Examining the "male, antisocial" stereotype of high computer users

The popular stereotype of the frequent computer user persists to be one of a male, socially inadequate and isolated individual-a perception which has been found to cause many students to avoid coming into contact with informa tion and communications technology (ICT), both inside and outside of school . This article reports on a study examining the gender and social competenc y of both frequent and infrequent computer-using students in Year 12 (n = 1 17). The results suggest that students who are highly oriented toward ICT a re just as likely to be female as they are male and are no less sociable, p opular, or self-assured than their non-ICT using peers. These data are then contrasted with interview data from the "high" and "low" using students wh ich suggest that negative stereotyping of the computer-using student persis ts -although primarily among students not engaging with ICT in school. The article postulates that the vast increases in ICT use in schools over the l ast ten years has created a more accessible "computer culture" to which inc reasing numbers of students are now subscribing; although teachers need to be aware of the persistence of the male, anti-social stereotype within elem ents of the student body.