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ERIC Number: ED339908
Record Type: RIE
Publication Date: 1991-Jun
Pages: 8
Abstractor: N/A
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
The Influence of Gender on Participation in an Adult Professional Training Setting: A Pilot Study. Project Number Forty-Six.
McLean, Gary N.; Rocheford, Rita M.
A study was undertaken to determine if men dominated classroom participation in an adult professional training setting. A literature review identified a number of studies exploring classroom participation based on gender, but no study within a training environment was identified. The study was conducted in a mandatory sales training course, called Pro Training, in which new residential sales associates were prepared for their profession. The trainer of the 4-week course was a male. The training methodology included small group discussion, case studies, role playing, and review of the course manual, though lecture methodology predominated. Class participation was encouraged. Participants were 17 women (47 percent) and 19 men (53 percent). Data were collected during 6 hours of classroom activity recorded on audiotape. Actual time was tallied according to gender when a participant asked a question, answered a question, and made a statement. Data were analyzed according to the number of participations and length of participation in seconds. Study results were not consistent with previous findings: men and women participated equally. Men participated 268 times (50.5 percent); women participated 263 times (49.5 percent). Similar levels of participation may have been accounted for by the professional environment, older women, and more acceptance of ambiguous answers. (YLB)
Publication Type: Reports - Research
Education Level: N/A
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: Minnesota Univ., St. Paul. Dept. of Vocational and Technical Education.
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A