Showing papers in "Sex Roles in 1984"
TL;DR: Two parallel forms of the Sex-Role Egalitarianism Scale (SRES) were developed by as discussed by the authors, which includes 19 items representing each of five domains of adult living: marital roles, parental roles, employee roles, social-interpersonal-heterosexual roles, and educational roles.
Abstract: Two parallel forms of the Sex-Role Egalitarianism Scale (SRES) were developed. Each form includes 19 items representing each of five domains of adult living: marital roles, parental roles, employee roles, social-interpersonal-heterosexual roles, and educational roles. To determine the psychometric characteristics of the scales, 367 persons were tested, including police, senior citizens, business undergraduates, and psychology undergraduates. Reliability estimates for domain and total scores ranged from .81 to .97. Correlations between social desirability and SRES scores ranged from −.03 to +.18. Preliminary evidence of validity was derived from the confirmation of two a priori hypotheses: (a) Women scored more egalitarian than men, and psychology students scored more egalitarian than business students; (b) Both student groups scored more egalitarian than senior citizens and police.
216 citations
TL;DR: This paper investigated the influence of a rape victim's physical attractiveness and resistance to rape on subjects' attributions of responsibility for the crime, certainty of the defendant's guilt, and social perceptions of the rape victim and defendant.
Abstract: The purpose of the present study was to investigate the influence of a rape victim's physical attractiveness and resistance to rape on subjects' attributions of responsibility for the crime, certainty of the defendant's guilt, and social perceptions of the rape victim and defendant. Subjects' pretrial empathy toward rape victims and rapists was assessed by scores on the Rape Empathy Scale (RES). In addition to significant sex differences in attributions of responsibility for the incident, subjects' pretrial empathy toward rape victims and rapists was predictive of their perceptions of the rape victim, the defendant, and the rape incident. Victim resistance and attractiveness effects were significant in that subjects responded least favorably to the unattractive rape victim, particularly when she resisted the rape by fighting with her attacker. Male subjects and subjects who exhibited low empathy toward the rape victim were more responsive to subtle manipulations of victim resistance and attractiveness than were females and high RES subjects. Several explanations for these results focus on the cognitive and affective responses of subjects. The implications of the study are discussed in relation to societal attitudes toward rape and the role of sexrole stereotyping, which fosters these attitudes.
177 citations
TL;DR: The authors reviewed six explanations persistently used in the literature for the existent division of family work between spouses, including role differentiation, socialization, ideology, relative resources, time available, economic efficiency, and the interdependence of institutions.
Abstract: This paper reviews six explanations persistently used in the literature for the existent division of family work between spouses. These include role differentiation, socialization—ideology, relative resources, time available, economic efficiency, and the interdependence of institutions. Some difficulties with these approaches are noted, and the overall power-dependence structure of the relationship is suggested as a predictor of the extent to which spouses will share household and child care responsibility. A comprehensive model which integrates present explanations within a power-dependence framework is offered.
153 citations
TL;DR: For example, the authors found that men were more concerned with physical characteristics, while women stressed psychological factors, and significant interactions between gender and sexual orientation point to the importance of sex role expectations in the heterosexual context and suggest substantial differences between males and females who choose homosexuality.
Abstract: Eight hundred personal advertisements were analyzed, representing an equal sampling of male and female homosexual and heterosexual advertisers on the East and West Coast of the United States. In general, men were more concerned with physical characteristics, while women stressed psychological factors. Homosexuals were more concerned with sexuality, while heterosexuals specified a broader range of characteristics. Significant interactions between gender and sexual orientation point to the importance of sex-role expectations in the heterosexual context and suggest substantial differences between males and females who choose homosexuality.
140 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a questionnaire study investigated the balance of power in lesbian relationships and factors that affect it and found that women in unequal power relationships reported less satisfaction and anticipated more problems in their relationships.
