Theatre Design & Technology - Summer 1992 - 41

group which might have very significanr
input ro this project: those women who
decided not ro stay in technical thearre
careers.
Although care was taken ro ensure that
the tesults of the survey were scienrifically
accurate, we also rook the philosophical
stance that if, for example, 200 U ITT
members considered something ro be a
problem, then it should be taken seriously
regardless of its statistical significance.
Working with the Sociology Deparrment at the
niversity of California
Riverside, the Social Research Cenrer at
Calvin College, and the Wisconsin Survey
Lab, we developed the survey. Our
questions addressed gender bias issues
comparing the perceptions of women ro
those of men in four basic categories:
training, commercial theatre, academe, and
in the final secrion, how personal life was
affecred by, and was affecring, the careers of
those in technical thearre.
The survey was mailed ro the enrire
SITT membership in the December
1989 SigMine;. While slighdy less than ten
petcenr of the pool responded, those who
did so exhibited considerable passion on
the subjecr. Of those who answered, 65%
were males and 35% females. (USITT
membership is comprised of 80% males
and 20% females.) Half of the respondenrs
worked in commercial or regional thearre
and half in academia. Some worked in
both arenas. There were fewer respondenrs
from the cosrume area than from the other
technical theatte disciplines.

RBSULTS

PART I: PGRCBIVBD

100 r - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - ,
80

2Q

yn~no

female

male

FIGURE 8
S.

I think both genders are treated equally
with regard to:
Hiring Practices

;%

24~VO
45%

31%

..

*

e

16%

68%

female

male

0

Disagree

Llncenain

0

Agree

FIGURE 7
S.

I think both genders are treated equally
with regard to:
Salary Equality

=8=-e=
27%

male

female

FIGURE 8
S.

GINDBR BIAS IN
mUOATION a TRAINING
In conrrast ro European practice, very few
people in America advance in the
profession of thearre without formal
academ ic rrai n i ng. Si nce most thearre
professionals must pass through the "gate"
of higher education, gender bias issues
during training is of critical concern.
Successful people in all professions
point to the imporrant parr that role
models and menrors played in thcir career
developmenr. lodels of success are even
more imponanr for women and minorities
because of the additional hurdles
di crimination places in their paths.
Furrher, both commercial thearre and
thearre in higher education are highlv
competitive fields, often requiring acrive
sponsorship by esrablished profcssionals in
order ro obtain work at all (much less
succeed).
Did young women have adequate

Do you feel both genders have equal opportunity to
employment in commercial or regional theatre?

Q.

I think both genders are treated equally
with regard to:
Advancement

32%8 52%
I
38%

30%

'0·~4%

e

24%

female

male

FIGURE 8
S.

I think both genders are treated equally
with regard to:
Autonomy Granted by Supervisors

=(1)- .~()~
16%
female

rna)e

.Oisagree

FIGURE 10

o Uncertain

CAgree

opporrunmes ro associate with and learn
from established professional women?
Through a series of questions regarding
same-sex mentors and role models, we
learned that for a signiflcanr number of
females the answer was no. Sixty percenr of
women lacked same-sex menrors and role
models compared ro only 10% of men
surveyed (Figure I). The response ro this
question and the informal experience of
the erworking Panel seem ro indicate that
female srudents have linle access ro the
menroring of women in this more marure
age range.
To expand the data on supporr
networks during rraining, respondents were
asked ro idenrifY insrrucrors, friends, and
family actively engaged in their supporr
network. As Figure 2 indicates, compared
ro men, women were signiflcanrly lacking
in same-sex supporr networks. In this
broader category cenainly higher numbers
of women exist, bur it appears mat women
are still not able ro find or do not seek out
suppon ro the same extenr as me men.
The picrure changes dramatically when
looking at data on same-sex peers. In
Figure 3 it can be clearly seen that a high
percentage of both men and women
surveyed noted the availability of same-sex
peers during rraining. Hopefully, this
indicates that more women are training in
this field. If so, the statistics on menrors,
role models, and supporr networks should
improve as these women's careers progress.
The statistics regarding respondenrs'
classroom training siruations seem
generally quite positive. Eighty percenr of
men and women surveyed feel that
anenrion and help in class was bias free.
The same percenr feel that grades were
assigned equitably. Seventy-two percenr of
men and women feel that work in class was
received bias free. Finally, and of parricular
note, 86% of both men and women felt
free ro choose a career in technical theatre
without the pressure of gender stereorypes.
These statistics suggest the respondenrs felt
that the formal classroom training was nor
a major source of gender bias problems.
In conrrast ro that response, me answers
ro a question regarding instrucror sensitivity
ro gender bias were troubling. Of the men
who answered, only 16% thought their
insrrucrors failed ro show sensitivity ro
gender issues compared ro 41 % of the
female respondenrs. Many respondenrs were
simply uncertain (Figure 4).
The last area in the training secrion
concerned perceptions of sexual harassmenr. Only 35% of all rcspondenrs felt
that sexual harassmenr issucs, where existing, were resolved effectively. Furrher
analysis of the statistics revealed that of the
women surveyed, 55% felt that scxual
TD&T

1992 SUMMER

39
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Theatre Design & Technology - Summer 1992
