This project aims to serve the national interest by conducting pilot research to measure student buy-in, an emergent concept that may lead college STEM students toward desired student outcomes. Evidence-based teaching (EBT) practices, such as inclusive teaching and active learning, are widely shown to increase key student outcomes such as final course grade, engagement, and intent to persist in the sciences — all of which are important to attaining longer-term outcomes such as completing a STEM degree and pursuing a STEM career. Recent studies have shown that when students “buy in” – i.e., personally identify and commit to – EBT practices, they are even more likely to attain positive student outcomes. Therefore, student buy-in has become an increasingly relevant concept in the college STEM education literature, and researchers have not only developed a reliable way to measure it but have also modeled a student buy-in framework that links the concept with its associated positive outcomes. While these results are promising, two aspects of student buy-in can be improved upon. First, a greater understanding of the variables that influence student buy-in is needed. Leveraging the existing student buy-in framework, the project seeks to identify and test the variables that influence students’ achievement of buy-in. Second, while the statistical evidence of student buy-in is encouraging, the existing student buy-in measure (i.e., survey tool) needs improvement – the measure is too long and not completely aligned with the theoretical underpinnings of student buy-in. With these two considerations in mind, this project plans to identify additional influencing variables and to develop a more conceptually aligned, user-friendly student buy-in measure. <br/><br/>This project has three aims: 1) Improve the student buy-in framework by exploring key moderating variables of buy-in via a literature review and consultation with diverse expert reviewer groups; 2) Revise the buy-in measure to increase widespread applicability by making it more concise, understandable, and reliable; and 3) Conduct a pilot study by distributing the unified buy-in framework measures in classrooms where evidence-based teaching practices are in place. After completing these aims, the project anticipates producing a revised buy-in measure that remains statistically robust and can be deployed more broadly and effectively in its simplified form. Additionally, the project has potential to contribute to a better understanding of how buy-in is achieved. Currently, the EPIC model of buy-in posits that students must be exposed to an EBT practice (“E”), be persuaded that practice is good (“P”), identify with that practice (“I”), and then commit to that practice (“C”) in order to buy in. What has yet to be revealed are the moderating relationships within the pathways of the EPIC model (e.g., P to I or I to C) that influence students’ achievement of buy-in. In summary, this project seeks to develop, test, and disseminate a more accurate and concise measure of student buy-in while also considering additional variables that can enhance the predictive power of the buy-in framework. In doing so, it will serve the STEM education community’s ongoing emphasis on finding ways to increase students’ final course grade, engagement, and intent to persist in the sciences in student-centered classrooms. The NSF IUSE: EHR Program supports research and development projects to improve the effectiveness of STEM education for all students. Through the Engaged Student Learning track, the program supports the creation, exploration, and implementation of promising practices and tools.<br/><br/>This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.