THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN SEX ROLE ORIENTATION, SELF ESTEEM, AND SEX-TYPED OCCUPATIONAL CHOICE OF COLLEGE WOMEN

This study assessed the relationship between sex role orientation, self esteem, and occupational choice. A random sample of one hundred forty-four college women in a feminine-typed occupational field of study and 143 college women in a masculine-typed occupational field of study completed self-report measures to assess sex role orientation (androgynous, masculine, feminine, or undifferentiated) and self-esteem. Comparisons of occupational groups revealed a significantly higher level of self-esteem in the feminine-typed occupational group as opposed to the masculinetyped group. The masculine women in the feminine occupational group and the androgynous women in both groups had significantly higher levels of self-esteem than the masculine women in the masculine occupational group. Implications of findings and future research directions are discussed.     

The Impact of Self-Components on Attitudes Toward Sex Among African American Preadolescent Girls: The Moderating Role of Menarche

The purpose of this study was to identify the protective factors that help to prevent attitudes that are tolerant of risky sexual behavior among inner-city, African American, preadolescent girls. It was hypothesized that aspects of the self would significantly predict attitudes toward sexual behavior among this population. It was also expected that the predictive power of the self-components (i.e., ethnic identity, self-concept, and masculine and feminine gender role orientation) would be increased in African American girls following menarche. Two hundred and five African American, preadolescent girls from a northeastern, inner-city community participated in this study. The age for this sample ranged from 10 to 13. Findings of this study lend partial support to the hypotheses. Examination of the predictive relationship between the self-components and attitudes toward sex indicated that self-concept and the masculine and feminine gender role characteristics were significant predictors of attitudes toward sex. In addition, the impact of ethnic identity on functioning was found to be most significant for girls who had experienced menarche.     

Sex role orientation, level of cognitive development and mathematics performance in late adolescence

Sex differences in mathematics performance are found in late adolescence. This study investigates the effects of psychological sex role orientation (BSRI: masculine, feminine, undifferentiated, androgynous) and level of cognitive development (concrete, formal) on performance in mathematics. ANOVA analysis (N = 69; 18 males, 51 females) revealed significant effects for level of cognitive development and for masculine by feminine sex role orientation interaction. Subjects whose BSRI masculine and feminine scores were either both low or both high scored significantly lower on the mathematics test than subjects whose scores on either masculine or feminine scales were high. This indicates lower mathematics performance for androgynous and undifferentiated subjects. This result is hypothesized to be a function of the particular age level of these subjects and their concomitant overconcern with appropriate sex role development.     

Sex role orientations of male and female collegiate athletes from selected individual and team sports

The purpose of the present study was to determine whether the sex role orientations of male and female collegiate athletes were more similar in team sports than in individual sports. It was predicted that females in masculine-oriented team sports (basketball and volleyball) would exhibit sex role orientations more similar to those of their male counterparts than would females in individual sports (track/field and swimming). To test this notion the S. L. Bem (The Measurement of Psychological Androgyny, Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 1974, 42, 155–167) Sex Role Inventory was administered to 381 athletes from 37 National Collegiate Athletic Association institutions. The median-split procedure (S. L. Bem, On the Utility of Alternative Procedures for Assessing Psychology Androgyny, Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 1977, 45, 196–205) was used to classify subjects as masculine, feminine, androgynous, or undifferentiated. Separate Gender × Sex Role Orientation chi square tests were performed on the frequency data of team and individual sport athletes. The results indicated no significant differences in the sex role orientations of male and female team sport performers, with the greatest proportion (66%) having a masculine (33%) or androgynous (33%) orientation. For individual sports there was a significant difference in the sex role orientations of males and females. The highest proportion of females were classified as feminine (37%) and the lowest proportion were classified as masculine (11%). Individual sport males were somewhat evenly distributed among the four sex role orientation categories, with the highest proportion classified as undifferentiated (36%). It was concluded that sex role orientation of elite female athletes may be associated with the male appropriateness of the sport in which they participate.     

