marylu McEwen Dissertation of the year award.

Naomi Lee, PhD

is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry at Northern Arizona University. Her research focuses on peptide-based vaccine development and health disparities among Native American populations.

Vanessa Svihla, PhD

is an Associate Professor of learning sciences at the University of New Mexico. Her current research focuses on how people learn when they design, and ways to build on diverse students’ assets as they learn to design.

is an graduate student at UT Health San Antonio. Her research interests lie at the intersection of neurodegeneration and tauopathy.

is the Program Coordinator in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Utah. His role is to plan and implement activities of a program within the department using objectives and goals from an established criterion.

, MD, MPH is a Professor in the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Utah in the Division of Pediatric Emergency Medicine at Primary Children’s Hospital. She is also the director of research education for the Department of Pediatrics. Her research focuses on the treatment of pediatric status epilepticus and research education for undergraduates, graduates, and physicians in training.

, PhD, is The Victor and Ruby Hansen Surface Endowed Professor in Cancer Cell Biology and Clinical Translation in the Department of Pathology at the University of New Mexico. Her current research focuses on GTPases, disease mechanisms, and therapeutics. She is also the director for high school students and post-doctoral fellow research training programs.

Funding for study design and data collection was supported by the NIH grant 5K12GM088021-08 while Lee was a postdoctoral fellow at the University of New Mexico. Travel to collect interviews at the American Indian Science and Engineering Society national conference in Denver, CO, was supported by the Native Investigator Development Program [NIH/NIA P30AG015292]. The participants in the programs were supported by the Division of Intramural Research and the Office of the Director at the NINDS (NINDS students), NIH grants NHLBI R25HL108828 and NIDDK R25DK109894 (NARI), and the Center to Reduce Cancer Health Disparities’ Continuing Umbrella of Research Experiences-CURE at UNM [NIH/NCI P30CA118100 supplements (10S2)]. Manuscript preparation and submission supported Lee (NCI U54CA143925 and NIMHD 1U54MD012388-01); Willie and Holsti (NHLBI R25HL108828 and NIDDK R25DK109894); Wandinger-Ness (NIGMS K12GM088021 and NCI P30CA118100).

Lead Editor: R. Gisewhite.

