First impressions and professor reputation: influence on student evaluations of instruction

Abstract

We examined the effects of professor reputation versus first impressions on student evaluations of instruction. Students in 19 Psychology courses completed course evaluation surveys either before meeting the instructor or 2 weeks into the semester. Both groups then completed the course evaluation again at the end of the semester. Unlike evaluations completed prior to meeting the professor, students' ratings 2 weeks into the semester did not differ from end-of-semester evaluations. Therefore, students considered first impressions more important than professor reputation as determinants of their end-of-the semester evaluations. Results suggest that students form lasting impressions within the first 2 weeks of classes. Keywords Professor reputation · First impressions · Student evaluations · Course evaluationsAssessment is becoming increasingly more influential in the decision making process in higher education. One form of assessment, student evaluations of instruction, often weighs heavily regarding faculty members' annual raises, and in promotion and tenure decisions. Because of this, it is important to determine which factors contribute to students' evaluations. There has been extensive research on these factors, as manifested

More Content or More Policy? A Closer Look at Syllabus Detail, Instructor Gender, and Perceptions of Instructor Effectiveness

“…Research on thin-slice judgments has shown that initial impressions of instructors may be just as reliable as impressions informed by more experience and time. Furthermore, related research suggests that these first impressions may be weighted more heavily than other sources of information (e.g., instructor reputation; see Buchert et al 2008). It is thus likely that participants in this study provided judgments that were as reliable as students with a vested interest in the course.…”

Effect of syllabus tone: students’ perceptions of instructor and course

“…Moreover, the cognitive consistency perspective provides a framework in which prior central trait research conducted in an educational setting can be integrated. For example, in the Babad et al (1999) and Buchert et al (2008) studies, students were exposed to their professor throughout the semester and initial attitudes form about the professor changed. In contrast, in the Griffin (2001) andMcClleland (1970) studies, students were given a prompt to recall their initial attitudes about their professors.…”

“…Participants completed a questionnaire modeled after Buchert et al (2008) which included items similar to those found on a university-sponsored teacher evaluation form. The following items measured perceived instructor approachability: "The instructor encourages students to ask questions and express their knowledge".…”

“…Other researchers (e.g., Babad et al 1999;Buchert et al 2008;Griffin 2001;Kelley 1950;McClleland 1970;Murray et al 1990;Waters et al 1988;Widmeyer and Loy 1988) extended Asch (1946) study to a classroom setting. For example, in one of the earliest studies on impression formation, Kelley (1950) found that when students were told a guest lecturer was "very warm", the central trait produced more favorable evaluations of the instructor than when students were told the guest lecturer was "rather cold".…”

Credibilidad docente: una revisión de la literatura

“…Dado el carácter transversal de los estudios analizados, proponemos como investigaciones futuras la realización de estudios longitudinales para determinar la perdurabilidad de la credibilidad de los docentes, es decir, analizar si la percepción del estudiante sobre la credibilidad del profesor se mantiene o cambia a lo largo del curso académico y determinar qué variables contribuyen al mantenimiento o alteración de dichas percepciones. Al respecto, existen ciertas investigaciones acerca de la perdurabilidad de las percepciones de los estudiantes sobre los profesores aunque con conclusiones distintas ya que algunos estudios señalan que las percepciones iniciales se mantienen hasta el final del año académico mientras que otros destacan que cambian conforme avanza el curso (Babad, Kaplowitz y Darley, 1999;Buchert, Laws, Apperson y Bregman, 2008;Clayson, 2013).…”