An Examination of Stereotype Threat Effects on Girls’ Mathematics Performance Colleen M. Ganley and Leigh A. Mingle University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Allison M. Ryan University of Michigan at Ann Arbor Katherine Ryan University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Marina Vasilyeva Boston College Michelle Perry University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign Stereotype threat has been proposed as 1 potential explanation for the gender difference in standardized mathematics test performance among high-performing students. At present, it is not entirely clear how susceptibility to stereotype threat develops, as empirical evidence for stereotype threat effects across the school years is inconsistent. In a series of 3 studies, with a total sample of 931 students, we investigated stereotype threat effects during childhood and adolescence. Three activation methods were used, ranging from implicit to explicit. Across studies, we found no evidence that the mathematics performance of school-age girls was impacted by stereotype threat. In 2 of the studies, there were gender differences on the mathematics assessment regardless of whether stereotype threat was activated. Potential reasons for these findings are discussed, including the possibility that stereotype threat effects only occur in very specific circumstances or that they are in fact occurring all the time. We also address the possibility that the literature regarding stereotype threat in children is subject to publication bias. Keywords: gender differences, stereotype threat, mathematics performance There is currently a debate as to whether or not the gender gap in mathematics achievement has closed (Corbett, Hill, & St. Rose, 2008; Entwisle, Alexander, & Olson, 1994; Hyde, 2005; Lindberg, Hyde, Peterson, & Linn, 2010; Robinson & Lubienski, 2011). With regard to research on mathematics test performance, some studies have found no gender differences (Hyde, 2005; Hyde & Linn, 2006; Hyde, Lindberg, Linn, Ellis, & Williams, 2008; Spelke, 2005), whereas others have found small gender differences (College Board, 2009, 2010; Gibbs, 2010; Gonzales et al., 2008; McGraw, Lubienski, & Strutchens, 2006; Robinson & Lubienski, 2011). A particular concern is that a larger gap exists at the top end of the distribution. That is, the highest performing boys signifi- cantly outperform the highest performing girls (Hedges & Fried- man, 1993; Lindberg et al., 2010; Strand, Deary, & Smith, 2006). In a recent meta-analysis, Lindberg et al. (2010) concluded that there is no overall gender difference in mathematics per- formance. However, their data suggest that a small to medium- sized difference exists in high school (d = 0.23) and with high-performing students (d = 0.40). In other studies, using a nationally representative data set, researchers have shown that although there is no gender difference at kindergarten, a gender difference develops by the third grade (d = 0.24; Fryer & Levitt, 2010; Penner & Paret, 2008; Robinson & Lubienski, 2011). In addition, these researchers found that the gender This article was published Online First January 28, 2013. Colleen M. Ganley, Departments of Curriculum and Instruction and Edu- cational Psychology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Leigh A. Mingle, Department of Educational Psychology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Allison M. Ryan, Combined Program in Education and Psychology, University of Michigan at Ann Arbor; Katherine Ryan, Depart- ment of Educational Psychology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; Marina Vasilyeva, Department of Counseling, Developmental and Educa- tional Psychology, Boston College; Michelle Perry, Department of Educa- tional Psychology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. This research was supported by Boston College through a Dissertation Fellowship from the Lynch School of Education and an Individual Re- search Grant from the Graduate Student Association; by the Department of Educational Psychology at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; by the Spencer Foundation; and by the Institute of Education Sciences, U.S. Department of Education, through Grant R305B100017 to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. The opinions expressed are those of the authors and do not represent views of the institute or the U.S. Department of Education. We would like to thank the principals, teachers, and students involved in this research. We would also like to thank Alana Dulaney, Genevieve Henricks-Lepp, Sarah Keifer, and Katie-Beth Price for assistance with data collection, as well as Beth Casey, Lillie Albert, and Elida Laski for helpful feedback on this research. Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Colleen M. Ganley, College of Education, University of Illinois at Urbana- Champaign, 1310 South Sixth Street, Champaign, IL 61820. E-mail: cganley@illinois.edu This document is copyrighted by the American Psychological Association or one of its allied publishers. This article is intended solely for the personal use of the individual user and is not to be disseminated broadly. Developmental Psychology © 2013 American Psychological Association 2013, Vol. 49, No. 10, 1886 –1897 0012-1649/13/$12.00 DOI: 10.1037/a0031412 1886