Publisher's Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

• Aikenhead GS, Ogawa M. Indigenous knowledge and science revisited. Cultural Studies of Science Education. 2007; 2 (3):539–620. doi: 10.1007/s11422-007-9067-. [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Alkholy S, Gendron F, McKenna B, Dahms T, Ferreira MP. Convergence of Indigenous Science and Western Science Impacts Students’ Interest in STEM and Identity as a Scientist. Ubiquitous Learning: An International Journal. 2017; 10 (1):1–13. doi: 10.18848/1835-9795/CGP/v10i01/1-13. [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Augare HJ, David-Chavez DM, Groenke FI, Plume-Weatherwax ML, Fight LL, Meier G, Wippert R. A cross-case analysis of three Native Science Field Centers. Cultural Studies of Science Education. 2017; 12 (2):227–253. doi: 10.1007/s11422-015-9720-6. [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Ballen CJ, Wieman C, Salehi S, Searle JB, Zamudio KR. Enhancing diversity in undergraduate science: Self-efficacy drives performance gains with active learning. CBE Life Sci Education. 2017 doi: 10.1187/cbe.16-12-0344. [ PMC free article ] [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Bandura A. Self-efficacy - toward a unifying theory of behavioral change. Psychological Review. 1977; 84 (2):191–215. doi: 10.1037/0033-295x.84.2.191. [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Bang, M. (Producer). (2020). Central challenge of the 21st century: Cultivating just, collectively adaptable, sustainable, and culturally thriving communities [Webinar]: Two Feathers—Native American Family Services. https://www.facebook.com/watch/live/?v=3189779947747531&ref=watch_permalink .
• Bang M, Medin D. Cultural processes in science education: Supporting the navigation of multiple epistemologies. Science Education. 2010; 94 (6):1008–1026. doi: 10.1002/sce.20392. [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Benjamin DP, Chambers S, Reiterman G. A focus on American Indian college persistence. Journal of American Indian Education. 2010; 32 (2):24–40. [ Google Scholar ]
• Berry WD. Understanding regression assumptions. Sage Publications Inc; 1993. [ Google Scholar ]
• Bowen GA. Naturalistic inquiry and the saturation concept: A research note. Qualitative Research. 2008; 8 (1):137–152. doi: 10.1177/1468794107085301. [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Byars-Winston A, Rogers J, Branchaw J, Pribbenow C, Hanke R, Pfund C. New measures assessing predictors of academic persistence for historically underrepresented racial/ethnic undergraduates in science. CBE Life Sci Education. 2016; 15 (3):ar32. doi: 10.1187/cbe.16-01-0030. [ PMC free article ] [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Cajete GA. Look to the mountain: An ecology of indigenous education. Kivaki Press; 1994. [ Google Scholar ]
• Cajete GA. Native science: Natural laws of interdependence. Clear Light Publishers; 2000. [ Google Scholar ]
• Carlone HB, Johnson A. Understanding the science experiences of successful women of color: Science identity as an analytic lens. Journal of Research in Science Teaching. 2007; 44 (8):1187–1218. doi: 10.1002/tea.20237. [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Chemers MM, Zurbriggen EL, Syed M, Goza BK, Bearman S. The role of efficacy and identity in science career commitment among underrepresented minority students. Journal of Social Issues. 2011; 67 (3):469–491. doi: 10.1111/j.1540-4560.2011.01710.x. [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Chow-Garcia, N. (2016). Educational Pathways for Native American Graduates: Stories through the STEM Bachelor’s, Master’s, and Doctoral Degrees . (Doctorate), University of Rochester. Retrieved from http://hdl.handle.net/1802/31301 .
• Claw KG, Anderson MZ, Begay RL, Tsosie KS, Fox K, Garrison NA, Consortium S. A framework for enhancing ethical genomic research with Indigenous communities. Nature Communication. 2018; 9 (1):2957. doi: 10.1038/s41467-018-05188-3. [ PMC free article ] [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Collins PH, Bilge S. Intersectionality. John Wiley & Sons; 2016. [ Google Scholar ]
• Crenshaw, K. (1989). Demarginalizing the intersection of race and sex: A black feminist critique of antidiscrimination doctrine, feminist theory and antiracist politics. University of Chicago Legal Forum , 139–167.
• Creswell J, Clark V. Designing and conducting mixed methods research. T. O. S. P. Inc Ed; 2007. [ Google Scholar ]
• Deloria V, Wildcat D. Power and place: Indian education in America (D. Wildcat Ed.) Fulcrum Publishing; 2001. [ Google Scholar ]
• Dvorakova A. Negative stereotypes deconstructed and transformed in the experience of native American academics. American Journal of Education. 2018; 124 (3):345–371. doi: 10.1086/697213. [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Echohawk, S., Ondrechen, M. J., Megginson, R., Cornelius, C., & McClanahan, M. (2014). Lighting the Pathway to Faculty Careers for Natives in STEM. Retrieved from https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=1444853
• Estrada M, Burnett M, Campbell AG, Campbell PB, Denetclaw WF, Gutierrez CG, Zavala M. improving underrepresented minority student persistence in STEM. CBE Life Sci Education. 2016; 15 (3):es5. doi: 10.1187/cbe.16-01-0038. [ PMC free article ] [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Estrada M, Eroy-Reveles A, Matsui J. The influence of affirming kindness and community on broadening participation in STEM career pathways. Social Issues and Policy Review. 2018; 12 (1):258–297. doi: 10.1111/sipr.12046. [ PMC free article ] [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Estrada M, Hernandez PR, Schultz PW. A longitudinal study of how quality mentorship and research experience integrate underrepresented minorities into STEM Careers. CBE Life Sci Education. 2018; 17 (1):ar9. doi: 10.1187/cbe.17-04-0066. [ PMC free article ] [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Estrada M, Woodcock A, Hernandez PR, Schultz PW. Toward a model of social influence that explains minority student integration into the scientific community. Journal of Educational Psychology. 2011; 103 (1):206–222. doi: 10.1037/a0020743. [ PMC free article ] [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Estrada M, Zhi Q, Nwankwo E, Gershon R. The influence of social supports on graduate student persistence in biomedical fields. CBE Life Sci Education. 2019 doi: 10.1187/cbe.19-01-0029. [ PMC free article ] [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Evans BC. Application of the caring curriculum to education of Hispanic/Latino and American Indian nursing students. Journal of Nursing Education. 2004; 43 (5):219–228. doi: 10.3928/01484834-20040501-04. [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Fisher AJ, Mendoza-Denton R, Patt C, Young I, Eppig A, Garrell RL, Richards MA. Structure and belonging: Pathways to success for underrepresented minority and women PhD students in STEM fields. PLoS ONE. 2019; 14 (1):e0209279. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0209279. [ PMC free article ] [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Flynn S, Duncan K, Jorgensen M. An emergent phenomenon of American Indian postsecondary transition and retention. Journal of Counseling & Development. 2012; 90 (4):437–449. doi: 10.1002/j.1556-6676.2012.00055.x. [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Flyswithhawks BC. The process of knowing and learning: An academic and cultural awakening. Holistic Education Review. 1996; 9 (4):35–39. [ Google Scholar ]
• Gloria AM, Kurpius SE. Influences of self-beliefs, social support, and comfort in the university environment on the academic nonpersistence decisions of American Indian undergraduates. Cultural Diversity Ethnic Minority Psychology. 2001; 7 (1):88–102. doi: 10.1037/1099-9809.7.1.88. [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Gloria AM, Kurpius SER. The validation of the cultural congruity scale and the university environment scale with Chicano/a students. Hispanic Journal of Behavioral Sciences. 1996; 18 (4):533–549. doi: 10.1177/07399863960184007. [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Guillory RM, Wolverton M. It's about family: Native American student persistence in higher education. Journal of Higher Education. 2008; 79 (1):58–87. doi: 10.1353/jhe.2008.0001. [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Hanauer DI, Graham MJ, Hatfull GF. a measure of college student persistence in the sciences (PITS) CBE Life Sciences Education. 2016; 15 (4):59–82. doi: 10.1187/cbe.15-09-0185. [ PMC free article ] [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Holland D, Lachicotte W, Skinner D, Cain C. Identity and agency in cultural world. Harvard Univ Press; 1998. [ Google Scholar ]
• Holsti M, Hawkins S, Bloom K, White R, Clark EB, Byington CL. Increasing diversity of the biomedical workforce through community engagement: The University of Utah Native American Summer Research Internship. Clinical Translational Science. 2015; 8 (2):87–90. doi: 10.1111/cts.12258. [ PMC free article ] [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Horse PG. New perspectives on racial identity development: A theoretical and practical anthology. University Press; 2001. Reflections on American Indian identity. [ Google Scholar ]
• Huffman, T. (2010). Theoretical perspectives on American Indian education: Taking a new look at academic success and the achievement gap . Lanham, MD: AltaMira Press.
• Huffman T, Sill M, Brokenleg M. College achievement among Sioux and white South Dakota students. Journal of American Indian Education. 1986; 25 (2):32–38. [ Google Scholar ]
• Hurtado S, Han JC, Sáenz VB, Espinosa LL, Cabrera NL, Cerna OS. Predicting transition and adjustment to college: Biomedical and behavioral science aspirants' and minority students' first year of college. Research in Higher Education. 2007; 48 (7):841–887. doi: 10.1007/s11162-007-9051-x. [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Jackson AP, Smith SA, Hill CL. Academic persistence among Native American college students. Journal of College Student Development. 2003; 44 (4):548–565. doi: 10.1353/csd.2003.0039. [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Jaime A, Rios F. Negotiation and resistance amid the overwhelming presence of whiteness: A native American faculty and student perspective. Taboo The Journal of Culture & Education. 2006; 10 (2):37–54. [ Google Scholar ]
• Jordan SS, Foster CH, Anderson IK, Betoney CA, Pangan TJD. Learning from the experiences of Navajo engineers: Looking toward the development of a culturally responsive engineering curriculum. Journal of Engineering Education. 2019; 108 (3):355–376. doi: 10.1002/jee.20287. [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Juneau S. Indian education for all: A history and foundation of American Indian education policy. Montana Office of Public Instruction; 2001. [ Google Scholar ]
• Kahn CB, Dreifuss H, Teufel-Shone NI, Tutt M, McCue K, Wilson J, Bauer MC. Adapting summer education programs for navajo students: Resilient teamwork. Frontiers in Sociology. 2021; 6 :617994. doi: 10.3389/fsoc.2021.617994. [ PMC free article ] [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Kant JM, Burckhard SR, Meyers RT. Engaging high school girls in native american culturally responsive STEAM enrichment activities. Journal of STEM Education: Innovations & Research. 2018; 18 (5):15–25. [ Google Scholar ]
• Kovach M. Indigenous methodologies: Characteristics, conversations, and contexts. University of Toronto Press; 2009. [ Google Scholar ]
• Landino RA, Owen SV. Self-efficacy in university faculty. Journal of Vocational Behavior. 1988; 33 (1):1–14. doi: 10.1016/0001-8791(88)90030-9. [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Lee NR, Nelson A, Svihla V. Refining a biomedical summer research program for American Indian and Alaska Native (AIAN) students. International Journal of Designs for Learning. 2018; 9 (1):88–97. doi: 10.14434/ijdl.v9i1.23049. [ PMC free article ] [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Leslie LL, McClure GT, Oaxaca RL. Women and minorities in science and engineering: A life sequence analysis. Journal of Higher Education. 1998; 69 (3):239–276. [ Google Scholar ]
• Masta S. Strategy and resistance: How native american students engage in accommodation in mainstream schools. Anthropology & Education Quarterly. 2018; 49 (1):21–35. doi: 10.1111/aeq.12231. [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• McGee EO, Bentley L. The troubled success of black women in STEM. Cognition and Instruction. 2017; 35 (4):265–289. doi: 10.1080/07370008.2017.1355211. [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• McKinley B, Brayboy J, Castagno AE. How might Native science inform “informal science learning”? Cultural Studies of Science Education. 2008; 3 (3):731–750. doi: 10.1007/s11422-008-9125-x. [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• McMahon TR, Griese ER, Kenyon DB. Cultivating Native American scientists: An application of an Indigenous model to an undergraduate research experience. Cultural Studies of Science Education. 2019; 14 (1):77–110. doi: 10.1007/s11422-017-9850-0. [ PMC free article ] [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• NINDS. (2019). NINDS health disparities in tribal communities summer internship program (SIP). Retrieved from https://neuroscience.nih.gov/ninds/JobsTraining/NINDSHealthDisparitiesinTribalCommunitiesSIP.aspx
• NSF. (2015). Degrees awarded by citizinship, field, and race of ethnicity: 2002–2012. Retrieved from https://ncses.nsf.gov/pubs/nsf21321/data-tables .
• NSF. (2016). Graduate students in science, engineering, and health in all institutions, by field, citizenship, ethnicity, and race: 2011–16. Retrieved from https://ncsesdata.nsf.gov/gradpostdoc/2016/html/GSS2016_DST_13.html
• Ogwawa M. Science education in a multi-science perspective. Science Education. 1995; 79 (5):583–593. doi: 10.1002/sce.3730790507. [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Okagaki L, Helling MK, Bingham GE. American Indian college students' ethnic identity and beliefs about education. Journal of College Student Development. 2009; 50 (2):157–176. doi: 10.1353/csd.0.0060. [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Page-Reeves J, Cortez GL, Ortiz Y, Moffett M, Deerinwater K, Medin D. Situating giving back for native americans pursuing careers in stem: “You don’t just take, you give something back” Intersections Critical Issues in Education. 2019; 3 (1):4. [ Google Scholar ]
• Page-Reeves J, Marin A, DeerInWater K, Medin D. Broadening conceptualization of native identity as foundational for success among native americans in STEM. Anthropology. 2017; 5 (187):2332. doi: 10.4172/2332-0915.1000187. [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Page-Reeves J, Marin A, Moffett M, DeerInWater K, Medin D. Wayfinding as a concept for understanding success among Native Americans in STEM: Learning how to map through life. Cultural Studies of Science Education. 2019; 14 (1):177–197. doi: 10.1007/s11422-017-9849-6. [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Pajares F. Self-efficacy beliefs in academic settings. Review of Educational Research. 1996; 66 (4):543–578. doi: 10.2307/1170653. [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Pidgeon M, Archibald J-A, Hawkey C. Relationships matter: Supporting Aboriginal graduate students in British Columbia, Canada. Journal of Higher Education. 2014; 44 (1):1–21. [ Google Scholar ]
• Prunuske AJ, Wilson J, Walls M, Clarke B. Experiences of mentors training underrepresented undergraduates in the research laboratory. CBE Life Sciences Education. 2013; 12 (3):403–409. doi: 10.1187/cbe.13-02-0043. [ PMC free article ] [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Rawana JS, Sieukaran DD, Nguyen HT, Pitawanakwat R. Development and evaluation of a peer mentorship program for aboriginal university students. Canadian Journal of Education. 2015; 38 (2):1–34. doi: 10.2307/canajeducrevucan.38.2.08. [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Robnett RD, Chemers MM, Zurbriggen EL. Longitudinal associations among undergraduates' research experience, self-efficacy, and identity. Journal of Research in Science Teaching. 2015; 52 (6):847–867. doi: 10.1002/tea.21221. [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Saldaña J. The coding manual for qualitative researchers. Sage; 2015. [ Google Scholar ]
• Sanchez JP, Poll-Hunter N, Stern N, Garcia AN, Brewster C. Balancing two cultures: American Indian/Alaska native medical students' perceptions of academic medicine careers. Journal of Community Health. 2016; 41 (4):871–880. doi: 10.1007/s10900-016-0166-x. [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Schar, M., Pink, S. L., Powers, K., Piedra, A., Torres, S. A., Chew, K. J., & Sheppard, S. (2017). Classroom belonging and student performance in the introductory engineering classroom. In: Paper presented at the American Society for Engineering Education (ASEE) Annual Conference and Exp osition, Columbus, OH.
• Shotton HJ, Lowe SC, Waterman SJ. Beyond the asterisk: Understanding Native students in higher education. Stylus Publishing; 2013. [ Google Scholar ]
• Smith JL, Cech E, Metz A, Huntoon M, Moyer C. Giving back or giving up: Native American student experiences in science and engineering. Cultural Diversity & Ethnic Minority Psychology. 2014; 20 (3):413–429. doi: 10.1037/a0036945. [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Tracy SJ, Trethewey A. Fracturing the real-self <-> fake-self dichotomy: Moving toward "crystallized" organizational discourses and identities. Communication Theory. 2005; 15 (2):168–195. doi: 10.1093/ct/15.2.168. [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Verdin D, Godwin A. Exploring Latina first-generation college students’ multiple identities, self-efficacy, and institutional integration to inform achievement in engineering. Journal of Women and Minorities in Science and Engineering. 2018; 24 (3):261–290. doi: 10.1615/JWomenMinorScienEng.2018018667. [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Villarejo M, Barlow AE, Kogan D, Veazey BD, Sweeney JK. Encouraging minority undergraduates to choose science careers: Career paths survey results. CBE Life Science Education. 2008; 7 (4):394–409. doi: 10.1187/cbe.08-04-0018. [ PMC free article ] [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• Werner-Washburne M. Principles of intentional mentoring. CBE Life Sci Eduction. 2018; 17 (3):es8. doi: 10.1187/cbe.18-05-0074. [ PMC free article ] [ PubMed ] [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]
• White AM, DeCuir-Gunby JT, Kim S. A mixed methods exploration of the relationships between the racial identity, science identity, science self-efficacy, and science achievement of African American students at HBCUs. Contemporary Educational Psychology. 2019; 57 :54–71. doi: 10.1016/j.cedpsych.2018.11.006. [ CrossRef ] [ Google Scholar ]

Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World

Read our research on:

Full Topic List

Regions & Countries

• Publications
• Our Methods
• Short Reads
• Tools & Resources

Read Our Research On:

Americans and ‘Cancel Culture’: Where Some See Calls for Accountability, Others See Censorship, Punishment

People have challenged each other’s views for much of human history . But the internet – particularly social media – has changed how, when and where these kinds of interactions occur. The number of people who can go online and call out others for their behavior or words is immense, and it’s never been easier to summon groups to join the public fray .

The phrase  “cancel culture” is said to have originated  from a relatively obscure slang term – “cancel,” referring to  breaking up with someone  – used in a 1980s song. This term was then referenced in film and television and later evolved and gained traction on social media. Over the past several years, cancel culture has become a deeply contested idea in the nation’s political discourse . There are plenty of debates over what it is and what it means, including whether it’s a way to hold people accountable, or a tactic to punish others unjustly, or a mix of both. And some argue that cancel culture doesn’t even exist .

To better understand how the U.S. public views the concept of cancel culture, Pew Research Center asked Americans in September 2020 to share – in their own words – what they think the term means and, more broadly, how they feel about the act of calling out others on social media. The survey finds a public deeply divided, including over the very meaning of the phrase.

Pew Research Center has a long history of studying the tone and nature of online discourse as well as emerging internet phenomena. This report focuses on American adults’ perceptions of cancel culture and, more generally, calling out others on social media. For this analysis, we surveyed 10,093 U.S. adults from Sept. 8 to 13, 2020. Everyone who took part is a member of the Center’s American Trends Panel (ATP), an online survey panel that is recruited through national, random sampling of residential addresses. This way nearly all U.S. adults have a chance of selection. The survey is weighted to be representative of the U.S. adult population by gender, race, ethnicity, partisan affiliation, education and other categories. Read more about the  ATP’s methodology .