Self-esteem of female athletes and nonathletes relative to sex role type and sport type

The purpose of the present research was to investigate the relationship of the self-esteem of female athletes and nonathletes to sex role type and sport type. The athletic group was comprised of 75 female collegiate athletes from eight sports and the nonathletic group consisted of a random sample of 75 female nonathletes. An assessment of self-esteem and sex role type was completed through administering to all subjects the short form of the (PRF) ANDRO Scale of Masculinity and Femininity, and the Interpersonal Disposition Inventory (IDI). On the basis of the results of the IDI, the subjects were categorized into four sex role types: androgynous, masculine, feminine, and undifferentiated. Based upon previous research, it was predicted that (1) athletes would exhibit higher self-esteem scores than nonathletes, (2) the self-esteem of androgynous individuals would be higher than other sex role types, (3) the self-esteem of feminine or undifferentiated individuals would be lower than other sex role types, (4) the self-esteem of female athletes in higher femininity status sports would be greater than those in lower femininity status sports, and (5) there would be a greater proportion of androgynous athletes and feminine nonathletes. The following significant results were found: nonathletes in the feminine sex role type were lower in self-esteem than all other groups; and there was a greater proportion of androgynous athletes and feminine nonathletes than expected by chance. There were no differences in self-esteem of athletes in higher femininity status vs lower femininity status sports. These findings were discussed relative to past research, and the potential impact of sport on the psychosocial development or selection of certain sex role types.     

The effect of sex and gender-schematic processing on sport participation

This study examined the extent to which an individual's overall experience with and personal commitment to athletic activities is constrained by the sex appropriateness of the sport, the sex of the individual, and the individual's classification on the Bem Sex Role Inventory. No sex differences were found for levels of participation for either measure of participation. For both measures, neutral sports were preferred, followed by sex-appropriate and then sex-inappropriate sports. Females' experience and commitment was greater than males' to feminine activities, whereas males' was greater than females' for masculine activities. Sex-typed males reported significantly less experience with and commitment to feminine sports than androgynous and undifferentiated males. When sex-typed females were compared with androgynous and cross-sex-typed females, they reported significantly less commitment to masculine sports.     

Sex roles,stress, and distress: A study of person by situation contingency

Literature on the relationship between sex roles and adjustment has suggested that masculine traits, rather than the androgynous interaction of masculine and feminine traits, are associated with positive adjustment. Studies with noncollege student populations, however, raise questions as to the generalizability of these findings. Suggestions that sex role traits are associated with particular defensive styles raise the possibility that the sex role-adjustment link is mediated by situational factors. The present study assessed sex role orientation, depression, hostility, and stress in 105 students of nursing. Femininity predicted positive vocational adjustment within the group, masculinity was associated with lower levels of depression, and femininity predicted lower hostility. Within the sex role orientations studied, androgynous nurses reported lower depression and vocational stress than their undifferentiated counterparts. It is suggested that feminine sex roles, promoting an internalization of threat, aid positive adjustment in settings marked by joint instrumental and interpersonal demands.     

Adolescents’ Perceptions of Masculine and Feminine Values in Sport and Physical Education: A Study of Gender Differences

In present study we investigated possible gender differences in how 357 secondary-school students valued the importance of masculine and feminine characteristics within sport and physical education and how their ratings of values were related to their participation in gendered sport. The results indicated that boys rated appearance strength, sports competence, endurance strength, and masculinity as significantly more important than did girls. Girls rated appearance good looking face, appearance slender, and femininity as significantly more important than did boys. Further, more boys participated in traditionally masculine sports, whereas girls to a greater extent participated in traditionally feminine sports. A discriminant function analysis separated the masculine sport group from the feminine sport group, which suggests that higher scores on the masculine function were indicative of lower value on appearance slender and flexibility, accompanied by higher value on appearance strength and masculinity. For the feminine sport group, this pattern was the opposite.     

Sports Participation and Self-Esteem: Variations as a Function of Gender and Gender Role Orientation

The purpose of this study was to examine the role of gender, sports participation, and gender orientation in predicting individuals' domain-specific and global self-esteem. A sample of 100 Grade 11 students completed measures of self-perception, body image, gender orientation, and sports participation. The results showed that although boys reported greater satisfaction with weight and appearance, there were no gender differences in general self-worth. In addition, more feminine individuals who participated in competitive sports reported lower levels of perceived athletic competence and global self-worth, but reported higher self-esteem when they participated in more noncompetitive sports. Although sports participation does predict self-esteem, participants' gender orientation and the type of sports in which they participate are moderating factors.     

