Dr. Wan will be reviewing applications to the Experimental Ph.D. Program this year.
Research Interests
Motivation; Academic Pathways; Informed Decision-Making
My current research focuses on: (1) examining the development of students’ motivational beliefs about their abilities and interests (e.g., “Am I a math person?”) throughout K-12 education, (2) investigating patterns of students’ academic pathways over time (e.g., switching from a STEM major to a non-STEM major during college), and (3) understanding how information influences students’ educational and career choices, and designing and evaluating interventions to support informed decision-making.
Biography
Dr. Wan is a developmental psychologist whose research explores how young people discover and define their niche. Drawing on longitudinal surveys, institutional records, meta-analyses, and field experiments, his current work examines the factors that shape individuals’ educational and career choices across childhood, adolescence, and early adulthood. The ultimate goal of his research is to inform strategies that support youth, particularly those from historically underrepresented and marginalized backgrounds, in reaching their full potential.
Publications
Wan, S., Lauermann, F., Bailey, D. H., & Eccles, J. S. (2023). Girls’ Comparative Advantage in Language Arts Explains Little of the Gender Gap in Math-Related Fields: A Replication and Extension. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. paper link
Wan, S., Brick, T. R., Alvarez-Vargas, D., & Bailey, D. H. (2023). Triangulating on Developmental Models with a Combination of Experimental and Non-Experimental Estimates. Developmental Psychology. paper link
Wan, S., Lauermann, F., Bailey, D. H., & Eccles, J. S. (2023). Developmental Changes in Students’ Use of Dimensional Comparisons to Form Ability Self-Concepts in Math and Verbal Domains. Child Development. paper link
Wan, S., Lauermann, F., Bailey, D. H., & Eccles, J. S. (2021). When do students begin to think that one has to be either a “math person” or a “language person”? A meta-analytic review. Psychological Bulletin, 147(9), 867–889. paper link
Education
Ph.D. Education, University of California-Irvine (2022)