This essay primarily focuses on responses to three different open-ended questions and includes a number of quotations to help illustrate themes and add nuance to the survey findings. Quotations may have been lightly edited for grammar, spelling and clarity. Here are the  questions used for this essay , along with responses, and its  methodology .

Who’s heard of ‘cancel culture’?

As is often the case when a new term enters the collective lexicon, public awareness of the phrase “cancel culture” varies – sometimes widely – across demographic groups.

Overall, 44% of Americans say they have heard at least a fair amount about the phrase, including 22% who have heard a great deal, according to the Center’s survey of 10,093 U.S. adults, conducted Sept. 8-13, 2020. Still, an even larger share (56%) say they’ve heard nothing or not too much about it, including 38% who have heard nothing at all. (The survey was fielded before a string of recent conversations and controversies about cancel culture.)

Familiarity with the term varies with age. While 64% of adults under 30 say they have heard a great deal or fair amount about cancel culture, that share drops to 46% among those ages 30 to 49 and 34% among those 50 and older.

There are gender and educational differences as well. Men are more likely than women to be familiar with the term, as are those who have a bachelor’s or advanced degree when compared with those who have lower levels of formal education. 1

While discussions around cancel culture can be highly partisan, Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents are no more likely than Republicans and GOP-leaning independents to say they have heard at least a fair amount about the phrase (46% vs. 44%). (All references to Democrats and Republicans in this analysis include independents who lean to each party.)

When accounting for ideology, liberal Democrats and conservative Republicans are more likely to have heard at least a fair amount about cancel culture than their more moderate counterparts within each party. Liberal Democrats stand out as most likely to be familiar with the term.

How do Americans define ‘cancel culture’?

As part of the survey, respondents who had heard about “cancel culture” were given the chance to explain in their own words what they think the term means.

The most common responses by far centered around accountability. Some 49% of those familiar with the term said it describes actions people take to hold others accountable: 2

A small share who mentioned accountability in their definitions also discussed how these actions can be misplaced, ineffective or overtly cruel.

Some 14% of adults who had heard at least a fair amount about cancel culture described it as a form of censorship, such as a restriction on free speech or as history being erased:

A similar share (12%) characterized cancel culture as mean-spirited attacks used to cause others harm:

Five other distinct descriptions of the term cancel culture also appeared in Americans’ responses: people canceling anyone they disagree with, consequences for those who have been challenged, an attack on traditional American values, a way to call out issues like racism or sexism, or a misrepresentation of people’s actions. About one-in-ten or fewer described the phrase in each of these ways.

There were some notable partisan and ideological differences in what the term cancel culture represents. Some 36% of conservative Republicans who had heard the term described it as actions taken to hold people accountable, compared with roughly half or more of moderate or liberal Republicans (51%), conservative or moderate Democrats (54%) and liberal Democrats (59%).

Conservative Republicans who had heard of the term were more likely than other partisan and ideological groups to see cancel culture as a form of censorship. Roughly a quarter of conservative Republicans familiar with the term (26%) described it as censorship, compared with 15% of moderate or liberal Republicans and roughly one-in-ten or fewer Democrats, regardless of ideology. Conservative Republicans aware of the phrase were also more likely than other partisan and ideological groups to define cancel culture as a way for people to cancel anyone they disagree with (15% say this) or as an attack on traditional American society (13% say this).

Click here to explore more definitions and explanations of the term cancel culture .

Does calling people out on social media represent accountability or unjust punishment?

Given that cancel culture can mean different things to different people, the survey also asked about the more general act of calling out others on social media for posting content that might be considered offensive – and whether this kind of behavior is more likely to hold people accountable or punish those who don’t deserve it.

Overall, 58% of U.S. adults say in general, calling out others on social media is more likely to hold people accountable, while 38% say it is more likely to punish people who don’t deserve it. But views differ sharply by party. Democrats are far more likely than Republicans to say that, in general, calling people out on social media for posting offensive content holds them accountable (75% vs. 39%). Conversely, 56% of Republicans – but just 22% of Democrats – believe this type of action generally punishes people who don’t deserve it.

Within each party, there are some modest differences by education level in these views. Specifically, Republicans who have a high school diploma or less education (43%) are slightly more likely than Republicans with some college (36%) or at least a bachelor’s degree (37%) to say calling people out for potentially offensive posts is holding people accountable for their actions. The reverse is true among Democrats: Those with a bachelor’s degree or more education are somewhat more likely than those with a high school diploma or less education to say calling out others is a form of accountability (78% vs. 70%).

Among Democrats, roughly three-quarters of those under 50 (73%) as well as those ages 50 and older (76%) say calling out others on social media is more likely to hold people accountable for their actions. At the same time, majorities of both younger and older Republicans say this action is more likely to punish people who didn’t deserve it (58% and 55%, respectively).

People on both sides of the issue had an opportunity to explain why they see calling out others on social media for potentially offensive content as more likely to be either a form of accountability or punishment. We then coded these answers and grouped them into broad areas to frame the key topics of debates.

Initial coding schemes for each question were derived from reading though the open-ended responses and identifying common themes. Using these themes, coders read each response and coded up to three themes for each response. (If a response mentioned more than three themes, the first three mentioned were coded.)

After all the responses were coded, similarities and groupings among codes both within and across the two questions about accountability and punishment became apparent. As such, answers were grouped into broad areas that framed the biggest points of disagreement between these two groups.

We identified five key areas of disagreement in respondents’ arguments for why they held their views of calling out others, broken down as follows:

• 25% of all adults address topics related to whether people who call out others are rushing to judge or are trying to be helpful
• 14% center on whether calling out others on social media is a productive behavior
• 10% focus on whether free speech or creating a comfortable environment online is more important
• 8% address the differing agendas of those who call out others
• 4% focus on whether speaking up is the best action to take if people find content offensive.

For the codes that make up each of these areas, see the Appendix .

Some 17% of Americans who say that calling out others on social media holds people accountable say it can be a teaching moment that helps people learn from their mistakes and do better in the future. Among those who say calling out others unjustly punishes them, a similar share (18%) say it’s because people are not taking the context of a person’s post or the intentions behind it into account before confronting that person.

In all, five types of arguments most commonly stand out in people’s answers. A quarter of all adults mention topics related to whether people who call out others are rushing to judge or are trying to be helpful; 14% center on whether calling out others on social media is a productive behavior or not; 10% focus on whether free speech or creating a comfortable environment online is more important; 8% address the perceived agendas of those who call out others; and 4% focus on whether speaking up is the best action to take if people find content offensive.

Are people rushing to judge or trying to be helpful?

The most common area of opposing arguments about calling out other people on social media arises from people’s differing perspectives on whether people who call out others are rushing to judge or instead trying to be helpful.

One-in-five Americans who see this type of behavior as a form of accountability point to reasons that relate to how helpful calling out others can be. For example, some explained in an open-ended question that they associate this behavior with moving toward a better society or educating others on their mistakes so they can do better in the future. Conversely, roughly a third (35%) of those who see calling out other people on social media as a form of unjust punishment cite reasons that relate to people who call out others being rash or judgmental. Some of these Americans see this kind of behavior as overreacting or unnecessarily lashing out at others without considering the context or intentions of the original poster. Others emphasize that what is considered offensive can be subjective.

Is calling out others on social media productive behavior?

The second most common source of disagreement centers on the question of whether calling out others can solve anything: 13% of those who see calling out others as a form of punishment touch on this issue in explaining their opinion, as do 16% who see it as a form of accountability. Some who see calling people out as unjust punishment say it solves nothing and can actually make things worse. Others in this group question whether social media is a viable place for any productive conversations or see these platforms and their culture as inherently problematic and sometimes toxic. Conversely, there are those who see calling out others as a way to hold people accountable for what they post or to ensure that people consider the consequences of their social media posts.

Which is more important, free speech or creating a comfortable environment online?

Pew Research Center has studied the tension between free speech and feeling safe online for years, including the increasingly partisan nature of these disputes. This debate also appears in the context of calling out content on social media. Some 12% of those who see calling people out as punishment explain – in their own words – that they are in favor of free speech on social media. By comparison, 10% of those who see it in terms of accountability believe that things said in these social spaces matter, or that people should be more considerate by thinking before posting content that may be offensive or make people uncomfortable.

What’s the agenda behind calling out others online?

Another small share of people mention the perceived agenda of those who call out other people on social media in their rationales for why calling out others is accountability or punishment. Some people who see calling out others as a form of accountability say it’s a way to expose social ills such as misinformation, racism, ignorance or hate, or a way to make people face what they say online head-on by explaining themselves. In all, 8% of Americans who see calling out others as a way to hold people accountable for their actions voice these types of arguments.

Those who see calling others out as a form of punishment, by contrast, say it reflects people canceling anyone they disagree with or forcing their views on others. Some respondents feel people are trying to marginalize White voices and history. Others in this group believe that people who call out others are being disingenuous and doing so in an attempt to make themselves look good. In total, these types of arguments were raised by 9% of people who see calling out others as punishment. 

Should people speak up if they are offended?

Arguments for why calling out others is accountability or punishment also involve a small but notable share who debate whether calling others out on social media is the best course of action for someone who finds a particular post offensive. Some 5% of people who see calling out others as punishment say those who find a post offensive should not engage with the post. Instead, they should take a different course of action, such as removing themselves from the situation by ignoring the post or blocking someone if they don’t like what that person has to say. However, 4% of those who see calling out others as a form of accountability believe it is imperative to speak up because saying nothing changes nothing.

Beyond these five main areas of contention, some Americans see shades of gray when it comes to calling out other people on social media and say it can be difficult to classify this kind of behavior as a form of either accountability or punishment. They note that there can be great variability from case to case, and that the efficacy of this approach is by no means uniform: Sometimes those who are being called out may respond with heartfelt apologies but others may erupt in anger and frustration.

Acknowledgments – Appendix – Methodology – Topline

What Americans say about cancel culture and calling out others on social media

Below, we have gathered a selection of quotes from three open-ended survey questions that address two key topics. Americans who’ve heard of the term cancel culture were asked to define what it means to them. After answering a closed-ended question about whether calling out others on social media was more likely to hold people accountable for their actions or punish people who didn’t deserve it, they were asked to explain why they held this view – that is, they were either asked why they saw it as accountability or why they saw it as punishment.

Sign up for our weekly newsletter

Fresh data delivered Saturday mornings

1615 L St. NW, Suite 800 Washington, DC 20036 USA (+1) 202-419-4300 | Main (+1) 202-857-8562 | Fax (+1) 202-419-4372 |  Media Inquiries

Research Topics

• Email Newsletters

ABOUT PEW RESEARCH CENTER  Pew Research Center is a nonpartisan fact tank that informs the public about the issues, attitudes and trends shaping the world. It conducts public opinion polling, demographic research, media content analysis and other empirical social science research. Pew Research Center does not take policy positions. It is a subsidiary of  The Pew Charitable Trusts .