Abstract: A questionnaire study investigated the balance of power in lesbian relationships and factors that affect it Seventy-seven lesbian women currently in a romantic/sexual relationship participated Although lesbians strongly endorsed an egalitarian ideal of equal power in love relationships, nearly 40% reported an unequal balance of power in their relationship As social exchange theory predicts, the partner who was relatively less dependent on the relationship and who had greater personal resources tended to have greater power Compared to women in equal power relationships, women in unequal power relationships reported less satisfaction and anticipated more problems in their relationships No evidence of butch-femme role playing was found It is suggested that the determinants of the balance of power go beyond attitudes and reflect processes of social exchange that can occur regardless of ideology or sexual orientation
106 citations
TL;DR: The authors investigated several possible sources of these stereotypes, including parental stereotypes, parental reinforcement practices, television programming, and actual sex-differences in emotionality, and found that each of these sources may potentially contribute to children's stereotypes about emotionality.
Abstract: Contemporary preschool-aged children have pronounced sex-role stereotypes about emotionality. They feel that anger is a male characteristic, while fear, sadness, and happiness are female characteristics. Four studies investigated several possible sources of these stereotypes, including parental stereotypes, parental reinforcement practices, television programming, and actual sex-differences in emotionality. The results suggest that each of these sources may potentially contribute to children's stereotypes about emotionality.
105 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a short-term longitudinal study, 31 middle-class primigravidae and their husbands were seen once during the last trimester of pregnancy and again when their infants were 6 months old, at both times, a common core of self-assessment instruments was administered: mood scales, social change ratings, anticipation/experience of parenthood, and modified Bem satisfaction scale.
Abstract: In this short-term longitudinal study, 31 middle-class primigravidae and their husbands were seen once during the last trimester of pregnancy and again when their infants were 6 months old. At both times, a common core of self-assessment instruments was administered: mood scales, social change ratings, anticipation/experience of parenthood, and a modified Bem satisfaction scale. Some additional items were given at parenthood. For both men and women, expectancy was marked by optimism and contentment, despite some emotional and physical strain. Similarly, as parents of an infant, subjects rated the experience as highly positive. However, the transition to parenthood involved major role upheaval with both more positive and more negative changes reported by women than men. Despite these changes, women displayed considerable stability in mood and self-satisfaction over time and situation. In contrast, measures of the anticipation and self-reported experience of parenthood revealed no consistency for women; the types of mothers they turned out to be were unrelated to their expectations. Men successfully predicted their parenting behavior on more than half of the dimensions measured. The results were discussed in terms of the stresses inherent in role changes encountered during transitions from one stage of life to the next.
101 citations
TL;DR: This article found that women who viewed traditional TV commercials deemphasized achievement in favor of homemaking, compared to men and compared to women who had seen reversed role commercials, and found that reversed role TV commercials eliminated the sex difference in net achievement focus.
Abstract: This study suggests that sex stereotypes implicitly enacted, but never explicitly articulated, in TV commercials may inhibit women's achievement aspirations. Men and women (N=180) viewed locally produced replicas of four current, sex-stereotyped commercials, or four replicas that were identical except that the sex roles were reversed, or (control) named their favorite TV programs. All subjects then wrote an essay imagining their lives “10 years from now.” The essays were coded for achievement and homemaking themes. Women who viewed traditional commercials deemphasized achievement in favor of homemaking, compared to men and compared to women who had seen reversed role commercials. The reversed role commercials eliminated the sex difference in net achievement focus. Control subjects were indistinguishable from their same-sex counterparts in the traditional condition. The results identified some social changes needed to make “equality of opportunity” a social reality for women as well as men.
96 citations
TL;DR: In this article, a social support model for predicting the ease of transition into the motherhood role is presented, where four kinds of social network supports (relational, ideological, physical, and informational) and six social network agents (husband, friends, relatives, work associates, neighbors, and institutions) are considered.
Abstract: A social support model for predicting the ease of transition into the motherhood role is presented. Four kinds of social network supports (relational, ideological, physical, and informational) and six social network agents (husband, friends, relatives, work associates, neighbors, and institutions) are considered. Ways in which each kind of support facilitates maternal and marital adaptation are discussed, along with implications of such support for influencing the nature of mother—child interactions. In addition, a case example (career women in transition) is presented to illustrate the predictive utility of the model. Policy and research implications of the present analysis follow.
94 citations
TL;DR: For instance, the authors found that children who preferred to work at tasks quietly received positive teacher feedback but there was no change in peer interaction; children who engaged in active motor play received positive peer feedback, but negative teacher reactions.
