A survey of 62 business-communication students compared the attitudes of men and women about (1) the value of technology in making users more productive; (2) the impact of computers on people and their work environment; and (3) the relative comfort of men and women when using computers. Results indicated that women were more positive on all three…

Study conducted in 1985 involved a sample of male and female teachers in Quebec, Canada. The study provides insight into the use of microcomputers in Quebec schools. Study underscored inequalities in the distribution of computers based on school size, town population, and administrative region. (RB)

Western Australia eleventh graders (142 boys, 139 girls) were compared on such variables as computers at home, computer classes, experience with computers, and socioeconomic status. Girls had higher anxiety levels, boys higher computer interest. Possible causes included social beliefs about computer use, teacher sex bias, and software (games) more…

Responses from Canadian personnel managers (265 women, 148 men) indicated that women spent more time using computers; both men and women used information technologies (fax, voice mail, modem, scanner, copiers, etc.) extensively; and women used computers more often than men for word-processing tasks. (SK)

Discussion of computer usage and familiarity focuses on an empirical study of college students that investigated the relationship between computer familiarity and cognitive ability. Results are reported that indicate a positive correlation between high scores on cognitive ability tests and computer usage, but no gender differences are reported.…

Investigates the effects of mathematics anxiety and sex on attitudes related to achievement in computer literacy: computer anxiety, computer confidence, and computer liking. Over 350 students in junior high, secondary, and college classes were involved. (MNS)

Investigated sex differences in computer attitude and aptitude and the relationship of these variables, math aptitude, math anxiety, and scholastic achievement to computer involvement among college freshmen (N=941). Sex differences were found in attitudes, computer aptitude, and math prerequisites. Computer aptitude related to math ability and…

Examines the structure of undergraduate computing at a large private university, including patterns of use, impact of computer ownership and gender, and the bureaucratic structure in which usage is embedded. The profile of computer use uncovered in a survey is compared with reports offered by the institution and the trade press. (10 references)…

Discussion of measuring computer-related attitudes of students focuses on the development of a new measure of attitudes toward computers for use with undergraduate students that operationalizes the affective attitudinal domain independently of the behavioral or cognitive intentions. Reliability and validity are addressed, and gender differences…

Discusses the organization and teaching of computing in British secondary schools. Assesses the extent and nature of gender differences in participation in computing activities and teachers' attitudes toward girls and computing. Includes recommendations for action by schools. (Author/JDH)

Describes the results of a study of computer usage at school and at home by 1,747 students between 14 and 18 years old in the United Kingdom. Highlights include gender differences and issues related to the developmental sequence in usage from computer games to more complete uses of computer facilities. (Author/LRW)

The goal of this study was to find out if the difference between boys and girls in computer literacy can be leveled out in a laptop program where each student has his/her own mobile computer to work with at home and at school. Ninth grade students (n=113) from laptop and non-laptop classes in a German high school were tested for their computer…

A study of 36 males and 36 females ages 15-52 found that males performed better than females on a computer-based tracking task under different audience conditions. A significant gender and audience interaction was found, with females performing better in the presence of a female than alone or with a male. Implications for educational policy and…

Since the fall of 1985, teacher education students in the state of Texas have been required to take a computer literacy course as part of their certification requirements. Since 1986, students entering into Texas Tech University's College of Education's computer literacy course (EDIT 2318) have been surveyed each fall semester. The purpose of this…

This study explored the levels of anxiety over computer use of high school students based on sex, grade level, and prior computer experience. Subjects were 67 high school students, 38 males and 29 females. The instrument used was a computer anxiety subscale of 10 items from an instrument designed by Loyd and Gressard (1984). The items presented…