NOTE: THE SITUATION OF BEING IGNORED

Sttmmary.-A hypothetical situation is presented in which respondents are ignored. While an earlier study reported female subjects reacted negatively toward themselves in such a situation, in the present study, proportions of women (n = 134) and men (n = 79) making these choices were not significantly different. Geller, et ol. (1974) created a laboratory situation in which two female confederates systematically ignored 23 female subjects individually. Subjects' participation was observed, and they reported their perception of their own, and the confederate's, social presentation as well as their own feelings. Later subjects determined rewards to be given to one of the confederates. Experimental subjects made significantly fewer comments during the conversations than did control subiects. More experimental than control subjects chose negative adjectives (such as alone, frustrated, anxious, withdrawn) to describe their feelings and experimental subjects rated themselves and the confederates significantly more negatively than did the control subjects. Experimental subjects also rewarded confederates significantly less than did the control subjects. In interviews experimental subjects tended to blame themselves rather than the confederates for their treatmenc. The authors commented that it would be of interest to know how male subjects would react to being similarly ignored. Clifton and Lee posed hypothetical situations to undergraduate students in social psychology and asked them to report their feelings. One of che situations was that of being ignored. To rhe sample of 134 women and 79 men the following situation was posed: "You ace in a group meeting and make a point that you think is important. The others look at you withouc responding and then go on to another topic." Respondents were asked to circle any of 40 adjectives presented which represented their feelings about such a situation. Clifton classified the adjectives on the affective dimensions of positivenegative and introverted-extroverted (Clifton & Lee, 1976). T he latter referred to whether feelings are directd inward on the self or outward toward ochers. The assignment of adjectives to the four feeling categories, positive-introverted, positive-extroverted, negative-introverted and negative-extroverted, was validated by 25 student-judges. The adjectives offered to express feelings were originally generated by other samples of students. The differential pattern of responses of men and women to other hypothetical situations led to the belief that the situation of being ignored would elicit different responses from men and women. The other sicuarions included compliment about clothes, classroom performance, requests to rework a good paper for possible publication, or to present one's position at a public gathering, being made fun of. being counseled out of a major, or rejected on a job interview. In pleasant situations both women and men responded with favorable adjectives but women turned the feelings outward, giving credit to others while men praised themselves. In unpleasant situations, on the other hand, women blamed themselves while men blamed others. Reactions to being ignored were as expected. Eighty five per cent of both men and women (n = 67 and 114, respectively) reacted negatively to the situation. Per cent 'Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work, Normal, Illinois 61761.