More Time on Math Tests Reduces Gender Gap

Increasing the time available during math tests can decrease the gender gap by as much as 40 percent. This is the conclusion reached by Vincenzo Galasso and Paola Profeta, both of the Bocconi Department of Social and Political Sciences, in a study published in The Economic Journal. The research results show that giving more time to complete math tests does not result in a lower quality of academic selection, as the correlation between test scores and university performance remains constant regardless of the time allotted to the test. But giving more time may promote greater gender equity in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics) subjects.

Gender disparity in math testing has long been recognized as one of the factors hindering women's access to STEM careers, which often offer higher salaries and better career prospects. Previous studies have shown that women tend to avoid math tests or score lower than men, mainly due to math-related anxiety, which is more common among women than men. Anxiety seems to get worse when time is short, which exacerbates the gender gap in test scores. “We observed that when time to complete the test is very limited, women provide on average two fewer correct answers than men, a significant difference. Increasing the time available results in a significant improvement in female performance, with the gap decreasing by up to 40 percent,” the authors point out.

The study took place in a laboratory at Bocconi University, where 776 undergraduate students participated in the experiment. The test consisted of twenty questions, ten in logic and probability and ten in algebra and calculus. The participants were divided into three groups, each assigned a different timeframe: very limited time (45 seconds per question), limited time (20 minutes to complete the test) or no time restrictions. The results show that the gender gap is greater under tight time constraints, but narrows when time is longer. 

One of the most interesting findings of the study concerns the causal link between available time and math performance. The authors explored two possible factors: test-taking strategies and anxiety. The first factor refers to the adjustments individuals make in their resolution strategy when faced with a tight time limit. However, the study found that test-taking strategies did not vary significantly between men and women. Rather, the main difference seems to lie in the anxiety generated by time constraints. “We found that announcing that the time available to take the test is limited causes anxiety, which affects women more severely, deteriorating their operational memory capacity, a crucial element for performance on math tests”, Galasso and Profeta explain.

In fact, the study found that immediately after the announcement, women's performance on an operational memory test declined significantly, while men's performance did not change. This result seems to prove that anxiety is the main determinant of the increased gender gap in mathematics tests taken with little time.

Giving students — and especially female students — more time on math tests reduces the gender gap in achievement without compromising the quality of the selection process. More time on tests could therefore lead to more women in STEM careers.