Abstract: Seventy children (35 boys and 35 girls) aged 24 to 30 months were observed in play groups consisting of 12–15 2- and 3-year-old children and two teachers. The social interaction was coded using an observation schedule which allowed for coding the children's behaviors and reactions to that behavior by others in the environment. The behavior scores were factor analyzed, using the complete sample of 180 children with six factors (play styles) resulting. Children who were high and low on each factor were examined to see if play style influenced the type of social reaction received. Children who preferred to work at tasks quietly received positive teacher feedback, but there was no change in peer interaction; children who engaged in active motor play received positive peer feedback, but negative teacher reactions. Children who were passive received less peer reaction and played alone significantly more than other children. Sex differences in reactions did not appear except when the child was engaged in male- and female-typical behaviors when examining scores on one factor only. When combinations of factors are examined (e.g., activity level and task performance), then different patterns of responses start to appear for boys and girls. The implications for differing patterns of social reactions to different play styles are discussed.
87 citations
TL;DR: In this article, the authors examined emerging leadership in relation to sex and task type; 120 subjects participated in four-person mixed-sex groups and found that more men than women would emerge as leaders in the masculine and neutral task conditions, while more women would assume the leadership role in the feminine task condition.
Abstract: Emergent leadership was examined in relation to sex and task type; 120 subjects participated in four-person mixed-sex groups. Three task conditions (masculine, neutral, and feminine gender orientations) were tested with 10 groups in each condition. It was predicted and found that more men than women would emerge as leaders in the masculine and neutral task conditions, while more women would assume the leadership role in the feminine task condition. The effects of the gender orientation of a task are discussed. It is suggested that expertise with a task may explain the “task type” effect found.
TL;DR: In this article, subjects were asked to rate various physical features, demographic characteristics, and personal qualities in terms of their degree of importance in determining choice of romantic partners in both sexual and meaningful or long-term relationships.
Abstract: Subjects were asked to rate various physical features, demographic characteristics, and personal qualities in terms of their degree of importance in determining choice of romantic partners in both sexual and meaningful or long-term relationships. Consistent with the sex-role stereotype, males placed relatively greater emphasis than females on the physical characteristics of their prospective romantic partners. Females more strongly emphasized the personal qualities of their prospective partners than did males. Both sexes more heavily weighed various personal qualities than physical characteristics in the context of romantic choice in a meaningful relationship.
TL;DR: In this paper, a group of 165 fifth and sixth graders taking a regularly scheduled math and spelling test in their classroom were tested and found that compared to girls, boys perceived themselves to be more competent and did better on the math test.
Abstract: Sex differences in children's attributions for success and failure were tested on a group of 165 fifth and sixth graders taking a regularly scheduled math and spelling test in their classroom. Pretest questionnaires measured students' self-perceptions of competence in the subject and their performance expectations on the test. Questionnaires, given after the corrected tests were returned, assessed students' actual performance, subjective ratings of success, attributions for the cause of their success or failure, and performance expectations for future tests. Results indicated that sex differences existed in math but not in spelling: compared to girls, boys perceived themselves to be more competent and did better on the math test. Boys were also less likely to attribute failure on the math test to lack of ability and more likely to attribute success to ability than were girls.
TL;DR: The authors found that verbal praise increased females' and males' intrinsic motivation on both a feminine and masculine task, and intrinsic motivation was higher for sex-appropriate than sex-inappropriate tasks.
Abstract: Recent studies have demonstrated that positive verbal feedback enhances males' intrinsic motivation for a task, while decreasing that of females. This result has been attributed to differential socialization forces which make the controlling aspects of rewards more salient for females as opposed to males, for whom the informational aspects are prepotent. A weakness in this conclusion stems from the use of a masculine sex-linked task in prior experiments, producing a result which may be due to gender congruence/incongruence rather than to socialization differences. Two laboratory experiments were performed to examine the effects of verbal praise on intrinsic motivation, controlling for sex-typing of the experimental activity. Experiment I found that verbal praise increased females' and males' intrinsic motivation on both a feminine and masculine task, and intrinsic motivation was higher for sex-appropriate than sex-inappropriate tasks. The sexes did not show a differential pattern of response to praise. In Experiment 2, verbal praise also enhanced sex-role traditional females' intrinsic motivation on the same activity used in prior research. These results suggest that socialization content has changed sufficiently to make concerns about competence and self-determination equally salient for females and males.
