In a new paper in PSPB led by GISP alumnus, Hyun Joon Park, we assessed undergraduate students’ cortisol levels at the beginning and end of four classes around the first exam in a gateway STEM course. Because students reported the class to be stressful, we thought that their cortisol levels might increase in each class and as the exam approached. Instead, cortisol levels declined within classes and across classes. We also thought higher cortisol responses might predict worse performance. Instead, they predicted better performance and a greater likelihood of taking the next course in the sequence – but only for members of underrepresented racial/ethnic minority groups.

In a new paper in PSPB led by GISP alumnus, Hyun Joon Park, we assessed undergraduate students’ cortisol levels at the beginning and end of four classes around the first exam in a gateway STEM course. Because students reported the class to be stressful, we thought that their cortisol levels might increase in each class and as the exam approached. Instead, cortisol levels declined within classes and across classes. We also thought higher cortisol responses might predict worse performance. Instead, they predicted better performance and a greater likelihood of taking the next course in the sequence – but only for members of underrepresented racial/ethnic minority groups.