Masculinity, Femininity, and Marital Satisfaction: An Examination of Theoretical Models

ABSTRACT This study sought to investigate the relationship between masculinity, femininity, and marital satisfaction. A number of polynomial multiple regression analyses were performed in an effort to determine the validity of six theoretical models linking sex roles to marital satisfaction. These are the femininity model, masculinity model, sex-typed model, additive androgynous model, interactive androgynous model, and curvilinear model. The sample was composed of 117 couples who completed the Bem Sex-Role Inventory (Bem, 1974) and the Dyadic Adjustment Scale (Spanier, 1976). For men, the results showed that marital satisfaction was related to (a) their self-described levels of femininity and masculinity, (b) the level of self-described femininity of their wives, and (c) the presence of feminine qualities as well as a limited optimal level of masculine qualities which they perceived in their wives. For women, marital satisfaction was associated with (a) the number of self-described feminine qualities and (b) the level of masculinity, as well as an optimal level of femininity, which they perceived in their husbands. Further-more, small actual-ideal discrepancies in levels of masculinity and femininity ascribed to partners constituted reliable predictors of marital satisfaction for both men and women.     

Marital adjustment among rural couples: The role of expressiveness

This study examined the relationship between marital adjustment and husbands' and wives' instrumentalness and expressiveness. Eighty-five rural couples completed the Spanier Dyadic Adjustment Scale and the Personal Attributes Questionnaire. Multiple regression analyses indicated that husbands' expressiveness was the sole predictor of both husbands' and wives' marital adjustment. Results are compared to previous research findings with urban couples. Implications of the findings for gender-related patterns of socialization are also discussed.     

Role of femininity and masculinity in distressed couples' communication

The relationship between sex role identity and marital communication of maritally distressed couples was examined. Interactional behavior of 60 maritally distressed couples was coded with the Marital Interaction Coding System and examined in relation to the level of femininity and masculinity of the spouses. Base-rate analyses indicated that femininity was positively related to greater rates of negative behavior among husbands and wives. As predicted, sequential analyses supported that wives' femininity was associated with greater negative reciprocity of the wives. Men's femininity was associated with husbands' tendency to terminate fewer negative sequences of behavior in comparison with their wives. High masculinity of the wives was associated with shorter sequences of negative behavior. Implications of the findings and future directions for research are discussed.     

The role of masculinity and femininity in depression and social satisfaction in elderly females

Several recent meta-analyses indicate a relation between masculinity and psychological adjustment, but there is little correlation between femininity and adjustment. The present study examined the generalizability of this finding in a sample of elderly women. Thirty women ranging in age from 68 to 97 years were administered a battery of questionnaires including the Personal Attributes Questionaire, the Geriatric Depression Scale, the Hopelessness Scale, and three subscales from the Self-Evaluation of Life Function Scale. Consistent with previous meta-analytic results, correlational analyses revealed significant negative relations between masculinity and the cognitive measures of depression (i.e., hopelessness and self-esteem), and no correlation between femininity and these same cognitive measures. Femininity, however, was correlated with social satisfaction and symptoms of aging. Masculinity was unrelated to these social and physical indices of depression. The implications of these findings for the androgyny and masculinity models of mental health are discussed with particular reference to the role that femininity may play in potentiating or exacerbating depression.     

Age as a moderator of the relation between three dimensions of satisfaction and sex role

We examined the moderating effect of age on the relation between sex role orientation and relationship and job satisfaction as well as life satisfaction. Two hundred and thirty-two noncollege married, employed, young, middle, and older adults were administered the Bem Sex Role Inventory, the General Positive Affect Scale, the Minnesota Satisfaction Questionnaire, and the Dyadic Adjustment Scale. Age significantly moderated the relation between each type of sex role and life satisfaction. As age increased, the strength of the relation between sex role and life satisfaction increased. Age also moderated the relation between masculinity and androgyny and job satisfaction, whereas femininity was not significant in predicting job satisfaction. There were no significant predictors of relationship satisfaction.     

Loneliness and Marital Adjustment of Turkish Couples

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the relationship between loneliness and marital adjustment in Turkish couples. Some demographic correlates of loneliness and marital adjustment such as gender, age, duration of the marriage, type of marriage, and degree of acquaintance before marriage were also examined. The UCLA Loneliness Scale (D. Russell, L. A. Peplau, & C. E. Cutrona, 1980) and the Dyadic Adjustment Scale (G. B. Spanier, 1976) were administered to 58 heterosexual married couples. The results showed that loneliness was significantly and negatively correlated with marital adjustment. For the demographic correlates, significant results were as follows: Self-selected marriages resulted in lower loneliness scores and higher marital adjustment scores than the arranged type of marriage, and marital adjustment increased parallel to an increase in the degree of acquaintance before marriage. The findings and implications are discussed in the context of practice and research.     