TL;DR: In this paper, four sex-role instruments were administered to a group of 281 graduate and undergraduate students at an urban university to examine their validity through the use of correlational and factor-analytic techniques.
Abstract: Four sex-role instruments were administered to a group of 281 graduate and undergraduate students at an urban university. Concurrent validity was examined through the use of correlational and factor-analytic techniques. Seven problems in interpretation of the categorizations made by the several instruments were identified: (1) item homogeneity of individual scales; (2) convergence of corresponding scales and divergence of scales from their complements; (3) multifactoriality; (4) factor complexity; (5) distribution of content across instruments; (6) interaction between factor complexity and content balance; and (7) correspondence of classifications of subjects across instruments.
Abstract: This article seeks to delineate the social context of American masculine attainment and identity. The effects of race, socioeconomic status, and age on masculine role perceptions are analyzed for a sample of Black middle-class men. Comparative data from previous research on a sample of Black working-class men are discussed. Comparisons are also made to the findings of a Psychology Today survey sample consisting primarily of middle-class White men. Data are analyzed to exemplify the importance of studying masculine roles within a framework that takes into account the relative social location of American men. Future research needs for the study of masculine role identity from a social structural perspective are discussed.
TL;DR: In this paper, first grade children were given either empathy instructions (in which they were told to imagine themselves in the target person's place) or neutral instructions, and subjects were then given a chance to anonymously donate money to the target child who was presented as being in need.
Abstract: First-grade children were given either empathy instructions (in which they were told to imagine themselves in the target person's place) or neutral instructions (in which they were told to listen to what the target person did). For half the subjects, the target person was of the same sex; for the other half, the target person was of the opposite sex. Subjects were then given a chance to anonymously donate money to the target child, who was presented as being in need. Liking for the target child, subject's perceptions of the target child's emotional state, and subjects' report of their own emotional states were also assessed. Empathic instructions increased donating behavior for males, but not for females. Accuracy of perception of the target person's state was generally high. Self-reports of emotional states congruent with that of the target tended to be associated with increased donating behavior only for males, but these self-reports were greater for females than males, and greater for both sexes with same-sex target persons. Liking also was enhanced by gender similarity. These results are discussed in terms of a proposed relationship among empathy, prosocial behavior, sex, and age.
TL;DR: This article investigated the effects of sex of available helper on the willingness to seek and receive help reported by androgynous and sex-typed males and females who were categorized as being high and low in self-evaluation.
Abstract: The present study investigated the effects of sex of available helper on the willingness to seek and receive help reported by androgynous and sex-typed males and females who were categorized as being high and low in self-evaluation. Subjects received a questionnaire that included description of situations involving a need for help. For half the subjects the situation described a potential male helper, and for the other half it described a female helper. Subjects were asked to indicate how likely they were to seek help in each situation, and how they expected to feel if they received help. Results indicate that (a) males were more willing to seek and receive help from a female helper; (b) sex-typed males were less receptive, and sex-typed females were more receptive, to help; (c) relative to androgynous individuals, sex-typed individuals indicated greater willingness to seek and receive help from a female than from a male helper; and, finally, (d) these effects were more pronounced for subjects with low self-evaluation. The conceptual and applied implications of these findings are discussed.
TL;DR: In contrast to a stereotypical view of the good manager as masculine, bad managers were seen by business students as low in both masculinity and femininity, or in nonstereotypical terms as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: Little research has been conducted on ineffective behavior or “bad” characteristics of managers as contrasted with effective behavior or “good” characteristics. This study examines the perceived characteristics of bad managers as well as good managers. In contrast to a stereotypical view of the good manager as masculine, bad managers were seen by business students as low in both masculinity and femininity, or in nonstereotypical terms. Results were not affected by the relative social desirability of masculine and feminine characteristics.
TL;DR: This article found that the actor's implicit role status in the portrayed relationship was more correlated with his or her sex than with the role status of the actor, rather than his/her sex.