Gender differences in idiosyncratic sex-typed self-images and self-esteem

The present study focused on the relationships between idiosyncratic sextyping and self-esteem. Idiosyncratic, feminine, masculine, and nonstereotyped sets of self-attributes, termed self-images (SI), rather than conventional masculinity, femininity and their interaction (androgyny), were used. Findings from two studies with two groups of 337 Israeli early adolescents boys and girls, and 280 male and female university students, using two instruments of sex-typed self-attributes (newly devised Self-Related Self-Image Scale and Spence Personal Attributes Questionnaire) and based on idiosyncratically defined sex images, supported our hypotheses. The findings showed that males' self-esteem was predicted significantly by their masculine SI, that females' self-esteem was predicted significantly by their nonstereotyped SI, and that the feminine SI predicted significantly the self-esteem of neither. Findings based on conventional sex role orientation scores supported former findings of significant relationships between masculinity and male and female self-esteem. The results showed that the self-esteem of male students, but not that of boys, was significantly predicted by their nonstereotyped SI too. Partial support was found for the hypothesis that more females than males are likely to redefine conventional masculine attributes as nonstereotyped. The whole set of findings were interpreted as indicating that self-esteem is dependent on socially rewarded and self-synchronized sex-typed attributes.Study 1 is based on the master's thesis submitted to Ben-Gurion University by the second author under the advise of the first one.     

Interaction of sex role self-concept with relationship quality and relationship beliefs in married, heterosexual cohabiting, gay, and lesbian couples

The relation between sex role self-concept (masculine, feminine, undifferentiated, and androgynous) and both relationship quality and dysfunctional relationship beliefs was examined in 370 monogamous partners who represented four types of couples (married, heterosexual cohabiting, gay, and lesbian). Analyses used both the individual partner and the couple as the unit of analysis. The individual partner analyses revealed that relationship quality and relationship beliefs differed by subjects' sex role self-concept. Androgynous and feminine subjects reported higher relationship quality than masculine and undifferentiated subjects; androgynous subjects had fewer "disagreement is destructive" beliefs than feminine subjects; and androgynous subjects had fewer "partner cannot change" beliefs than undifferentiated subjects. The couple analyses revealed a relation between partners' sex role self-concept only for the heterosexual cohabiting couples. For these couples, masculine men tended to pair with feminine or undifferentiated women, and androgynous partners tended to pair together. Relative to other couples, couples in which one or both partners were androgynous or feminine reported the highest relationship quality, whereas couples in which one or both partners were undifferentiated or masculine reported the lowest relationship quality. These effects did not vary by type of couple. The study concluded that sex role self-concept is a robust factor in appraisals of relationship quality. Relative to masculine and undifferentiated individuals, androgynous and feminine individuals report greater positive relationship functioning.     

Television sex roles in the 1980s: Do viewers' sex and sex role orientation change the picture?

This study investigated viewer perceptions of female and male television characters as a result of viewer sex and sex role orientation. Young adult viewers (N=677) rated television characters and themselves using the Personal Attributes Questionnaire (PAQ). Viewers were classified as feminine, masculine, androgynous, or undifferentiated in their PAQ orientations. The television characters were four men and four women who shared the lead and a working relationship on crime action shows. Results indicated that viewers rated all the male characters as stereotypical masculine, but only one female character as stereotypical feminine. Viewer sex and sex role orientations did affect ratings. Viewer sex had a greater impact on the ratings of female characters than on the ratings of male characters. Female viewers tended to rate female characters as higher in instrumental and masculine traits than male viewers did. Results based on sex role orientation of the viewer were inconsistent across characters, but in general, undifferentiated viewers rated both male and female characters as low in expressive and instrumental traits compared to how androgynous viewers rated them. Further, a masculine sex role orientation appeared to block perception of expressive traits in both male and female characters.This research was supported in part by a University of Akron faculty research grant.     

Masculinity, popularity, and self-esteem among Israeli preadolescent girls

This study compared girls who evidence more traditionally masculine characteristics to girls who evidence more traditionally feminine characteristics for popularity and various aspects of self-esteem (general, home and parents, and social). Subjects were 166 Israeli girls aged 9 to 10 years who were categorized into four gender-role orientation groups: feminine, masculine, androgynous, and undifferentiated. They completed a tomboyism questionnaire designed for the study, which included items representing components of gender-stereotypes such as roles, physical appearance and occupation [K. Deaux and L. L. Lewis (1984) “Structure of Gender Stereotypes: Inter-relationships Among Components and Gender Label,”Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Vol. 46, pp. 991–1004]. All subjects completed Version A of the S. Coopersmith Self-Esteem Questionnaire [(1967)The Antecedents of Self-Esteem, San Francisco, Freeman] and their sociometric status was measured. Results indicated that those girls who reported both traits and behaviors considered to be traditionally masculine comprised a unique group. They were less popular, they had lower social self-esteem, and they were less satisfied with their gender.     