The Seven-Item Short Form of the Dyadic Adjustment Scale: Further Evidence for Construct Validity

Two studies examine psychometric aspects of the seven-item version of the Dyadic Adjustment Scale (DAS) (Spanier, 1976). In Study 1, data from 148 heterosexual clients seeking marital therapy services and 122 heterosexual couples in the community were used to assess the criterion validity of the DAS-7. The measure differentiated between clinic and community participants and between marriages classified as distressed or adjusted based on the full DAS score. In Study 2, the reliability and convergent validity of the DAS7, when administered as a separate scale, was assessed in a community sample of 162 participants who were married or were in cohabiting heterosexual relationships. Obtained values were comparable to those reported in previous research in which the DAS-7 was obtained by extracting items from participants' full DAS. These results demonstrate that the DAS-7 is a psychometrically sound short form for assessing marital adjustment.     

Relationships Between Sex-Role Attitudes, Division of Household Tasks, and Marital Adjustment

Relationships between sex-role attitudes, household tasks, and marital adjustment were explored. Eighty-five married couples completed the Osmond-Martin Sex Role Attitude Scale (Osmond & Martin, 1975), the Krausz Household Task scale (Krausz, 1986) and the Dyadic Adjustment Scale (Spanier, 1976). Modern husbands reported greater marital adjustment than traditional husbands. Traditional spouses reported more traditionally male household tasks being completed by husbands and traditionally female tasks being completed by wives. Spouses reported greater marital adjustment when husbands completed male tasks. Sex-role attitudes and household tasks related independently to marital adjustment. The results support assessing husbands and wives separately. Clinicians are advised to assess couples' sex-role attitudes while maintaining neutral attitudes themselves. Several clinical techniques are offered.     

Masculinity,femininity, life stress,and depression

This study explored the effects of masculinity, femininity, and life stress on depression. Four hundred and two subjects (266 females and 136 males) completed the Bem Sex Role Inventory, the Life Experiences Survey, and the Beck Depression Inventory. Results of a regression analysis indicated significant effects of life stress, masculinity, and femininity on depression. Although masculinity and, to a lesser extent, femininity, were significant predictors of depression, life stress accounted for a substantially greater proportion of the variance. The implications of the results are discussed with respect to the role of masculinity and femininity as susceptibility factors in depression associated with stressful life experiences.     

Masculinity and femininity: The role of desirability in the relationships among measures based on self-concept and personality traits

With data gathered from 96 female college students, intercorrelations were examined among self-concept ratings of masculinity and femininity, and scales from two personality-trait measures of masculinity and femininity—the Adjective Check List (ACL) and the Extended Personal Attributes Questionnaire (EPAQ). The sign and magnitude of the correlations between pairs of measures were successfully predicted on the basis of the congruence between measures of both the gender relevance and the desirability of the self-rated traits comprising each measure. The desirability of the trait items employed in self-report personality-trait scales of masculinity and femininity evidently introduces methods variance that can either inhibit or potentiate the relationship with other scales composed predominantly of either desirable or undesirable traits. When balanced for the desirability of trait items, personality-trait scores of masculinity and femininity were substantially inversely correlated with each other, and only marginally correlated with self-concept ratings of masculinity and femininity, but these correlations remained in the anticipated directions. This result is consistent with the findings of Pedhazur and Tetenbaum (“Bem Sex Role Inventory: A Theoretical and Methodological Critique,” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 1979, 37, 996–1016), and supports Spence's (Masculinity, Femininity, and Gender-Related Traits: A Conceptual Analysis and Critique of Current Research,” In B. A. Maher and W. B. Maher (Eds.), Progress in Experimental Research, Vol. XIII, Normal Personality Processes, New York: Academic Press, 1984) position that personality traits should be viewed as only one of many possible referents for gender/sex role identity.     

