Ethnic and sex variables in community junior college students' counselor preferences

Abstract

The purpose of this inquiry was to determine if community junior college students of various ethnicities (Mexican American, Black, and White) and both sexes differed in their mean preference for counselors of these same ethnicities and both sexes. The investigation was conducted during the Spring semester of 1974 at McLennan Community College in Waco, Texas. Subjects for the study were 120 randomly chosen students from a population of 2,380: 80% White, 9.2% Black, 6.1% Mexican American, and 4.7% other. The sample was stratified by ethnicity and sex and consisted of 20 males and 20 females from each of the three ethnic groups. Participation rate of invited students was 76%. To ascertain student counselor preference, as it related to counselor race and sex, an instrument was developed consisting of twelve 35 mm slides that depicted persons designated as counselors. Groups of 16 student judges for each race, divided equally by sex, evaluated photographed counselors as to racial and sexual representativeness and on ten dimensions of perceived personality. All slides received substantial inter-judge agreement. Twelve slides (two for each race and sex) were selected as representative and equivalent. Slides were arranged by modified pair comparisons into eight sets (three slides to a set) with the sequence of sets, the race and sex, and the ordering, from left to right, of all slides being randomly determined. Subjects viewed each set of slides for 20 seconds, assumed they had a personal problem, and selected one counselor for each set. Comparisons of mean differences between groups were made by a series of one- and two-way analyses of variance with evidenced differences being analyzed by Scheffe's test. The .05 level was required for statistical significance. ...