Copyright 2024 Pew Research Center

Researching American Culture

Required Texts

• Lynd, Robert S., and Helen Merrell Lynd. 1929. Middletown: A Study in Contemporary American Culture. New York: Harcourt Brace & Company.
• Lassiter, Eric Luke (ed)., 2004. The Other Side of Middletown. Alta Mira Press.
• Spradley, James. 1979. The Ethnographic Interview .

Other Readings

• Spradley, James. 2000[1970]. “You Owe Yourself a Drunk” (optional text) **There will also be readings and other resources posted online which you can access via Blackboard

Course Objectives and Learning/Service Learning Expectations

• Examine American culture from an anthropological perspective
• Identify the relation between ideals of American culture and people‘s diverse realities as Americans develop strategies and tools for researching American culture on a community and neighborhood level apply research tools and strategies for studying American culture to addressing specific research
• Questions and needs as defined and articulated by the designated community partner develop a portrait of American culture and/or an American cultural experience as an ethnographic and/or ethnohistorical research paper for public presentation.

In this course we will examine American culture from an anthropological perspective. The aim of the course will be to develop profiles of American culture that reflect everyday realities of living in America as articulated by specific community partners engaged in researching social-cultural, social-economic and/or social-historical issues specific to their communities. Various sources will be consulted and methods used in formulating community specific profiles and portraits of American culture including readings, films, archival research, ethnographic fieldwork, ethnographic interview, and personal experiences.

Throughout this process and our analysis we will strive to research, examine, and interpret American culture "in a way that juxtaposes our ideals and assumptions regarding what America is" against the many diverse experiences of Americans as articulated on a community level. At the conclusion of the course, students will produce a final research project including a research paper and presentation profiling an aspect of American culture from an anthropological perspective as derived through active participation in a community partner defined and mutually agreed upon cultural research and/or historic preservation project in a designated community (i.e., the Tampa Bay area community of Sulphur Springs). The expectation is that in completing this exercise in researching and studying American culture on a community level, students will take important insights into whatever profession they go on to pursue in the future. Additionally and equally important, at the conclusion of this course, community partners will be able to advance their articulated cultural research and historic preservation agenda in specific and quantifiable ways. Overall, my desire is that this course will be a win-win for both students and community partners.

Service Learning as an Applied/Directed Research Project

This is course is being conducted as a service learning as a directed research project. Students will be partnered with a lead researcher (i.e., faculty and/student mentor) and will participate in an ongoing community cultural heritage research or historic preservation project. This approach focuses on teaching students to critically analyze American culture from an anthropological perspective through classroom learning and through direct application of qualitative research methods, such as ethnographic and ethnohistorical research. Students work with a designated Community Partner and are expected to actively participate in helping the community conduct research and/or implement specific research initiatives as defined by the community partner. Projects could include but are not limited to:

• Sulphur Springs Heritage Project – active participation in an ongoing community and heritage research project including: collecting oral histories using a range of ethnographic techniques and audio visual options; creating multi-media educational materials; participating in community heritage preservation meetings & activities; website design; collecting and preserving historic photographs; participating in historic building designation fieldwork, and doing library & other archival research in support of the Sulphur Springs Museum and Heritage Center. Student research will be directed by: Dr. Antoinette Jackson (USF), Dr. Susan Greenbaum (USF), and tbd graduate student researchers/mentors. Community partner, Mrs. Norma Robinson will define and review the research products as service learning deliverables.
• Collaborative Research and Community Empowerment—active participation in community partner directed research projects focused on heritage preservation and quality of life activities through folk art and youth programs; capacity building activities; and community engagement and empowerment initiatives aimed at facilitating cohesion among diverse population segments (i.e., DARE). Alternatively, students may participate in community heritage research projects, including conducting ethnographic and ethnohistorial research outside the Tampa Bay area as defined/determined by the Instructor and designated Community Partner.

What other kinds of activities do you envision? Tampa has a rich and varied history consisting of many cultures and cultural influences. Much of Tampa‘s history and heritage remains to be researched, documented, and/or preserved. Join us as we work directly with the the Sulphur Springs Museum and Heritage Center as they lead their community in a variety of heritage research and preservation activities. This project will give students a chance to:

• Participate in a community project;
• Learn about American culture from an anthropological perspective;
• Potentially earn research dollars through the Office of Undergraduate Research;
• Gain qualitative research methods experience; and
• Apply research skills and knowledge to helping address Community partner defined/articulated research needs. Possible activities include:
• collecting oral histories and interviewing long term residents of the historically African American community of Spring Hill—a neighborhood of historic Sulphur Springs, Florida which remains to be documented and included in the history and heritage of Tampa in the public forum
• using previously collected ethnographic and oral history data to create multi-media educational materials including website and/or curriculum design
• perusing historic and/or private photo collections in order to find and catalog historic photographs of significance to the community searching old newspapers, city directories, and census data records to help build previously undocumented profiles of Sulphur Springs and/or communities
• participating in historic building designation fieldwork by finding, researching, and cataloging buildings/houses/churches with possible historic significance
• working with GIS experts to create community maps and cultural resource inventory profiles
• participating in heritage preservation and quality of life activities through folk art and youth programs
• developing grant proposals 1) Class Participation (25%)
• Lead at least one class discussion
• In-class exercises
• Field trip(s)
• Readings/film reviews – tbd by instructor
• Extra Credit

2) Final project paper plus presentation (50%)

• Final written research paper
• Public delivery/presentation of final project research paper and deliverable to community/community partner

3) Cultural heritage and/or historic preservation directed research project participation (25%)

• Develop proposal outlining agreed upon final project deliverables with Community partner
• Participate in a qualitative research project/study
• Commit to 6 hour minimum research activity per week with/for community partner (i.e., fieldwork, archival work, ethnographic interview, oral history, participant observation, genealogy/kinship work, …)
• Maintain a research journal
• Turn in weekly field reports (be prepared to share your weekly experiences with the class via the class discussions area of blackboard or during our class discussions)
• Complete final project deliverables per agreed upon proposal

Class Participation

• Written synopsis/analysis of assigned readings (10 pts each)
• Each assigned review should be 1-2 pages (typed and double-spaced) in length. For each review, in addition to stating the main point of the article, you should list/discuss specific aspects or traits of American culture described/presented in the article/book and reference at least two other sources in support of your analysis. Conclude your review by providing your opinion of the article (i.e., did the author articulate his/her point clearly and did you agree or disagree).
• No late reviews will be accepted.
• Note: There will be at least 1 mandatory review of either the Lynd or Lassiter reading.

Lead a Class Discussion-15 pts

• Students will be assigned a reading and will be expected to lead the class in a discussion/analysis of the reading at least once. Discussion leaders should come prepared with a written review of the reading, an outline of what you plan to discuss, and at least two questions for the class. Presenters will be allocated a maximum time of 10 min/per reading unless otherwise stated. Note: Everyone is expected to read all assigned readings and come to class with a least 2 prepared questions per reading.
• You may be called upon to pose your question to the class or questions may be collected prior to the start of class. Additionally, in-class exercises and quizzes will be given at the discretion of the instructor. Be prepared and stay current with the readings.

Field Exercises/trips (10 points each)

• Field exercises/trips will be assigned at the discretion of the instructor, and requirements and due dates will be announced in class.

Extra Credit Readings/Projects/ (points vary)

• These will assigned throughout the semester at the discretion of the instructor, and requirements and due dates will be announced in class.

Cultural Heritage and/or Historic Preservation Directed Research Project Participation (100 points total)

• This is a mandatory component of this course—a service learning as a directed research exercise. You will not pass the class unless you are actively involved in a directed research project per tasks and deliverables defined by the designated community partner. Your participation in this aspect of the course will be evaluated by the course instructor(s), your assigned mentor, and the designated community partner. You should commit to spending a minimum of 3 hours per week participating in qualitative research activities and/or onsite ethnography and fieldwork specific to your assigned project outside of classroom meetings.

Service Learning and Community Partner defined Deliverables:

• During the first 2 weeks of class, students will develop a project proposal outlining specific project deliverables and a specific research focus per consultation with the community partner or a designated representative. Students will also be instructed on IRB requirements and will take online courses as needed for appropriate certification.

Final project research paper and presentation of Service Learning project deliverable to Community Partner (100 points total)

• This is a mandatory assignment. You will not pass the class unless you complete this assignment. Each student is expected to develop a portrait of American culture or an American cultural experience as an ethnographic or ethnohistorical exercise (i.e., use ethnographic and/or ethnohistorical field methods to collect data for your topic). In this exercise each student will research/profile/interpret/critique an aspect of life in America based on active participation in a community partner defined and mutually agreed upon cultural research and/or historic preservation project in a designated community (i.e., the Tampa Bay area community of Sulphur Springs). Ethnographies read and/or discussed in this course such as Middletown; The Other Side of Middletown, and You Owe Yourself a Drunk, should serve as models.
• At the conclusion of the course students will present the specified and agreed upon project deliverables to the community partner as well as complete an 8-10 page research paper (typed, double-spaced). In addition, each student will be required to give a 15 minute formal presentation of his/her research and project deliverables to the class and community partner in a public forum. This will take place at the conclusion of Summer B session. Students may work in teams, however, each student is expected to turn in a paper and participate in the presentation of the project. The format and style of presentation are open. Creativity is encouraged. Student presentation dates will be provided at the start of the semester.

Attendance is required by all for final project presentations and final grade will reflect attendance.

• 6/28 and/or 7/26—Student Presentations of Summer A/B final project deliverables/Public presentations of final projects. [*Note: Dates are subject to change per discretion of Community partner. Additional details and instructions will be provided at the start of Summer A semester. Students are required to discuss their final research project/proposal with the instructor and/or assigned mentor prior to beginning the research and write-up.
• 8/2—Final project research papers due

COURSE EXPECTATIONS AND ADDITIONAL GUIDELINES I believe that we are all learners and teachers. Learning involves more than just getting good grades. Learning can also be expressed by how well you use your skills, knowledge, and experiences to educate those around you. The class is a combination of lecture plus active learning and participation on your part. If you do not want to actively participate in the learning process, then please consider other options. Lectures and/or class discussions will be based on the scheduled material as outlined in this syllabus. I expect you to read assigned materials before class. Additionally, we will view films and I will use exercises and projects to help illuminate particular concepts. All materials presented or assigned in class are considered fair game for testing purposes. Please come to class prepared to listen, to think critically, and to participate. Weekly Readings and Activities SUMMER A Week 1: American Culture from an Anthropological perspective 5/17 Introductions and review of syllabus

• Overview of service learning as a directed research exercise and learning objective concept
• What is culture/what is anthropology of American culture

Analyzing American culture

• Reading: DeVita text-―The American Culture Configuration‖ (by: Holmes and Holmes/Blackboard posting)
• Reading: Middletown book (Introduction + Chapter I- Getting a Living)
• Reading: Blackboard postings of community and project specific materials

Cultural anthropology research tools/methods/ethics – General overview

• Reading: Wolcott (Chapters 1&2)
• Reading: Weinreich article: Integrating Quantitative and Qualitative Methods in Social Marketing
• Film (opt.)

