ROLE OF PHYSICAL ATTRACTIVENESS AND GENDER IN IMPRESSION FORMATION AMONG SCHOOL TEACHERS

Abstract

The present is an experimental study aimed at investigating the role of physical attractiveness and gender in impression formation. There were two independent variables physical attractiveness and gender, having two levels each i. e. Attractiveness and Unattractiveness, and male and female respectively. Present research consisted of three parts. In Part 1, selection of stimulus photographs for the manipulation of both independent variables was carried out. A total of four photographs were selected through a rating carried out by a panel of 20 independent judges. In Part II of the study, a Student Adjective Checklist SAC was developed, based on teachers' opinions regarding the qualities and characteristics ofgood and bad students. In the Main study (Part III), a sample of teachers (N=30) with gender equivalence was taken. They were asked to rate the stimulus photographs on the SAC Participants were randomly assigned to pair of pictures with varying orders in each administration to control radiation effect and order effect. The reliability of the SAC was found to be 0.99 and item-total correlation ranging from 0.79 to 1, both of which were found to be significant at p< .01. The results of the study showed that there was non significant difference in the ratings of teachers for physical attractiveness as well as for gender in impression formation among teachers for which paired sample t-test was computed, hence refuting hypothesis 1 that school teachers will rate physically attractive students as better students than unattractive students (p<.01). This showed that teachers did not consider physical attractiveness and gender significantly important informing their impression of good and bad student. Similarly, non-significant difference in ratings of male and female teachers of physically attractive and unattractive male and female students (p<.05) was found. Results on independent sample t-test showed a significant difference in ratings of attractiveness and gender along teaching experience of teachers (p<.05). Overall the results revealed that physical attractiveness and gender did not play any role in impression formation among teachers, except for teaching experience.