The Effects of Gender on Perceptions of Interactions Between Teachers and Students

Abstract

Abstract

This study examined the effects of gender on perceptions of psychological maltreatment. Participants were undergraduates (54 men, 114 women) recruited from a psychology research pool. Most (86.9%) were between 18 and 21 years old, and most (50.3%) were Caucasian. Participants read one of four scenarios (varied by gender of student and gender of teacher) in which a teacher gave a negative verbal response to a student. Participants then rated their perceptions of the experience. Seven 2 (gender of participant) x 2 (gender of student) x 2 (gender of teacher) ANOVAs were conducted to measure perceptions. The results indicated that there were a number of main effects and significant interactions. Most consistently, women tended to view the experience more negatively than men. Participants also had stronger pro-child feelings and actions for the female student. Participants believed more strongly that the student should tell an adult when the teacher was female.