5/19 Experiencing American Culture

• Reading: A Different Mirror‖ (Chapter 1) by R. Takaki (Blackboard posting)
• Reading: Baker text-Introduction (Blackboard posting)
• Reading: Middletown book (Chapter IV- Using Leisure; Chapter V - Engaging in ReligiousPractices)
• Reading (opt): Middletown book (remaining chapters)
• Reading (opt/EC): Middletown Interviews (online postings)
• Film: (opt.)

Culture and Ethnography. How is it studied and what does the study produce?

• In-class exercise: IRB Exercise/Workshop
• Go to/peruse - http://www.loc.gov/folklife
• Reading: Wolcott (Chapters 3&4—Blackboard posting)

Introduction to Service Learning as a directed research project expectations and requirements

• Meet with Community Partner
• Mentor team introductions

Week 2: An ethnographic look at American culture 5/24 Reading: The Other Side of Middletown (all chapters)

• In-class activity: tbd

Research tools

• Read/review: Chapters 1, 2, & 3 from book ― The Ethnographic Interview, by: J. Spradley
• RESEARCHING AMERICAN CULTURE-Summer 2010
• Page 10 of 13
• Read/review: Spradley book (Ethnographic Interview)-Part II, Steps 1-4

5/26 Reading: The Other Side of Middletown (all chapters)

• Review: Chapters 1, 2, & 3 from book ―The Ethnographic Interview‖ by: J. Spradley
• Review: Spradley book (Ethnographic Interview)-Part II, Steps 1-4
• Reading/review: R. Bernard readings (see blackboard posting): #2 (Participant Observation); #3 (Field Notes); #4 (Interviews)
• *Lab/Field exercise –Intro to USF Library and/or other archival research tools/resources
• [Special Collections/Sanborn maps/City directories/Census data/…]

Week 3: Our cultural ideals of America and people's everyday realities 5/31 NO CLASSES—HOLIDAY 6/2 Reading: ―Emigrants from Erin: Ethnicity and Class within White America‖ by R. Takaki

• Reading: ―White Privilege: UnPacking the Invisible Knapsack‖ -by: P. McIntosh
• Reading (opt/EC): ―Writing a Place in American Life: The Sensibilities of an American-born
• Chinese as Reflected in Life Stories from the Exclusion Era‖ by: Xiao-Hung Yin (online posting)
• Review R. Bernard readings—#2 (Participant Observation); #3(Field Notes); #4(Interviews)—(Blackboard posting):
• *Lab/Field exercise –Intro to archival research tools/resources
• [Tour/overview of general library resources/tools/available databases]

Week 4: Researching American culture—qualitative research tools/methods 6/7 Reading: Spradley book (You Owe Yourself a Drunk excerpt) – Blackboard posting

6/9 In-class activity/ open discussion

• Review/discuss final project deliverables and research paper

Research tools/ research methods (i.e., ethnographic interview)

• Read/review: Spradley book (Ethnographic Interview)-Part II, Steps 11 and 12
• Read/review: R. Bernard readings (see blackboard posting): #1(Literature Review); #4(Interviews); #5(Questionnaires & Survey Research)
• Reading (s): M. Angrosino readings (see Blackboard posting—optional)
• Reading: US Holocaust Museum Oral History Guidelines (optional)

Lab/Field exercise –Multimedia/Podcast training session Week 5: Researching American Culture 6/14 Readings: to be assigned

• Guest Speaker(s) - tbd
• Lectures will focus on community based research projects in the Tampa Bay area; Anthropology of American Culture; qualitative tools ; ethics; oral history

6/16 Readings: to be assigned

• Guest Speaker (s) - tbd
• Lectures will focus on community based research projects in the Tampa Bay area; anthropology of American culture; qualitative tools ; ethics; oral history

Week 6: Researching American Culture 6/21 Service Learning/Final Project research discussion day

• Mentor meetings
• Guest Speaker (s) – (opt)

6/23 NO CLASS – Service Learning/Final Project research day 6/25 Summer A Classes end

• Final Papers due—option 1 (*this is first date that students can turn in final project research papers; second and final date is 8/2)

6/28 Public Presentation of Student Summer A/B Final Project deliverables—option 1 [time/location tbd— subject to change per discretion of Community partner] SUMMER B Weeks 1-4: 6/28 Summer B starts 6/29 –7/23 Student directed research projects/no formal class meetings/informal meetings with mentors and instructor Week 5-6: Summer A/B Final Project Deliverables due 7/26 Student Presentations of Summer A/B Final project deliverables; Public presentations of final projects—option 2 [*time/location tbd—Note this date is subject to change per discretion of Community partner] 8/2 Final project research papers due 8/6 Summer B ends

Interesting American History Research Paper Topics

In this page, we present a comprehensive guide to finding and selecting interesting American history research paper topics . Whether you are a history student or an academic researcher, this resource aims to provide you with a wealth of options and insights to uncover the captivating stories and significant events that have shaped the American experience. With a focus on engaging and thought-provoking subject matter, our list of interesting American history research paper topics covers a wide range of categories and subtopics. By delving into these captivating areas, you can delve into the rich tapestry of American history and develop a research paper that offers fresh perspectives and compelling narratives.

100 Interesting American History Research Paper Topics

Exploring the fascinating realms of American history offers students and researchers a multitude of opportunities to delve into captivating topics. In this section, we present a comprehensive list of interesting American history research paper topics, carefully organized into 10 categories. From political milestones to social movements, cultural shifts, and economic transformations, these topics provide a broad spectrum of ideas for conducting in-depth research and analysis. Let’s dive into the rich tapestry of interesting American history research paper topics and discover the intriguing topics that await exploration.

Academic Writing, Editing, Proofreading, And Problem Solving Services

Get 10% off with 24start discount code, colonial america.

• The impact of the Mayflower Compact on the development of self-governance in early America
• The Salem Witch Trials: Causes, consequences, and the cultural context of witchcraft accusations
• The role of religious freedom in the establishment of the thirteen colonies
• Slavery in Colonial America: Origins, expansion, and resistance
• The influence of the Great Awakening on the religious landscape of Colonial America
• The founding of Jamestown: Challenges, triumphs, and the establishment of the first permanent English settlement
• The interaction between Native American tribes and European colonizers in early America
• The impact of the French and Indian War on the relationship between the American colonies and the British Empire
• The evolution of the Puritan society in New England: Ideals, conflicts, and legacy
• The Boston Tea Party: Causes, significance, and its role in igniting the American Revolution

Revolutionary Era and the Founding of the Nation

• The ideological roots of the American Revolution: Enlightenment philosophy and its influence on the Founding Fathers
• The role of women in the American Revolution: Activism, contributions, and challenges
• The drafting and impact of the Declaration of Independence: Ideas, influences, and its enduring legacy
• The Constitutional Convention: Debates, compromises, and the creation of the U.S. Constitution
• Alexander Hamilton and the economic policies that shaped early America
• The Federalist vs. Anti-Federalist debates: Perspectives on government and the formation of political parties
• The impact of the American Revolution on slavery and the abolitionist movement
• The Battle of Yorktown: Turning point of the Revolutionary War and its consequences
• The emergence of political cartoons during the Revolutionary Era and their role in shaping public opinion
• The Whiskey Rebellion: Causes, consequences, and its significance in early American history

Westward Expansion and Manifest Destiny

• The Lewis and Clark Expedition: Goals, challenges, and their impact on westward expansion
• The Louisiana Purchase: Motivations, negotiations, and the consequences for American expansion
• The Oregon Trail: Challenges, hardships, and the experiences of pioneers
• The Mexican-American War: Causes, outcomes, and its impact on territorial expansion
• The Gold Rush of 1849: Socioeconomic effects and its influence on westward migration
• Native American displacement and resistance during westward expansion
• The completion of the Transcontinental Railroad: Technological advancements, economic implications, and cultural transformations
• The Homestead Act of 1862: Promises, challenges, and its effects on settlement in the West
• The Battle of Little Bighorn: Perspectives, myths, and the clash of cultures
• The closing of the American frontier: Consequences and the legacy of westward expansion

Civil War and Reconstruction

• The causes and consequences of the Civil War: Political, economic, and social factors
• The Emancipation Proclamation: Impact, limitations, and its significance for African Americans
• The role of women during the Civil War: Nurses, spies, and activists
• Abraham Lincoln: Leadership, speeches, and the legacy of his presidency
• Reconstruction policies: Successes, failures, and their long-term effects on the nation
• The impact of the 13th, 14th, and 15th Amendments on the rights of African Americans
• The Freedmen’s Bureau: Mission, challenges, and its efforts to assist newly emancipated slaves
• The Ku Klux Klan: Origins, activities, and its influence on racial tensions during Reconstruction
• The assassination of Abraham Lincoln: Conspiracies, aftermath, and its impact on national healing
• The Compromise of 1877: Resolving the disputed presidential election and its implications for Reconstruction

Progressive Era and the Gilded Age

• The rise of industrialization in America: Technological advancements, urbanization, and social transformations
• The Progressive Movement: Goals, reforms, and its impact on American society and politics
• The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory fire: Tragedy, labor activism, and the fight for workplace safety regulations
• The Populist Party: Origins, demands, and its influence on political discourse
• The role of women in the suffrage movement: Leaders, strategies, and the fight for voting rights
• Theodore Roosevelt and the conservation movement: Policies, national parks, and environmental advocacy
• The Haymarket Affair: Labor unrest, anarchist influences, and the impact on labor movements
• The Spanish-American War: Motivations, outcomes, and its impact on American imperialism
• The Great Railroad Strike of 1877: Causes, consequences, and its significance in labor history
• The Panama Canal: Construction, geopolitical implications, and its role in international trade

World War I and the Roaring Twenties

• America’s entry into World War I: Motivations, consequences, and the impact on American society
• The Treaty of Versailles: Negotiations, implications, and the U.S. decision not to ratify
• The Harlem Renaissance: Cultural movements, artistic achievements, and the African American experience
• Prohibition and the rise of organized crime: Causes, enforcement, and social consequences
• The Scopes Trial: Evolution vs. creationism, the clash of science and religion, and its legal ramifications
• The Red Scare: Anti-communist hysteria, political repression, and its effects on civil liberties
• The Jazz Age: Music, fashion, and the changing social dynamics of the 1920s
• Women’s suffrage and the 19th Amendment: Struggles, victories, and the changing role of women in society
• The Great Migration: Causes, experiences, and the impact of African Americans moving from the South to urban centers
• The Wall Street Crash of 1929: Causes, consequences, and its role in the onset of the Great Depression

