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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 26, 1991)
Sexual discrimination alive, more subtle, speaker says Stereotypes said responsible for work difficulties By Roger Price Staff Reporter_ Recent Supreme Court rulings have established that gender does not have to be the sole cause for discrimination in sexual discrimination suits, a re searcher said Monday. Susan Fiske, a professor of psy chology at the University of Massa chusetts-Amherst, told about 80 people that as long as gender is a factor in the way an employee is treated, that employee has grounds for a sexual discrimination suit. This decision, she said, allows people who aren’t perfect but are capable of performing their jobs tc bring discrimination suits if they feel their race or gender has played a role in their treatment. “You don’t have to be perfect to win,” she said. “Otherwise it’s only superstars that can win.” Fiske, who has researched sexual discrimination and has served as an expert witness to two key court cases, was in Lincoln to give the Roberta Morris Lecture, an annual endowed lecture sponsored by the psychology department in memory of Morris, an alumna and professor at UNL. Fiske said sexual discrimination has become much more subtle bui still occurs in many work places. “Prejudice has evolved from the most blatant sexism and racism to prescriptive stereotyjj>es,” she said. Prescriptive stereotypes, she said, are a certain set of actions that a group is expected to follow to be considered normal. Examples of prescriptive stereotypes include thinking that all blacks should be street smart, all Asians should do well in math and science and all women should act feminine. “People who fail to meet prescrip tive stereotypes are viewed as diffi cult,” she said. Because they are considered diffi cult, the employee who does not conform to prescriptive stereotypes is usually passed over for promotions or fired, she said. Employers, she said, should be open to considering that their judg ments are influenced by prescriptive stereotypes. Fiske said research shows that people immediately notice sexual and racial differences within the first second of contact but have the power tc override these initial reactions if the) have the desire. “If a person is sufficiently moti vated, they can overcome these stere otypes,” she said. When employers know that accu rate judgments are important or thai their decisions will be evaluated, the> are more likely to override initial stereotypes. Another form of sexual discrimi nation, she said, is sexual harassment For people to prove that they have been the victim of sexual harassment she said, four conditions must be met The four criteria are unwelcome sex ual conduct and conduct based or gender. It must alter the terms oi employment or job conditions, and the employer must be proven respon sible. She said lawyers will often call into question the credibility of a woman who claims to be the victim of sexual harassment but delays reporting it. But, Fiske said, most people would rather try to solve their own problems before taking legal or administrative action. “They need to realize that com plaining is a last resort,” she said. “People prefer to solve their prob lems in a less risky way.” Classical music at classic low prices SONY I_I ^ ClAIHCAt jk / / CARRERAS • DOMINGO *IP ** • 4 4 PAVAROTTI Fivonte Anas bv the World's Favonte Tenon ^assettes $6.77 IU CD's $10.77 -fX ^ ISRAEL PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA "22 ^7* WELCOMES RERUN PHILHARMONIC . ™ 0^ / / BEETHOVEN; SYMPHONY NO. 5 f/ty m ^ 0 0 0 Bea-Haun; Piatm. 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Max Ary, director of the cos 1 mosphere, also disputed Schultz’s observations. “We are not a private organiza tion,” he said. “We are a public, non profit organization.” Ary said the cosmosphere is the only organization besides NASA to have space capsules from all three Gemini, Mercury and Apollo — space missions, and said the cosmosphere is the only museum in the United States that has been selected to receive Soviet space artifacts. Schultz’s estimates of S3,500 to S6.000 to restore the spacecraft do not make sense, he said. “I think he needs to understand what restore means,” Ary said. The capsule must be taken apart piece by piece to be restored, he said. The cosmosphere is not looking for a battle with UNL, Ary said, but it does want some action taken on the capsule soon. “The most important aspect of this is to save the spacecraft — whether we do it or the University of Ne braska-Lincoln does it,” he said. Letting the capsule deteriorate has brought great embarrassment to UNL, A A I Ary said. “I don’t think they recognize the tremendous historic obligation they have accepted,” he said. And, Ary said, the cosmosphere has already lost S600.000 in grants to restore the spacecraft because of the delay by UNL. Getting further funding to restore it will be difficult but not impossible, he said. The main difference between the cosmosphere and UNL is that the cosmosphere places a high priority on restoring the craft, Ary said. “All they are worried about is los ing it off their campus,” he said. Bill