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Gender Issues and Technology |
| Introduction Technology Issues and Decisions Phase I: Color Preference Test Phase II: Shades of Difference Phase III: Website Preferences Phase IV: Alternative Presentations of Identical Content
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The question of whether gender is a factor in the manner by which males and females create visual representations of factual data and its implications is explored. (From abstract). Campbell, K. (1999-2000). The promise of computer-based learning: designing for inclusivity. IEEE Technology and Society Magazine 18 (4): 28-34. The article looks at how women can negotiate and transform the world of Instructional technology which is typically designed for men. Ways in which new learning technologies and design can creatively promote inclusivity are explored. These include allowing for alternative representation and the linking of verbal, visual, and aural information to support diverse learning styles as well as supporting relational ways of knowing and being in the world are suggested as methods preferred by women. Dunne, B. J. (1998). Gender differences in human/machine anomalies. Journal of Scientific Exploration 12 (1): 3-55. An assessment of 270 databases produced by 135 human operators in human/machine anomalies experiments conducted by the PEAR laboratory between 1979-1993 revealed several significant gender-related differences in performance. For one thing, the databases produced by the females were significantly larger than those produced by males. The baseline data generated by males largely concurred with the theoretical expectations while that of females tended to have higher chance values. Gorriz, C. M. & Medina, C. (2000). Engaging girls with computers through software games. Communications of the ACM 43 (1): 42-9. The market for computer games for girls has a huge potential and is still relatively untapped with the majority of computer games available aimed towards males. A survey has shown that girls prefer collaboration to competition, enjoy nonclosure and exploration, and like games that require thought and puzzle-solving skills. Joiner, R.; Messer, D.; Littleton, K. & Light, P. (1996). Gender, computer experience and computer based problem solving. Computers & Education 26 (1-3): 179-187. In a study involving 65 children age 10-11, performance was compared using software that was structurally identical but were either male or female stereotyped. Testing found that girls performed worse than boys on both versions of the software and that this effect persisted even after adjusting for computer experience. Gender differences also appeared in preference for the software: girls preferred the female version more than the boys and their preferences effected their performance. There was no relationship between the boys’ preferences and their performance. Marcus, Aaron & Gould, Emilie. (2000). Cultural dimensions and global web user-interface design: What? So what? Now what? Paper presented at the Sixth Conference on Human Factors and the Web, 19 June 2000, Austin, TX. This article uses the classic study by Geert Hofstede of cultures in organizations and considers how they might affect user-interface design. Hofstede identifies femininity and masculinity as one of five dimensions of culture. Pertinent points examine cultural differences in regard to color meaning and masculinity/femininity as gender roles. He identifies countries with a strongly masculine culture and discusses websites that fit into both roles. Japan and Austria are considered countries with strongly masculine cultures while Sweden is the least masculine. Margolis, J.; Fisher, A.; & Miller, F. (1999-2000). Caring about connection: Gender and computing. IEEE Technology and Society Magazine 18 (4): 13-20. Ways in which computer science curriculum and culture give prestige to an orientation towards computing in men but devalue it when associated with women are examined. This identification of computing as a male domain is so pervasive that women suffer more from a mismatch with the dominant culture than do men. An emphasis is placed on incorporating women’s perspectives into computer science. Passig, David & Levin, Haya. (1999). Gender interest differences with multimedia learning interfaces. Computers in Human Behavior 15, 173-183. In a study using kindergarten student, researchers found some marked gender differences in learning interests of different designs of multimedia interfaces. The males spent more time on task and looked for navigational buttons. Female subjects were more likely to ask for help and preferred games that included writing. The males preferred green and blues but were more interested in the movement of the game while girls preferred reds and yellows and were more interested in colorful screen filled with drawings. Whitley, Bernard. (1997). Gender differences in computer-related attitudes and behavior: A meta-analysis. Computers in Human Behavior 13(1), 1-22. A worthwhile compilation of gender research and computer-related attitudes which finds that gender differences in beliefs about computers were extremely small as were differences in computer-related behaviors. Larger differences were found in attitudes for sex-role stereotyping, self-efficacy, and affect with men and boys seeing computers as more appropriate to themselves and themselves as more competent on computer-related tasks. Whitley, Bernard. (1996). Gender differences in computer-related attitudes: It depends on what you ask. Computers in Human Behavior.12(2), 275-289. While not dealing at all with color preference, the findings on gender attitudes towards computers of college students is that only small to moderate differences exist between males and females in the areas of anxiety, negative beliefs, and computer-related behaviors. Project C.O.P.E.: Content, Organization,
Preference, Evaluation
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