The Great Depression and New Deal Era

• The causes and impact of the Great Depression on American society and the global economy
• The Dust Bowl: Environmental disaster, migration, and government responses
• The New Deal: Programs, policies, and their effectiveness in addressing the economic crisis
• The role of Eleanor Roosevelt: Activism, advocacy, and her influence on social reform
• The Bonus Army: Protests, the military response, and its impact on public opinion
• The Federal Writers’ Project: Literary contributions, folklore collection, and the preservation of American culture
• The art of the Great Depression: Visual expressions of hardship, resilience, and social commentary
• The Wagner Act: Labor rights, unionization, and its impact on workers’ rights
• The Social Security Act: Origins, provisions, and its legacy in social welfare programs
• The Dust Bowl migration and its influence on the demographic and cultural landscape of the West Coast

World War II and Post-War America

• America’s entry into World War II: Pearl Harbor, the home front, and the war effort
• The Manhattan Project: Development of the atomic bomb, ethical implications, and its role in ending the war
• Japanese internment during World War II: Causes, consequences, and the violation of civil liberties
• The GI Bill: Educational opportunities, housing benefits, and its impact on returning veterans
• The Marshall Plan: Reconstruction of Europe, containment policy, and America’s role in post-war recovery
• The Cold War: Origins, conflicts, and the impact on American society and foreign policy
• The Civil Rights Movement: Leaders, strategies, and the fight for racial equality
• McCarthyism and the Red Scare: Communist witch hunts, political repression, and the Hollywood blacklist
• The Korean War: Causes, outcomes, and its impact on the balance of power in Asia
• The Baby Boom: Population growth, suburbanization, and the changing dynamics of American family life

Civil Rights Movement and Social Change

• Brown v. Board of Education: Segregation, desegregation, and the landmark Supreme Court decision
• The Montgomery Bus Boycott: Rosa Parks, Martin Luther King Jr., and the power of nonviolent resistance
• The March on Washington: Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech and its impact on civil rights legislation
• The Black Panther Party: Activism, community organizing, and the struggle for racial justice
• The Feminist Movement: Women’s liberation, reproductive rights, and the fight for gender equality
• The Stonewall Riots: LGBTQ+ activism, the birth of the gay rights movement, and the fight for equal rights
• The Indian Civil Rights Act of 1968: Native American sovereignty, activism, and the pursuit of self-determination
• The Chicano Movement: Immigration, labor rights, and the fight for social and political equality
• The Counterculture of the 1960s: Anti-war protests, hippie culture, and the quest for social change
• The Environmental Movement: Rachel Carson, Earth Day, and the fight for environmental awareness and conservation

Modern America and Contemporary Issues

• The Watergate Scandal: Political corruption, investigative journalism, and its impact on American politics
• The Reagan Era: Conservative politics, economic policies, and the redefinition of American conservatism
• The 9/11 Attacks: Causes, consequences, and the impact on national security and foreign policy
• The rise of social media: Transformations in communication, privacy concerns, and the influence on society
• The Black Lives Matter movement: Racial justice, police brutality, and the fight against systemic racism
• The #MeToo movement: Sexual harassment, gender equality, and the call for social change
• The opioid crisis: Causes, consequences, and the efforts to address the epidemic
• The presidency of Barack Obama: Historical significance, policies, and the impact on American society
• Immigration policy in the 21st century: Debates, challenges, and the changing demographics of America
• Climate change and environmental activism: The scientific consensus, policy debates, and the quest for sustainable solutions

This comprehensive list of interesting American history research paper topics provides a wide array of options for students and researchers to explore the captivating stories and pivotal moments in American history. From the early colonial period to modern-day issues, these topics offer abundant opportunities for in-depth research, critical analysis, and engaging writing. By selecting a topic aligned with personal interests and academic goals, students can embark on a rewarding journey of discovery and contribute to the rich tapestry of American historical scholarship.

American History: Exploring the Range of Interesting Research Paper Topics

American history is a captivating and diverse subject that encompasses a vast array of fascinating topics. From the early colonization of the continent to the modern era, the history of the United States is filled with remarkable events, influential figures, and transformative social movements. In this article, we will explore the breadth and depth of interesting American history research paper topics, providing students with a rich tapestry of subjects to investigate and analyze. By delving into these topics, students can gain a deeper understanding of the nation’s past, its complexities, and its enduring impact on the present.

• Colonial America : Colonial America serves as the foundation of American history, and exploring its various aspects can offer valuable insights. Topics in this category may include the establishment and development of the Jamestown settlement, the religious beliefs and social structure of Puritanism in early New England, the causes and consequences of the Salem Witch Trials, the impact of Native American-European encounters, and the role of women in colonial society.
• Revolutionary Period and the Founding Fathers : The Revolutionary Period marked a significant turning point in American history. Research paper topics in this category can focus on the causes and significance of the American Revolution, the Declaration of Independence and its impact on American identity, the role of key Founding Fathers such as George Washington, Thomas Jefferson, and Benjamin Franklin, the Revolutionary War’s military strategies and key battles, and the transition from the Articles of Confederation to the U.S. Constitution.
• Westward Expansion and Manifest Destiny : The concept of Manifest Destiny and westward expansion played a pivotal role in shaping America. Research topics may include the motivations and impact of the Louisiana Purchase, the experiences and challenges of pioneers on the Oregon Trail, the social and economic transformations brought about by the California Gold Rush, the impact of the Mexican-American War on territorial expansion, and the resistance and struggles of Native American tribes.
• Civil War and Reconstruction : The Civil War and Reconstruction era remain critical periods in American history. Students can explore topics such as the causes and consequences of the Civil War, key battles and military strategies, the leadership and speeches of Abraham Lincoln, the Emancipation Proclamation and its significance in ending slavery, and the policies and impact of the Reconstruction period on the nation.
• Industrialization and the Gilded Age : The Gilded Age witnessed rapid industrialization and significant social changes. Research paper topics in this category may include the rise of industrialization and its technological advancements, the labor movement and the fight for workers’ rights, the Progressive Era’s social reforms and political changes, the women’s suffrage movement and the struggle for gender equality, and the challenges and contributions of immigration and urbanization.
• World Wars and the Interwar Period : The World Wars and the interwar period shaped America’s position on the global stage. Students can explore topics such as America’s involvement in World War I, the cultural developments and societal changes of the Roaring Twenties, the causes and impact of the Great Depression, America’s role in World War II and the home front experience, and the post-war era marked by the Cold War and the rise of the United States as a global superpower.
• Civil Rights Movement and Social Change : The Civil Rights Movement and other social movements brought about significant change in American society. Research paper topics may include key events and figures of the Civil Rights Movement, the struggle for equality and justice, the impact of leaders like Martin Luther King Jr., the fight for women’s rights and LGBTQ+ rights, and the broader social changes of the 1960s and beyond.
• Cultural and Intellectual Movements : Exploring cultural and intellectual movements provides insights into American society. Research topics can cover areas such as the Harlem Renaissance, the Beat Generation and counterculture movements, the feminist movement and women’s liberation, the impact of popular culture, and the influence of art, literature, and music on American society.
• Economic and Industrial Development : America’s economic and industrial development has had a profound impact on its history. Research paper topics in this category can include the rise of big business and monopolies, the impact of technological advancements such as the automobile and electricity, the evolution of labor and consumerism, the Great Depression and its consequences, and the challenges and transformations of the modern economy.
• Foreign Policy and International Relations : American foreign policy and international relations have shaped the nation’s role on the global stage. Topics in this category may include America’s involvement in wars and conflicts, diplomatic relations with other nations, the Cold War and its impact on American society, the evolution of globalization, and contemporary foreign policy challenges.

Exploring the diverse and intriguing aspects of American history through research paper topics allows students to deepen their understanding of the nation’s past. From the early colonization to modern-day challenges, the range of interesting American history research paper topics is vast and captivating. By selecting an interesting research paper topic and delving into the associated historical context, students can develop critical thinking skills, expand their knowledge, and contribute to the ongoing exploration of America’s rich and complex history.

How to Choose an Interesting Topic in American History

Selecting an engaging and thought-provoking research paper topic is essential for a successful study in American history. With such a vast and rich historical landscape, it can be challenging to narrow down your focus and choose a topic that piques your interest while offering ample opportunities for exploration. In this section, we will provide you with valuable tips on how to choose interesting American history research paper topics that align with your academic goals and captivate your audience.

• Identify Your Interests and Passions : Start by reflecting on your personal interests and passions within American history. Are you fascinated by a particular period, such as the Revolutionary War or the Civil Rights Movement? Do you have a keen interest in social, political, or cultural aspects of American history? By selecting a topic that genuinely interests you, you will be more motivated to delve into the research and produce a compelling paper.
• Consider Unexplored or Understudied Areas : While popular topics in American history are widely discussed, consider exploring lesser-known or understudied areas. Look for hidden narratives, forgotten voices, or overlooked events that offer new perspectives on American history. This approach not only allows you to contribute to the field but also adds novelty and intrigue to your research paper.
• Focus on Specific Regions or Communities : American history is diverse and encompasses a wide range of regions, communities, and cultures. Narrowing down your topic to a specific geographic area or community can provide a more focused and nuanced analysis. For example, you may choose to explore the experiences of Native American tribes in a particular region, the contributions of a specific immigrant group, or the impact of a social movement in a particular city.
• Examine Social and Cultural Aspects : American history is not just about politics and wars; it encompasses social and cultural aspects that have shaped the nation. Consider topics that delve into art, literature, music, popular culture, and social movements. Analyze the impact of cultural icons, explore the evolution of American identity, or study the connections between art and politics during a particular era.
• Analyze Controversial Issues and Debates : Controversial issues and debates in American history offer ample opportunities for in-depth analysis and critical thinking. Select a topic that sparks debate or challenges traditional narratives. For example, you may examine the controversies surrounding the American Revolution, the complexities of Reconstruction, or the ongoing debates about immigration policies throughout history.
• Utilize Primary Sources : Incorporating primary sources into your research can add depth and authenticity to your paper. Primary sources include documents, diaries, letters, speeches, photographs, and other materials created during the period you are studying. By analyzing firsthand accounts, you can gain unique insights and provide a fresh perspective on your chosen topic.
• Consult Secondary Sources : Secondary sources, such as scholarly books, articles, and research papers, provide a foundation of knowledge and offer different interpretations of historical events. Consult reputable secondary sources to gain a comprehensive understanding of your topic and to situate your research within the broader historical context.
• Consider Interdisciplinary Approaches : American history intersects with various disciplines, such as sociology, literature, political science, and economics. Consider adopting an interdisciplinary approach to your research paper by integrating insights from multiple fields. This can add depth and complexity to your analysis and contribute to a more comprehensive understanding of the chosen topic.
• Evaluate Feasibility and Availability of Sources : Before finalizing your topic, assess the feasibility of conducting research and the availability of relevant sources. Ensure that there are sufficient primary and secondary sources accessible to you. If necessary, consult librarians, databases, and archival collections to determine the availability and accessibility of materials related to your chosen topic.
• Refine and Narrow Your Topic : Once you have identified a potential research topic, refine and narrow it down to ensure it is manageable within the scope of your research paper. Consider the time frame, geographical boundaries, and specific research questions you wish to explore. This process will help you maintain focus and produce a well-structured and coherent paper.