Sex role orientation and domains of self-esteem

The relation of sex role orientation to self-esteem was more closely examined by the inclusion of five distinct self-esteem domains in this study of Chinese adolescents. Analysis of variance showed that the masculine and androgynous groups were superior in academic, appearance, and general self-esteem than the feminine and undifferentiated groups. The former two groups were also higher in physical ability self-esteem than the feminine group. The superiority of the androgynous group was noted in the domain of social self-esteem too. Results of multiple regression were in general supportive of the masculinity model in that masculinity was most strongly associated with self-esteem, whereas the effect of femininity was much less evident. Analyses also showed that for males, femininity was related to academic, appearance, and general self-esteem, whereas for females, femininity was found somewhat related to social self-esteem. Results of this study were discussed in terms of the agentic and expressive qualities of different sex role and self-esteem domains.The very capable assistance in data analysis by Kit Yi Wong is gratefully acknowledged.     

An Examination of Instrumental and Expressive Traits on Performance: The Mediating Role of Learning,Prove, and Avoid Goal Orientations

Instrumental and expressive (I/E) traits represent stereotypical masculine and feminine personality characteristics that are exhibited at varying levels in both genders, with instrumentality representing masculine traits and expressiveness representing feminine traits (Jolson and Comer 1997). The authors propose and empirically test a theoretical model that identifies salesperson learning, prove, and avoid goal orientations as mediators of I/E traits and performance. Findings indicated that goal orientation fully mediated the instrumental to performance relationship and partially mediated the expressiveness to performance relationship. It was also found that salespeople who have high levels of both instrumental and expressive traits (termed androgynous) were high in learning and prove orientations and low in avoid orientation. In turn, learning and prove orientations had a positive influence on performance, while avoid orientation was not significantly related to performance. Theoretical and managerial implications are discussed.     

Client Gender and Sex Role: Predictors of Counselors' Impressions and Expectations

Researchers of this study questioned: Are clients (male or female) with self-reported “masculine” versus “feminine” role orientations viewed more favorably by counselors? Which is more predictive of the counselor's impressions: the client's gender or his or her sex role orientation? Results suggested that highly masculine and highly feminine clients (regardless of gender) are perceived as more socially skilled and likely to experience a positive therapeutic outcome. Gender did not uniquely predict counselors' impressions. Highly feminine women clients, however, were viewed as more socially skilled than were highly feminine men. On average, clients were viewed as friendly and submissive.     

Cultural, contextual, and intrapersonal predictors of risky sexual attitudes among urban African American girls in early adolescence

The role of cultural factors in explaining sexual attitudes among African American urban girls, aged 10-13 years, was investigated in this study. The authors predicted that girls with higher school interest, family cohesion, religiosity, and behavioral self-esteem would endorse less risky sexual attitudes. Also, older girls were expected to have more risky sexual attitudes than younger girls, and girls from 1- rather than 2-parent households were expected to have more risky sexual attitudes. The authors hypothesized that ethnic identity and gender role orientations would contribute to explaining variability in sexual attitudes after controlling for contextual and intrapersonal variables. A questionnaire containing measures of the study constructs was administered to 214 girls who were participants in a substance abuse prevention program. Pretest data were used in analyses. A final regression model accounted for 23% of the variance in sexual attitudes. Age and behavioral self-esteem were significant predictors, with younger teens and teens with higher behavioral self-esteem having less risky sexual attitudes. Cultural variables contributed to explaining variation in sexual attitudes after other variables were controlled for. Higher levels of ethnic identity were associated with less risky sexual attitudes. A masculine gender role orientation was associated with more risky sexual attitudes.     

Correlates of gender role orientation during pregnancy and the postpartum

This study was designed to examine the relationship between gender role orientation and psychological adjustment during pregnancy and the postpartum period in a large sample of French-speaking Caucasian mothers. Gender role was assessed with the Bem Sex Role Inventory, which classifies subjects into four categories: androgynous, masculine, feminine, and undifferentiated. A discriminant analysis showed a relationship between androgyny and the following measures of psychological adaptation: self-esteem, satisfaction with social support, and level of apprehension toward perinatal stressors. The masculine gender role was linked with self-esteem, work involvement, age, and severity of perinatal stress. No relationship was found between gender role and the level of antenatal or postnatal depressive symptomatology. Stress, marital support, and social support were among the predictors of postpartum depression, which underlined the importance of taking these variables into account when studying the well-being of mothers during the postnatal period. Results are discussed in light of previous literature on the association between gender role and motherhood. The limitations of Bem's model and inventory are also considered.