Splinter, interim vice chan cellor for research and dean of gradu ate studies, said he has maintained his position that UNL must either restore the capsule or trade it to the cos mosphere. “If we can’t do it, then we have a responsibility to let someone else do it,” he said. Professionals such as those at the cosmosphere are needed to restore the capsule, Splinter said. “We can ’t just let somebody tinker with it that doesn’t know about space capsules,” he said. UNL must act responsibly in re gard to the capsule, he said. “If we cannot come up with the funding (to restore it), it would be foolish for us to keep it,” he said. of nurnose. rouer Continued from Page 1 what was going on,” he said. “We were very low profile because we were not with the embassy or military.” His experience in Turkey has spurred him to seek other interna tional research experience. Potter said he would like to re search in South America. He is scheduled to teach for a month in Sao Paulo, Brazil, during the sum mer of 1993. “My main interest is to find the commonalities in developing places around the world, rather than the specifics of a certain area,” he said. Potter said his interest in the ef fects of architecture on people started when he was working as an architect. “My motivation started as a sense of dissatisfaction when I was a practicing architect,” he said. “I see people as the center of architec ture. How they want to live their lives is central to architecture.” As well as research, Potter said he works to improve human envi ronments through his involvement in professional organizations. He is the chairman of the board of directors for the Environmental Design Research Association. Design professors, sociologists and behavioral scientists make up the EDRA and arc “dedicated to im proving the quality of human envi ronments through research based on design,” according to the group's “The EDRA is the largest or ganization of its kind in North America,” Potter said. Potter, 49, described himself as a “lifetime learner.” He obtained his undergraduate degree from Califor nia Polytechnic in architectural engineering. Potter then worked as an architect in San Francisco and Boston before attending graduate school at the State University of New York at Buffalo, where he received a master’s degree in architecture. “I just intended to get a master’s degree, but in Buffalo I found that I enjoyed the academic life,” Potter said. He received his Ph.D. in man/ environment relations from Penn sylvania State. He began teaching at UNL in August 1981 after teaching at Texas A&M for four years. Before his trip to Turkey, he served as chairman of the architecture department. This semester, he is teaching a graduate-level design studio and an architecture class that examines the social and behavioral factors of architecture. Potter said he has enjoyed work ing at UNL. “I find the students excellent,” he said. “The people in the admini stration have been very responsive to ideas and the things I’ve wanted to do.” Potter also said that the depart ment shares the goal of intema ! tional involvement._ Scholarship Continued from Page 1 a full tuition scholarship,” the flier quotes R. Edwards of the University of Nebraska. The Omaha post office box, to which students are to mail fees, is registered to Rodney Edwards and Utopia International. Representatives from Utopia In ternational in Omaha could not be reached for comment. Beacon said that last year a private company offered to find financial aid and scholarship sources for students at a cost of S60. The company also guaranteed a refund of the registra tion fee if aid was not found. But to receive the refund, students had to show proof that they had been denied aid from all of the associations to which they applied. Often students received information about where to apply after deadlines had passed so they couldn’t show proof of being turned down, Beacon said. “Why pay somebody for that serv ice?” he said. James Griesen, UNL vice chan cellor for student affairs, said stu dents should first try to find scholar ships through parents’ jobs, military background and organizations of which they are a member. Students also can apply for schol arships at UNL’s Scholarship and Financial Aid Office or at Nebhelp, located at 1300 O St. The Nebraska Higher Educational Loan Program, or Nebhelp, conducts computer searches to match students with national private scholarships. Dcana Unger, director of the Lin coln Educational Planning Center, said that because Nebhelp is sponsored by the Nebraska Student Loan Program and the Nebraska Higher Educational Loan Program, it can help students for free. “We feel that we provide the same service for free,” she said. “So we encourage students to come in here instead (of paying for the service). Griesen agreed that students shouldn’t pay for financial aid infor mation. Students paying money to organi zations to help them find sources ol scholarships and financial aid are “spending money on a hope that is very slim,” he said. And the response students get from organizations selling scholarship in formation often isn’t useful, Griesen said. “I’m not going to call it a scam, he said. “It’s just an unnecessary expense.”