Choosing an interesting American history research paper topic is an exciting yet challenging task. By identifying your interests, exploring understudied areas, considering specific regions or communities, examining social and cultural aspects, analyzing controversies, utilizing primary and secondary sources, adopting interdisciplinary approaches, evaluating feasibility, and refining your topic, you can select a captivating subject that engages both you and your audience. Remember, a well-chosen topic sets the stage for a compelling research paper that contributes to the ongoing exploration of American history.

How to Write an American History Research Paper

Writing an interesting and captivating research paper on American history requires careful planning, thorough research, and effective writing strategies. Whether you are exploring a significant event, analyzing social movements, or examining the lives of influential figures, the following tips will guide you in crafting a compelling and well-structured research paper that engages your readers and showcases your understanding of American history.

• Develop a Clear and Concise Thesis Statement : A strong thesis statement is the foundation of your research paper. It should clearly state your argument or main idea and provide a roadmap for your paper. Ensure that your thesis statement is focused, specific, and supported by evidence from your research.
• Conduct In-Depth Research : Thorough research is crucial for an interesting American history research paper. Explore primary and secondary sources to gather relevant information, facts, and perspectives on your chosen topic. Utilize libraries, archives, databases, and reputable online sources to access a wide range of materials.
• Analyze Primary and Secondary Sources : Examine primary sources, such as documents, letters, diaries, speeches, and photographs, to gain firsthand insights into the historical context you are studying. Analyze secondary sources, including scholarly books and articles, to understand different interpretations and scholarly debates surrounding your topic. By critically evaluating sources, you can present a well-informed and balanced argument.
• Organize Your Research and Create an Outline : Organize your research findings and create a well-structured outline for your research paper. An outline helps you establish a logical flow and ensure that your arguments are presented coherently. Divide your paper into sections, each focusing on a specific aspect of your topic, and use subheadings to further organize your ideas.
• Craft Engaging Introductions and Conclusions : Capture your readers’ attention with an engaging introduction that presents the significance of your research topic and provides context for your study. Introduce your thesis statement and outline the key points you will address in your paper. In your conclusion, summarize your main arguments, restate your thesis, and offer some final thoughts or insights.
• Use Clear and Concise Language : Write in a clear and concise manner to effectively communicate your ideas. Avoid excessive jargon and complex language that may confuse your readers. Use active voice, straightforward sentences, and transition words to ensure a smooth and coherent flow of information.
• Present Strong Evidence and Support Your Claims : Support your arguments and claims with strong evidence from your research. Cite your sources accurately using the appropriate citation style (such as APA, MLA, Chicago/Turabian) to give credit to the original authors and to demonstrate the credibility of your work. Use a mix of direct quotes, paraphrases, and summaries to incorporate evidence into your paper.
• Provide Historical Context : Place your research within the broader historical context to help readers understand the significance of your topic. Discuss relevant events, social conditions, cultural influences, and political factors that shaped the period you are studying. Providing historical context enhances the depth and understanding of your research paper.
• Analyze and Interpret Data : An interesting American history research paper goes beyond presenting facts and data. Analyze and interpret the information you have gathered to provide insightful perspectives and draw meaningful conclusions. Consider different viewpoints, historical interpretations, and the implications of your findings.
• Revise and Edit : Revision and editing are essential to polish your research paper and ensure its clarity and coherence. Review your paper for grammar, spelling, punctuation, and sentence structure errors. Check the flow of your arguments and make sure your ideas are presented logically. Seek feedback from peers, instructors, or writing centers to gain valuable insights and improve your paper.

Writing an interesting American history research paper requires a combination of diligent research, critical thinking, and effective writing skills. By developing a clear thesis statement, conducting in-depth research, analyzing primary and secondary sources, organizing your ideas, using clear language, providing strong evidence, offering historical context, analyzing data, and revising and editing your work, you can create a research paper that engages your readers and contributes to the exploration of American history. Remember, the journey of writing a research paper is an opportunity to deepen your understanding of the subject matter and share your knowledge with others.

iResearchNet’s Writing Services

At iResearchNet, we understand the challenges that students face when it comes to writing American history research papers. The complexities of historical analysis, extensive research requirements, and the pressure to deliver a well-written paper can be overwhelming. That’s why we offer our professional writing services to provide students with expert assistance in crafting high-quality American history research papers. With our team of experienced writers, custom solutions, and commitment to excellence, we are your trusted partner in achieving academic success.

• Expert Degree-Holding Writers : At iResearchNet, we have a team of expert writers with advanced degrees in history. They have a deep understanding of American history, its diverse periods, and significant events. Our writers possess the knowledge and expertise to undertake research papers on various topics, ensuring accurate and well-informed content.
• Custom Written Works : We believe in delivering original and custom-written research papers tailored to your specific requirements. Our writers follow your instructions and guidelines to create unique and plagiarism-free papers. They conduct thorough research, analyze relevant sources, and present well-structured and coherent arguments.
• In-Depth Research : Our writers are skilled in conducting in-depth research on American history topics. They have access to extensive databases, scholarly journals, and reputable sources, allowing them to gather reliable and up-to-date information. They delve into primary and secondary sources, ensuring the incorporation of diverse perspectives and scholarly debates.
• Custom Formatting : We understand the importance of adhering to specific formatting styles when writing research papers. Whether it’s APA, MLA, Chicago/Turabian, Harvard, or any other style, our writers are well-versed in the requirements and guidelines. They ensure that your paper follows the designated formatting style consistently and accurately.
• Top Quality : Quality is our utmost priority. We are committed to delivering research papers that meet the highest academic standards. Our writers pay attention to detail, conduct thorough proofreading and editing, and ensure the coherence, clarity, and logical flow of your paper. We strive for excellence in every aspect of our work.
• Customized Solutions : We recognize that every research paper is unique, and each student has specific requirements. Our writing services are tailored to your individual needs. Whether you need assistance with topic selection, research guidance, or complete paper writing, we offer customized solutions to meet your academic goals.
• Flexible Pricing : We understand the financial constraints of students. Our pricing structure is designed to be flexible and affordable. We offer competitive rates for our writing services, ensuring that you receive exceptional value for your investment. Our transparent pricing policy ensures no hidden costs or additional charges.
• Short Deadlines : We are aware of the time constraints students face when it comes to research paper deadlines. Our writers are equipped to handle urgent assignments with short deadlines. Whether you need a paper in a few hours or a few days, we strive to deliver your work promptly without compromising on quality.
• Timely Delivery : Meeting deadlines is essential, and we are committed to timely delivery. We understand the importance of submitting your research paper on time to ensure academic success. Our writers work efficiently to complete your paper within the agreed-upon timeframe, allowing you ample time for review and submission.
• 24/7 Support : We provide round-the-clock customer support to address any queries or concerns you may have. Our support team is available 24/7 to assist you at any stage of the writing process. Whether you have questions about the ordering process, need updates on your paper, or require clarification on any aspect, we are here to provide timely assistance.
• Absolute Privacy : We prioritize the privacy and confidentiality of our clients. We understand the sensitivity of personal information and academic work. Rest assured that all your details and interactions with us are kept strictly confidential. We adhere to strict privacy policies to ensure the protection of your data.
• Easy Order Tracking : With our user-friendly platform, you can easily track the progress of your order. You can communicate directly with your assigned writer, provide additional instructions or materials, and stay updated on the status of your research paper. Our streamlined process ensures a seamless experience.
• Money Back Guarantee : We are confident in the quality of our services and the expertise of our writers. We offer a money-back guarantee to provide you with peace of mind. If you are not satisfied with the final product or if we fail to meet your requirements, we will refund your payment.

At iResearchNet, we are dedicated to supporting students in their American history research paper endeavors. With our team of expert writers, custom solutions, commitment to quality, and customer-oriented approach, we are your trusted partner in achieving academic success. Our writing services offer personalized assistance, reliable research, and timely delivery, allowing you to focus on your studies while we take care of your research paper needs. Unleash your potential with iResearchNet and experience the difference in your academic journey.

Achieve Excellence in Your American History Research Papers

Are you struggling with your American history research papers? Are you looking for expert guidance and support to elevate your academic performance? Look no further! iResearchNet is here to unleash your potential and help you excel in your American history studies. With our professional writing services, you can access top-notch assistance from experienced writers, ensuring high-quality research papers that meet the highest academic standards. Take advantage of our comprehensive services and unleash your full potential as a history student.

Don’t let the challenges of writing American history research papers hold you back. Unleash your potential with iResearchNet’s professional writing services. Our team of expert writers, customized solutions, timely delivery, and exceptional customer support are here to support you in your academic journey. Let us handle the complexities of research and writing while you focus on expanding your knowledge and pursuing your passions. With iResearchNet, you can achieve excellence in your American history research papers and unlock your full potential as a history student.

Don’t miss out on the opportunity to elevate your academic performance. Order your custom American history research paper from iResearchNet today and experience the difference in quality, expertise, and support. Unleash your potential and achieve the academic success you deserve. Place your order now and let us be your trusted partner in your American history research paper journey.

ORDER HIGH QUALITY CUSTOM PAPER

Home — Essay Samples — Arts & Culture — World Cultures — American Culture

Essays on American Culture

Explore the essence of american culture through essays.

Discover the heart and soul of American culture with our extensive collection of essays. American culture, a vibrant amalgamation of diverse influences, traditions, and ideals, offers a fertile ground for exploration and analysis. From the historical roots that have shaped the nation's identity to contemporary issues influencing its societal fabric, our essays delve deep into the elements that define and distinguish American culture.

American Culture Essay: A Window to Understanding Diversity

American culture is as diverse as it is unique, embodying the values, beliefs, and customs of its people. Through our carefully curated essays, gain insights into how cultural diversity enriches the American experience. Topics range from the impact of immigration, the evolution of American music and literature, to the significance of holidays and traditions that celebrate the nation's rich heritage. Each essay serves as a testament to the dynamic and ever-evolving nature of American culture.

A Resource for Scholars and Enthusiasts Alike

Whether you are a student seeking inspiration for your next American culture essay, a researcher aiming to deepen your understanding, or simply a curious mind eager to learn more about the cultural forces that shape America, our collection is an invaluable resource. Engage with essays that not only inform but also provoke thought, inviting readers to reflect on the complexities and nuances of American cultural identity.

Join the Conversation on American Culture

The discourse on American culture is ongoing, reflecting the country's changing dynamics and global influence. We invite you to explore essays that address pressing social issues, celebrate cultural achievements, and examine the challenges facing the nation. By engaging with our collection, you contribute to a deeper, more nuanced conversation about what it means to be part of the American cultural landscape.