Abstract: The trait content of sex stereotypes can be created by social role status alone, without reference to sex. In contemporary culture sex and role status are confounded: Authority roles are played by men; women occupy subordinate positions. TV commercials encode the unequal status as tacit assumptions in brief scenarios. Videotaped reenactments of three such commercials served as stimuli. One reenactment of each duplicated the original network versions. In a second reenactment of the same commercials, the male and female actors switched roles. Subjects (n=128 men and women) viewed the commercials and made personality attributions to each character on five sex-stereotypic dimensions, e.g., “dominant—submissive.” Stereotypic trait patterns commonly attributed to sex were determined more by the actor's implicit role status in the portrayed relationship than by the actor's sex. Showing women in high-status roles with the social support of coparticipants may be a means of breaking the stereotypes.
TL;DR: A study of 210 fourth, sixth, eighth, and tenth graders and adults was conducted to determine developmental trends in both destereotyping of traditionally gender-typed activities and preferences for those activities, and to compare activity preferences of tomboys with other females and with males at different ages as discussed by the authors.
Abstract: A study of 210 fourth, sixth, eighth, and tenth graders and adults was conducted to determine developmental trends in both destereotyping of traditionally gender-typed activities and preferences for those activities, and to compare activity preferences of tomboys with other females and with males at different ages. Tenth graders destereotyped less than the other age levels. Additionally, female subjects destereotyped traditionally boys' activities more than girls' activities and more than male subjects. Although nontomboys and boys showed a preference for gender-traditional activities, tomboys preferred traditional girls' and boys' activities equally. Self-defined tomboys do not reject traditionally female activities; instead, they expand their repertoire of activities to include both gender-traditional and nontraditional activities. It is suggested that girls who are able to transcend gender-role behavior in childhood may be the ones who will grow into androgynous adult women.
TL;DR: In this paper, the effectiveness of social role theory in explaining the relationship between wives' work and psychological well-being is examined in reference to existing empirical patterns and alternative explanations, and the explanatory utility of the additional causal links proposed in the expanded theory is explored in a comparison of 50 employed wives and 50 housewives, all of whom have at least one preschool child living at home.
Abstract: The effectiveness of social role theory in explaining the relationship between wives' work (inside and outside the home) and psychological well-being is examined in reference to existing empirical patterns and alternative explanations. The theory is extended by the reorientation of its assumptions around central concepts and premises of the rational choice and social exchange framework: rewards, costs, cost reduction, alternative sources of gratification, and subjective evaluation of behavioral outcomes. Several mediating factors are integrated into the revised theory: help with housework and child care, work satisfaction, and participation in voluntary associations and social networks. The explanatory utility of the additional causal links proposed in the expanded theory is explored in a comparison of 50 employed wives and 50 housewives, all of whom have at least one preschool child living at home. The validity of the revised propositions is supported by the findings, which reveal no significant difference between the employed wives and the housewives in depression, health anxiety, or life satisfaction.
TL;DR: In this article, gender and marital status differences in the treatment process, post-treatment experiences, and outcome of 332 alcoholic patients were explored and the utility of several sex-role models in explaining the observed findings.
Abstract: This article focuses on gender and marital status differences in the treatment process, posttreatment experiences, and outcome of 332 alcoholic patients and explores the utility of several sex-role models in explaining the observed findings. Among men patients, being married is related to better treatment outcome, but the marital status difference is negligible among women patients. Participation in group therapy is related to better outcome for men relative to women; exposure to educational materials on alcoholism is associated with better outcome of women relative to men. Men and women patients also differ in the way in which their perceptions of the treatment environment are related to outcome. After discharge, unmarried women and married men are most likely to receive aftercare outpatient treatment, which is also related to better outcome among men patients. The findings underscore the importance of gender and marital status factors and of patient-program congruence effects in the treatment outcome of alcoholic patients.
TL;DR: One hundred and twelve unmarried participants completed a questionnaire that examined the relationship between gender and approval motivation (assessed by the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale) and college students' stereotypes of and experiences with power in sexual encounters as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: One-hundred and twelve unmarried participants completed a questionnaire that examined the relationship between gender and approval motivation (assessed by the Marlowe—Crowne Social Desirability Scale) and college students' stereotypes of and experiences with power in sexual encounters. Regardless of approval motivation, students described men as using power predominantly to have sex and women as using power predominantly to avoid having sex. However, interactions between need for approval and gender suggested that high-need-approval women might be having more experiences with sex and power in the bedroom than high-need-approval men. These results are discussed in light of Elkind's hypothesis that adolescent behavior conforms to an imaginary audience of peers and the Crowne-Marlowe model of approval motivation.
