Background Research

Objective

It is not uncommon for people to have anecdotal examples of times when men and women are referred to differently; gender researchers have  backed up these experiences with data For example,  Atir & Ferguson (2018) conducted  eight studies that examined gender bias in how participants spoke about men and women. They  found that, on average, men were twice as likely to be referred to by last name than were women. This language bias can have serious effects on professionals; for example, those recognized by their surname are seen as more accomplished and deserving of rewards and recognition (Atir & Ferguson, 2018; Takiff, Sanchez, & Stewart; 2001). Gender-associated language bias has been documented in several fields—from medicine to sports (Files et al., 2017; Messner, Duncan & Jensen, 1993). On college campuses, there are differences in how students refer to professors. That is, male professors are more likely than female professors to be referred to by their proper title (i.e., “Dr.”. “Professor”) as opposed to their first name. This has important consequences; for example, professors referred to by title are perceived to hold higher status by their students (Takiff, Sanchez, & Stewart; 2001).

Atir, S., & Ferguson, M. J. (2018). How gender determines the way we speak about professionals. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 115(28), 7278-7283.

Files, J. A., Mayer, A. P., Ko, M. G., Friedrich, P., Jenkins, M., Bryan, M. J., ... & Hayes, S. N. (2017). Speaker introductions at internal medicine grand rounds: forms of address reveal gender bias. Journal of women's health, 26(5), 413-419.

Messner, M. A., Duncan, M. C., & Jensen, K. (1993). Separating the men from the girls: The gendered language of televised sports. Gender & Society, 7(1), 121-137.

Takiff, H. A., Sanchez, D. T., & Stewart, T. L. (2001). What's in a name? The status implications of students' terms of address for male and female professors. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 25(2), 134-144.