Although "offended" is a strong term and most people will not admit to being offended by something, people do expect a certain title or form of address especially within the classroom scene.

Chart #1 shows more women were offended if not called by their preferred honorific. Likewise chart #2 shows that by position Assistant Professors are more uncomfortable when in a situation of not being addressed by their preference. Most answers suggest that they were offended or felt uncomfortable because their title is a form of respect and not honoring this preference is disrespectful. I do not feel that students eliminate a title out of disrespect for their superior, rather I would suggest that it is merely done because we have a better understanding of them. In college we realize that our teachers are in fact human and we gain a better understand of them as people, therefore we can better identify with them and the result is a more intimate relationship. This causes a problem because we do in fact have more of a relationship and yet they are still our superiors.

The problem here lies in the fact the Americans are switching over to a more intimate form of speech as a whole and the formal titles which imply respect are slowly being eliminated. The desire for titles remains because they suggest distance, seniority, high social status, or superiority. "All too often forms of address are simply equated with politeness without any attempt being made to explain why"(Watts 62). It is suggested that politeness is a form of socially adequate behavior and violations of this result in impolite behavior. But the combination of distance and intimacy in the education field causes an ambiguity in the situation of what to call one in a higher position. "Respect always takes the form of formality. Respect implies social distance, and social distance defines formality. Being casual implies social intimacy or equality"(Chaika 87).

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