Establishing Criterion Scores for the Kansas Marital Satisfaction Scale and the Revised Dyadic Adjustment Scale

This study demonstrates the usefulness of the KMSS and RDAS in distinguishing between the maritally distressed and nondistressed. For conceptual and statistical clarity, many marital interaction and marital therapy research measures, use a single cutoff score. It was determined that the cutoff score is 17 for the Kansas Marital Satisfaction Scale (KMSS) and 48 for the Revised Dyadic Adjustment Scale (RDAS) for husbands, wives, and couples. An equivalency table of mathematical formulas is also presented, allowing the conversion of individual and couple scores from one measure of marital quality to another. It is now possible to convert a score from any one of a number of instruments (KMSS, RDAS, Dyadic Adjustment Scale, Marital Adjustment Test, Revised Marital Adjustment Test) to an equivalent score as measured by another instrument.     

Everyday emotion word and personal pronoun use reflects dyadic adjustment among couples coping with breast cancer

Dyadic adjustment is integral for couples facing breast cancer; therefore, it is important to identify its everyday indicators. A total of 52 couples coping with breast cancer wore the Electronically Activated Recorder (EAR) for one weekend and completed the Dyadic Adjustment Scale to investigate how dyadic adjustment manifests in noncancer‐related word use. Multilevel models revealed that partners', rather than one's own, positive emotion words positively related to dyadic adjustment. Conversely, spouses' negative emotion words and patients' anger words were negatively related to dyadic adjustment. Furthermore, focus on spouses rather than patients (spouses “I” and patients “you”) positively related to dyadic adjustment. Results revealed that dyadic adjustment can be reflected in couples' everyday word use, serving as an objective indicator of marital quality.     

A Clinical approach to marital problems: Evaluation and management

Abstract

This study reviews two instruments designed to assess marital complaints as related to marital behavior: the Areas of Change Questionnaire (AC) and the Comprehensive Areas of Change Questionnaire (CAC). Although the AC is a reliable measure, it evaluates only 13 of the 29 categories of marital problems (Mead&;Vatcher, 1985) described by Geiss and O'Leary (1981). The CAC was developed to measure all 29 categories. Fifty distressed and 50 nondistressed couples were administered the CAC and the Marital Adjustment Test (MAT: Locke&;Wallace, 1959). The CAC is reliable overall, r=.84 and 20 out of 29 categories are reliable r=.40 or greater. Test-retest reliability was greater than r=.82 for all but one scoring method and for 21 of the 29 categories for all respondents with 2 additional categories stable for men and 2 different categories stable for women. The CAC differentiates distressed from nondistressed couples M=59.96 and 11.74 and individuals M=29.98 and 5.87, respectively. The CAC correlates with the MAT r=? .50 and ? .67 for nondistressed and distressed couples, respectively, when 5 extreme scores were removed from the distressed sample. Clinical utility of the CAC is discussed and further research into the nature of marital complaints is recommended.     

Relation of sex and gender role to love,sexual attitudes,and self-esteem

One theory of love (J. A. Lee, The Colors of Love: An Exploration of the Ways of Loving, Don Mills, Ontario: New Press, 1973) assumes at least six different attitudinal orientations toward love. Based on Lee's approach, recent research (e.g., C. Hendrick & S. Hendrick, “A Theory and Method of Love,” Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 1986, 50, pp. 392–402) has found consistent sex differences in love attitudes. Other research has found comparable sex differences in sexual permissiveness and other sexual attitudes. The present study explored the possibility that gender role orientation might be related to differences in love and sexual attitudes. A sample of 286 college students completed the Bem Sex Role Inventory (BSRI), Love Attitudes Scale, Sexual Attitudes Scale, and the Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale. Correlational analyses revealed many significant associations among love and sexual attitudes, self-esteem, and masculinity and femininity. Subjects were also classified according to gender role as androgynous, masculine, feminine, or undifferentiated, according to BSRI scores. Analyses of variance showed effects for both sex of subjects and gender role orientation on several of the dependent measures. The pattern of the results suggested that sex-stereotyped couples may have difficulties in romantic relationships because of the discrepancies in their love and sexual attitudes. An argument was made in support of the recent trend toward a multidimensional concept of gender role orientation.     

Multiple approaches to the treatment of violent couples

Abstract

The relationship of the discrepancy between couple's actual level of intimacy and desired level of intimacy and marital adjustment was explored using data from 185 randomly selected couples who completed the Personal Assessment of Intimacy in Relationships and the Marital Adjustment Test. Multivariate and univariate regression analyses indicated that the discrepancy between actual and desired intimacy of husbands and wives was highly predictive of marital adjustment (R²=.665). Particularly interesting was that couples with low intimacy scores who did not desire more intimacy had good marital adjustment. The relationship between intimacy and marital adjustment was curvilinear, and wives' marital adjustment was more affected by intimacy than husbands'. Implications for marital therapy are discussed.     