Cultural Relativism in American Culture

Seinfelds effect on american culture, made-to-order essay as fast as you need it.

Each essay is customized to cater to your unique preferences

+ experts online

American Culture: Its Influence and Evolution

How american culture becomes universal, the effects of media on american culture, the role of values in american culture, let us write you an essay from scratch.

• 450+ experts on 30 subjects ready to help
• Custom essay delivered in as few as 3 hours

What Means to Be an American

American poet research project: langston hughes, the problem of hatred, racism, and discrimination in america, african american and european influences on ragtime’s development, get a personalized essay in under 3 hours.

Expert-written essays crafted with your exact needs in mind

History and Cultural Features of Chinatown in New York

Reflection of contemporary social issues in south park, stereotypes about the united states of america, american dystopia; american spaces and allen ginsberg’s ‘howl’, obedience and individualism in american culture, cleveland, ohio: the comeback city, native american culture and society , hofstede’s cultural dimensions: comparing china and the united states, george f. babbitt and women: a vicious cycle of dissatisfaction, the hopi people: conflict of beliefs and science, dreamcatcher today and in the past, american influence on the australian culture, defining america during 1860-1900: distinctive cultural and social aspects, shaw empowers women in 'new woman', history and culture of the hopi peoples, american music festival industry: its significance and representation in the modern world, the difference between canada and india culture, the importance of proper documentation of history, the different interpretations of f. scott fitzgerald's book, the great gasby when it was turned into different movies, the importance of ethnocentrism in america, relevant topics.

• Japanese Culture
• Chinese Culture
• African American Culture
• Western Civilization
• Western Culture
• Vincent Van Gogh

By clicking “Check Writers’ Offers”, you agree to our terms of service and privacy policy . We’ll occasionally send you promo and account related email

No need to pay just yet!

We use cookies to personalyze your web-site experience. By continuing we’ll assume you board with our cookie policy .

• Instructions Followed To The Letter
• Deadlines Met At Every Stage
• Unique And Plagiarism Free

• Undergraduate
• High School
• Architecture
• American History
• Asian History
• Antique Literature
• American Literature
• Asian Literature
• Classic English Literature
• World Literature
• Creative Writing
• Linguistics
• Criminal Justice
• Legal Issues
• Anthropology
• Archaeology
• Political Science
• World Affairs
• African-American Studies
• East European Studies
• Latin-American Studies
• Native-American Studies
• West European Studies
• Family and Consumer Science
• Social Issues
• Women and Gender Studies
• Social Work
• Natural Sciences
• Pharmacology
• Earth science
• Agriculture
• Agricultural Studies
• Computer Science
• IT Management
• Mathematics
• Investments
• Engineering and Technology
• Engineering
• Aeronautics
• Medicine and Health
• Alternative Medicine
• Communications and Media
• Advertising
• Communication Strategies
• Public Relations
• Educational Theories
• Teacher's Career
• Chicago/Turabian
• Company Analysis
• Education Theories
• Shakespeare
• Canadian Studies
• Food Safety
• Relation of Global Warming and Extreme Weather Condition
• Movie Review
• Admission Essay
• Annotated Bibliography

Application Essay

• Article Critique
• Article Review
• Article Writing
• Book Review
• Business Plan
• Business Proposal
• Capstone Project
• Cover Letter
• Creative Essay
• Dissertation
• Dissertation - Abstract
• Dissertation - Conclusion
• Dissertation - Discussion
• Dissertation - Hypothesis
• Dissertation - Introduction
• Dissertation - Literature
• Dissertation - Methodology
• Dissertation - Results
• GCSE Coursework
• Grant Proposal
• Marketing Plan
• Multiple Choice Quiz
• Personal Statement
• Power Point Presentation
• Power Point Presentation With Speaker Notes
• Questionnaire
• Reaction Paper

Research Paper

• Research Proposal
• SWOT analysis
• Thesis Paper
• Online Quiz
• Literature Review
• Movie Analysis
• Statistics problem
• Math Problem
• All papers examples
• How It Works
• Money Back Policy
• Terms of Use
• Privacy Policy
• We Are Hiring

American Culture, Research Paper Example

Pages: 4

Words: 1071

Hire a Writer for Custom Research Paper

Use 10% Off Discount: "custom10" in 1 Click 👇

You are free to use it as an inspiration or a source for your own work.

American culture used to be defined by the image of hotdogs at a baseball game, tiny flags, freedom, democracy, McDonalds, fireworks, etc. However, now American culture is rapidly viewed around the world as Kim Kardashian, reality TV shows like Jersey Shore , Here Comes Honey Boo Boo , and others. American culture has been usurped by pop culture, and the decaying aspects of democracy. What exactly is culture? Culture can be defined as information transferred between individuals and groups, however American culture is transferred throughout the world. American culture is overall more than what is portrayed in the media. American culture encompasses the traditions, languages, arts (including pop culture), and custom from different mixtures of races that help to make up the United States. Within this paper it will define what American culture is, the controversies, and how it pertains to defining American culture today.

American culture can be generally seen as a “melting pot” for the different races, cultures, religions, traditions, customs, etc. American culture is narrowed down to the United States, as more than 300 million people populate the country, it is considered the most culturally diverse country in the world. More geographically American culture can be broken down in five regions; the Northeast, South, Midwest, the Southeast, and Western region as they each have their own cultural differences. The Northeast states that were originally were the settlers colonized has become more liberal, the south and Midwest is generally more conservative and religious, while the West is more secular. American culture can be traced back to its formation. When the pilgrims settled they borrowed from the European influences to help form democracy, develop customs, and establish the English language, and religious influences. The heavy borrowing of European influences was particularly felt in the formation of different sects of religion in the colonial American. It wasn’t until the Great Awakening, after American gained its independence, which radicalize the views of the settlers, that has helped formed the American attitudes that is known today. (Crunden, 1996) Within the formation of the America cultural influence came from Africans that were enslaved, German and Irish settlers, and more notably Native Americans. These cultural influences translated over the incorporation of different religions, art, holidays, sports, and other customs and traditions. The differences in the class, economic, and race cultures developed during the formation of the early American society would have profound implications throughout American history. Throughout American history between the 18 th and 20 th centuries, many notable inventions, literary, educational, and political figures helped to defined American culture. From the invention of electricity, telephone, assembly line, cable television, personal computer, cordless and mobile phone, and other notable inventions, have helped to define American culture in the perspectives of foreigners. (Smithsonian Institution, n.d)

The main characteristics that make up American culture can be categorized from the language, religion, style, food, arts, sports, and tradition. American culture has been transformed throughout scientific breakthroughs, essential discoveries, and inventive fixtures such as the food from hot dogs, corndogs, cheeseburger, and soft serve ice cream among some, American culture is bedded in its unique food concoctions. The introduction to American arts, has helped to propel some of pop culture’s greatest icons such as Michael Jackson, Elvis, Frank Sinatra, Louis Armstrong, Madonna, and others from American cinema. (Osborne, 2006) What makes American culture unique is there was never an official language as the first settlers brought English from the British, and it has always been the “un-official” official language where 90 percent of the population speaks and conducts business in English. (Zimmerman, 2013) Other languages spoken include Chinese, Spanish, Japanese, French, German, and other non-English languages. Not to mention that each region has a unique style and pronunciations of the English vernacular. Religion is also diverse within America as people have the right to religious freedom. A majority of the population practices some form of Christianity, they also practice Judaism, Mormonism, Hinduism, and other or no religious affiliations. American style is also unique, throughout the centuries American style has transformed, and with each region it has become unique. From cowboy attire, to more notable brands such as Ralph Lauren, Victoria Secret, Gloria Vanderbilt, and others American style has great influence throughout the world. American tradition is formalized in its national holidays, the most famous being Fourth of July, to sports such as baseball, football, volleyball, and other favorite American pastimes. The characteristics that make up American culture have carried over to other countries around the world with influences from every region.

The conflicts within American history include some of the more dark periods in history that has often done with not the knowledge of how it would affect future generations. When settlers came they stole and destroyed the lands of Native Americans, killing and affecting millions in the process. Slaves began to replace laborers of the colonies as more African were shipped across from Africa to work as servants and slaves. (Kulikoff, 1991) From these conflicts, their culture helped to influence parts of American culture. It wasn’t until hundreds of years later were the wrongs of these actions corrected, and wasn’t until almost three centuries later with the passage of laws and formal apologies from the government.

In conclusion, American culture is diverse from almost any other country within the world. American culture has penetrated all aspects of American daily lives, and creates a form of patriotism that is unique from any other culture. American culture is about freedom, liberty, and respecting other people’s individuality. The definition of culture differs from person to person as it is unique in identifying what it means to a diverse and multi-cultured society that thinks and behaves differently. American culture is free to practice any religion, language, arts, sports, or traditions that helped to make the United States an attractive destination. The skills and knowledge obtained throughout the course is essential in furthering respective careers, and dealing with diverse sets of people in order to be successful. Every culture is different, but it is the cultural differences that make people unique.

Crunden, Robert Morse. (1996). A Brief History of American Culture . New York, NY. M.E. Sharpe.

Kulikoff, Allan. (1991). “Colonial Culture.” History . Retrieved from. http://www.history.com/topics/colonial-culture

Osborn, Rebecca. (2006). “Reference the Influence of American Popular Culture in the Global Media.” Webster University. Retrieved from http://www2.webster.edu/~garyford/class_materials/MEDC%206000%20-%20Rebecca%20Osborn%20Thesis-SP2-06.pdf

Smithsonian Institution. (n.d). “American History.” Encyclopedia . Retrieved from http://www.si.edu/encyclopedia_Si/nmah/

TAMU. (n.d). “Culture Definition.” Chordhury . Retrieved from. http://www.tamu.edu/faculty/choudhury/culture.html

Zimmerman, Ann (2013).. “American Culture: Traditions and Customs of the United States.” LiveScience . Retrieved from http://www.livescience.com/28945-american-culture.html

Stuck with your Research Paper?

Get in touch with one of our experts for instant help!

Family and Consumer Science, Application Essay Example

Reading Response Paper, Essay Example

Time is precious

don’t waste it!

Plagiarism-free guarantee

Privacy guarantee

Secure checkout

Money back guarantee

Related Research Paper Samples & Examples

The risk of teenagers smoking, research paper example.

Pages: 11

Words: 3102

Impacts on Patients and Healthcare Workers in Canada, Research Paper Example

Pages: 7

Words: 1839

Death by Neurological Criteria, Research Paper Example

Words: 2028

Ethical Considerations in End-Of-Life Care, Research Paper Example

Pages: 5

Words: 1391

Ethical Dilemmas in Brain Death, Research Paper Example

Words: 2005

Politics of Difference and the Case of School Uniforms, Research Paper Example

Pages: 2

Words: 631