TL;DR: In this paper, a study was conducted to examine gender differences in perceptions of leadership and found that both men and women associated being a leader and having leadership skills with an authoritarian leadership style.
Abstract: A study was conducted to examine gender differences in perceptions of leadership. Subjects (N=320) were assigned to same-sex groups of four to six members. The groups participated in a leaderless group discussion and then assessed characteristics of their own and their peers' leadership. The subjects also completed a self-esteem inventory. Correlational analyses revealed that when evaluating their peers, both men and women associated being a leader and having leadership skills with an authoritarian leadership style. In self-perceptions, however, women associated having positive leadership skills with an authoritarian style, but men associated their own leadership skills with a democratic style. The self-esteem of both genders was differentially related to their perceptions of leadership style. These results suggest that men and women hold a leadership stereotype which equates the leadership skills of their peers with an authoritarian style of leadership. However, women but not men base their assessments of their own leadership skills on this leadership stereotype.
TL;DR: There was a significant sex difference in the kindergarten, with the females more liberal than the males, but not in the other grade levels, and Liberality, defined as the number of “either” responses, increased with age.
Abstract: Kindergarten, fifth-grade, and eleventh-grade participants from a working-class community were presented with a questionnaire of 44 adult occupations and activities They indicated for each occupation who they thought should do the job: male, female, or either one They also stated their own future occupational goals Liberality, defined as the number of “either” responses, increased with age There was a significant sex difference in the kindergarten, with the females more liberal than the males, but not in the other grade levels Females named as many different potential adult occupations for themselves as did males Males and females tended to name occupations traditionally considered appropriate for their own sex, with some tendency for females to also name traditional male occupations
TL;DR: A study of the Reform and Conservative movements in Israel indicates that the question of women's rights in these Jewish denominations is essentially dormant as discussed by the authors, in contrast with the lively discussion of the role of women in American Jewish life.
Abstract: A study of the Reform and Conservative movements in Israel indicates that the question of women's rights in these Jewish denominations is essentially dormant. This is in contrast with the lively discussion of the role of women in American Jewish life. The demand for greater roles in the synagogue may be affected by the general societal orientation toward women's rights. In the Israeli case, there is no stimulant from a general movement for women's rights to lead to such demands among religious adherents.
TL;DR: The process of gender identity, described as the self-attribution of culturally bound concepts of masculinity and femininity, is traced throughout the period of development and linked to social competence as mentioned in this paper.
Abstract: The process of gender identity, described as the self-attribution of culturally bound concepts of masculinity and femininity, is traced throughout the period of development and linked to social competence. Three stages in the development of conscious gender identity are described — gender awareness, gender orientation, and gender identity — and the characteristics of each stage are outlined. Finally, the implications of this view of the process of gender identity formation are discussed, especially in relation to Bem's concept of androgyny.
TL;DR: In this paper, a status theory of behavioral choice evaluation was formulated to explain the lesser approval for cross-sex-role behavior of males than of females, since males are often assigned higher prestige, their deviation from male to female behavior represents a movement from higher to lower status, resulting in a loss of approval.
Abstract: An earlier investigation formulated a status theory of behavioral choice evaluation to explain the lesser approval for cross-sex-role behavior of males than of females. Since males are often assigned higher prestige, their deviation from male to female behavior represents a movement from higher to lower status, resulting in a loss of approval. To determine that the fit of previous data with the theory was indeed due to the status characteristic of sex roles, the current study used the theory to predict the evaluations of appropriate and cross-role behavior concerning age roles as well as sex roles. Furthermore, the effect of status upon evaluation was hypothesized to reside in the association of status with social value and, in turn, the effect of social value upon evaluation. Subjects were 57 male and 40 female university students who provided approval ratings of either appropriate or cross-age-role and sex-role behavior. For sex and age, cross-role behavior received less approval for the higher status actor. This indicated that the lesser approval of cross-sex-role behavior of males was due to the differential status ranking of male and female roles, rather than to some other feature more specific to sex roles. The proposition that social value is the explanatory link in the effect of status upon evaluation is supported by the results.