The personal and marital adjustment of parents as related to observed child deviance and parenting behaviors

The purpose of this study was to document the relationship of parents' personal and marital adjustment to their own behavior as parents and the behavior of their children. A total of 31 families who had been referred for behavioral counseling regarding their male child's behavior problems were given a diagnostic battery which included home observations as well as administration to parents of the Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory (MMPI) and the LockeWallace Marital Adjustment Test. Results revealed consistent negative relationships between marital satisfaction and the observed level of child deviance. Similarly, there were consistent negative relationships between marital satisfaction and the level of observed “negativeness” to the child. Analyses using the MMPI indicated that a large number of the fathers ' MMPI scales were related to child deviance, but this finding was not replicated for mothers. Several MMPI scales were related to marital satisfaction for both parents. These results are discussed in terms of their implications for the assessment and treatment of families with a problem child.     

Androgyny,depression, and self-esteem in irish homosexual and heterosexual males and females

An examination was made of the following research questions: (a) Do Irish homosexuals and heterosexuals differ in the frequency of their classification in sex-role categories? (b) Is sexual orientation related to psychological adjustment? (c) Is androgyny related to psychological adjustment? Subjects were 112 Irish men and women who were administered Bem's Sex-Role Inventory, Rosenberg's Self-Esteem Scale, Zung's Self-Rating Depression Scale, and a questionnaire. Results indicated that Irish homosexuals were classified more frequently than Irish heterosexuals as androgynous. Homosexuals did not differ from heterosexuals in self-esteem or depression scores. Among these Irish subjects, psychological sex-role category is a more powerful influence on psychological health than actual sexual orientation. It is not whether you are homosexual or heterosexual that affects your psychological health, but how you perceive your own psychological masculinity and femininity.     

Masculinity and femininity as factors in feminism

The relationship between feminism and sex roles was explored in two studies. In female college students, sex-role types were measured by Baucom's (1976) MSC and FMN scales and by Bem's Sex-Role Inventory (Bem, 1974). Feminism was measured by the Attitude Toward Women Scale (AWS, Short Form) (Spence & Helmreich, 1972) and the Women's Liberation Scale (WLS) (Goldberg, 1976). Two groups of women were predicted to be more profeminist than others. (a) those scoring high on both masculinity and femininity and (b) those scoring high on masculinity and low on femininity. Results of the study supported both hypotheses using the AWS but not the WLS. In the second study, MSC and FMN served as the basis for forming sex-role types, and feminism was measured by participation in NOW. Again, a large number of women high on masculinity and low on femininity were feminists: however, women high on both masculinity and femininity were underrepresented in NOW. Different results in the two studies are discussed in terms of the different ways that feminism was measured.     

The relationship of sexual adjustment and related sexual behaviors and attitudes to marital adjustment

Abstract

This paper examines the extent of relationship between sexual adjustment and marital adjustment for 30 married couples followed for 3–6 months. Sexual adjustment was assessed by means of the LoPiccolo-Steger Sexual Interaction Inventory, and two other measures termed a Couple Interaction Scale (CI) and a Couple Compatibility Ratio (CCR). Marital adjustment was assessed by means of the Locke-Wallace Marital Adjustment Scale (L-W MAS) and a clinically-devised instrument based on the extent of support between the marital partners. The two marital adjustment instruments agreed closely. A high degree of association was obtained between most of the sexual adjustment measures and the two marital adjustment measures; using the most reliable of these measures, it is estimated that sexual adjustment contributed between 40 % and 55 % of the variance in marital adjustment. This association was not due to a specific stage of. the human sexual response cycle of desire, excitement, orgasm and gratification. Intercorrelation of measures of each of these stages with the marital adjustment measures generally yielded significant relationships.     

Gender-Related traits and helping in a nonemergency situation

In prior research, mostly on helping in emergeicies, individuals' scores on expressivity (or femininity) generally have been unrelated to helping, whereas instrumentality (or masculinity) scores frequently have been significantly related to assisting. In two studies, we examined the relation of expressivity and instrumentality to willingness to help in a nonemergency situation in which the other's need was unambiguous; moreover, we assessed possible mediators of relations. Expressivity was positively related to amount of helping, and this relation appeared mediated by sympathetic responsivity. Masculinity was not significantly related to helping, although it was marginally, negatively related to assisting in one study. The findings are discussed in relation to those in related research.