This month, students will notice a series of silent teddy bears appearing outside the Social Sciences Department on the 10th floor, room N1002. Each bear will represent a different gender identity and each will remain in place for a week before being replaced by the next. The Installation will continue until Wednesday, April 22. Beside every bear is a small basket of materials, inviting anyone who passes to interact freely and without instruction. This project is part of a study exploring how gender cues shape our instincts when no rules or expectations are imposed. Students and faculty are encouraged to pause, approach the bear and notice the emotions, assumptions, or impulses that arise in that moment. Whether someone chooses to decorate the bear, alter it, observe it quietly, or walk away, every reaction becomes part of a larger conversation about how we treat passive figures.
After interacting, participants can scan the QR code above the display and complete a brief reflective questionnaire about their experience. The survey asks participants to consider what influenced their choices: personal beliefs, curiosity, mood, or the perceived gender of the bear. These reflections help reveal the subtle ways social norms and gendered expectations guide behavior, even in unsupervised spaces, where nothing is required and no one is watching. As a small thank you, students and faculty are welcome to take one snack per completed response from the basket on the right side of the display. If no snacks are available, please swing by the following week or every Wednesday until the last week of April.
This installation offers a rare opportunity to step into a live experiment unfolding in real time across campus. Instead of observing research from a distance or deciphering, students become a part of it through their own spontaneous decisions. Engaging with the bears encourages reflection on empathy, creativity, discomfort and the assumptions we carry into our interactions with others. Stop by N1002, meet the bear of the week, leave your mark and take a treat on your way out.
