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| title | chunk | source | category | tags | date_saved | instance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Expectancy violations theory | 11/17 | https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Expectancy_violations_theory | reference | science, encyclopedia | 2026-05-05T10:06:53.972000+00:00 | kb-cron |
=== In educational contexts === EVT posits that deviations from expected behavior can influence social judgments. In the context of teacher dress, formal attire aligns with expectations of a teacher's role, and such congruence typically results in favorable credibility assessments. The impact of clothing on expectations, where attire considered appropriate to the teaching context bolstered perceptions of a teacher's potential for student academic success. A mixed method study conducted in 2023 followed first generation college students and their social expectations for their transition to college. Overall students reported negative violations when it came to partying, making new friends, and strengthening new bonds. They also experienced positive violations when it came to stress and workload. Students who reported more negative violations also reported an overall more difficult transition period. Students who reported more positive violations reported an easier transition period.
=== Implications for teacher dress code === The implications of these studies are twofold: they reaffirm the importance of attire as a component of nonverbal communication within educational settings, and they highlight the potential for teacher attire to align with institutional norms and expectations to enhance educational outcomes. While the preference for formality in attire may vary by educational context, the consensus points to the benefit of teachers adopting attire that reflects the scholastic values and expectations of their specific academic environments.
==== Instructor credibility in college classroom ==== According to Sidelinger and Bolen, students might be dissatisfied with instructors who talk a lot during class. After researching compulsive communication and communication satisfaction, they concluded that if an instructor is evaluated as credible by the students, his credibility decreases students' dissatisfaction despite his talkativeness. Particularly, instructor's goodwill, such as politeness and care for students, is the most effective characteristic to alleviate students' negative feelings towards them (the talkative instructor). Expanding on this, EVT suggests that communication behaviors deviating from expectations can be perceived as either positive or negative violations. When an instructor's behavior, like excessive talking, contrasts with student expectations of a participatory, student-centered environment, it constitutes an expectancy violation. However, the impact of such a violation hinges on the perceived credibility of the instructor. Instructor credibility, shaped by expertise, trustworthiness, and goodwill, can act as a buffer against the negative effects of such expectancy violations. Goodwill, in particular, plays a crucial role. When students perceive an instructor as genuinely concerned about their learning and well-being, they are more likely to overlook behaviors otherwise considered negative. This is because EVT emphasizes the relationship's nature over the behavior itself in determining the outcome of expectancy violations. Furthermore, cultural differences among students, the discipline, course level, and class dynamics can influence the context and perception of expectancy violations. Future research could explore how different expectancy violations (like talkativeness, humor, strictness) interact with dimensions of instructor credibility and how cultural factors among students shape their expectations and perceptions of instructor behavior. This would provide a deeper understanding of how instructor behaviors affect student satisfaction and learning outcomes in diverse educational environments.
==== Course ratings ==== Most American colleges and universities employ course rating surveys as a method to gauge teacher effectiveness and the degree to which students are satisfied with the pedagogy of their professors. Expectancy violation and violation valence play a part in course ratings because a wide range of expectancies exist for students while taking a course. Common expectancies for students include stimulation and interest, instructor behavior, relevance of the course, and the student's expected and actual success in the course. A higher education study on EVT and course ratings analyzed 228 students in seven introductory sociology classes at a university of 25,000 students. Since the courses were required for most students, were open to all students, used the same textbook, and met for the same length of time during the semester, expectancy violations in the classroom could be reported more accurately. Some factors used to report the data included instructor personality, interestingness and informativeness of textbook materials, difficulty of lectures, lecturer speaking ability, and the ability to answer questions. At the end of the study, the only factor that affected course ratings was relevance. Expectancies had virtually no effect otherwise on course evaluations. This reason could be attributed to the fact that students who found a course highly relevant were already interested in the subject area and were more motivated to do well. Additionally, professors who respond to student emails quicker than the students expect, tend to receive a better course evaluation rating than if they reply slower than expected.
==== Nontraditional college students ==== EVT has been used to study the experiences of non-traditional college and university students who begin an undergraduate education over the age of 25. The study focused on the students' expectations of their professors and how they should behave in the classroom. Since nontraditional students often feel that they are different from their academic peers, and since the traditional university setting focuses on the 18–23-year-old demographic, studying nontraditional student classroom experiences can help higher education institutions instruct teachers on how to behave in the classroom. Traditional and non-traditional students have been shown to expect teachers to make use of examples, provide feedback, and adequately prepare them for exams. Both traditional and non-traditional students have been found to have their expectations for instructor clarity negatively violated. Surprisingly, non-traditional students differed from traditional students by responding negatively to affinity-seeking behaviors and believed that instructors should be less concerned with making class more fun and enjoyable.