Who has the final word? Sex, race, and dominance behavior.

Abstract

The effects of sex and race on a form of dominance behavior were investigated as a function of a challenger's sex and race. Dominance was defined as the number of verbal challenges against a subject's picture choice that a subject withstood. Dyads (N = 128) composed of a student and a confederate recorded individual preferences and joint decisions for the more attractive picture of 20 pairs of pictures. The number of challenges a student sustained each time a disagreement occurred regarding the more attractive picture of a pair was recorded. Results supported the theory of status characteristics when subjects participated with white confederates: Black females were more dominant than white females and black males (p < .OS), and white males were more dominant than black males (p < .05). With a black confederate, however, black males became significantly more dominant (p < .05), whereas the behavior of the other three groups did not change. All subjects withstood significantly fewer challenges from females than from males (p < .05). These results suggest that sex and race cannot be viewed solely as subject variables that create differences in behavior. Instead these variables interact, and one must examine the characteristics (in this case sex and race) of group members (situation variables) as well as the characteristics of a single person to obtain an accurate picture of mixed-sex or biracial interactions.

Role of Ethnic and Gender Differences in Mediated Conflicts

“…We analyzed the cases according to charac teristics (e.g., type of dispute) that we felt might conceivably be related to ethnicity or gender. We also sought to determine whether some gender differences might vary as a function of ethnicity as other researchers have reported (e.g., Adams, 1980;Hill & Crawford, 1990). Finally, we included in our study three variables that might contribute to, or perhaps explain, some of the ethnic and gender differ ences we expected to find.…”

“…6, No. 1, January 1995 oratory studies have been conducted, there is experimental evidence of a difference in levels of dominance (Adams, 1980) and eye gaze behavior (LaFrance & Mayo, 1976) when Blacks and Whites interact in dyads. In both studies, ethnicity was also found to interact significantly with gender in influencing these behaviors.…”

“…Previous research provides some theoretical basis for predictions concerning the role of ethnic and gender differences, although very little of this research has actually taken place in a mediation setting. Most studies on ethnicity and gender have focused on topics such as aggression (e.g., Eagly & Steffen, 1986), dominance (e.g., Adams, 1980), criminal behavior (e.g., Hill & Crawford, 1990), or communication (e.g., Kochman, 1981), that are only indirectly related to the area of mediation and conflict.…”

Peer Reviewed: Controlling the Climate in Your Classroom

“…Research shows that the traits we associate with a person's gender create expectations that can profoundly influence classroom behavior and the experience of both students and teachers (7)(8)(9). We tend to expect certain behavior from females and males and consciously or subconsciously tailor many of our own responses accordingly.…”

“…For example, instructors tend to recognize or call on more male students to answer questions. Research also has shown that participation in many classes is often dominated by a small group of male students who raise their hands quickly when questions are posed (5,9,10). Women were often less encouraged, or openly discouraged, from participating.…”