Gender differences in relation to school children's learning with computers
are frequently attributed to a tendency for boys to dominate computer reso
urces in mixed sex settings. However, the evidence relating to children's p
erformance with computers in mixed sex groups is conflicting. This paper re
ports two experimental studies in which 11- to 12-year-olds worked on a com
puter-based problem solving task. In the first, 62 children worked in eithe
r same or mixed sex dyads, but each child had her or his own computer, and
no verbal interaction was allowed. Boys out-performed girls overall, with s
ex differences becoming significantly more polarised in the mixed sex dyads
. The second study involved 96 children, with individual pre- and post-test
s, and compared co-action dyads las in the first study) with interaction pa
irs, in which the pair members worked together at a single computer, with n
o restriction on interaction. The polarisation of sex differences in the mi
xed sex dyads was once again found in the co-action condition, but not in t
he interaction condition. Results are interpreted in terms of processes of
social comparison, which appear to be more potent in this situation than an
y straightforward domination of resources. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. A
ll rights reserved.