Gender Roles: An Examination of the Hopes and Expectations of the Next Generation of Managers in Canada and China

Through a survey of 214 Canadian and 160 Chinese business students, we investigated students hopes and expectations regarding their future spouses employment and family roles relative to their own. The results of this exploratory study show that a large proportion of the students from both countries hope for equality between spouses, especially in the distribution of domestic tasks. However, significant discrepancies exist between their ideal hopes and their expectations of what will actually happen in reality. Many men and women of both countries expect that the wives will do more of the domestic work and have less prestigious jobs and lower earnings than their husbands. The between-sex and cross-national differences in gender role hopes and expectations were also explored.     

Work Values and Their Effect on Work Behavior and Work Outcomes in Female and Male Managers

A longitudinal sample of over 800 MBA graduates surveyed across a 16-year period was recruited to investigate the relationship of work values to work effort, salary levels, and other work outcomes. As predicted, certain work values were related to higher salary levels and to the number of hours worked. Changing companies more often and receiving more promotions were also significantly related to work values. Work values did not differ for women and men in the sample, except that women were higher in the value of wanting to do an excellent job. Controlling for work values did not explain significantly higher salaries for men as compared to women. Implications of these data are discussed.     

Turkish College Students' Attitudes Toward Women Managers: The Effects of Patriarchy,Sexism, and Gender Differences

The authors examined how patriarchy, sexism, and gender influence Turkish college students' attitudes toward women managers. Turkish undergraduate students (N = 183) from Middle East Technical University completed questionnaires measuring attitudes toward women managers as well as attitudes toward the concepts of hostile and benevolent sexism and support for patriarchy. Participants were of upper- or middle-class Turkish backgrounds. The results showed that male participants exhibited less positive attitudes toward women managers than did female participants. In addition, participants who held more favorable attitudes toward patriarchy and who scored high on hostile sexism also held less positive attitudes toward women managers than those who held less favorable attitudes toward patriarchy and who scored low on hostile sexism. A regression analysis showed that support for patriarchy and hostile sexism was more important for explaining less favorable attitudes toward women managers than was benevolent sexism.     

I Can't Wait to Get Married: Gender Differences in Drive to Marry

In this study we examined a new construct—the Drive to Marry (DTM). Young single men and women (149 men and 246 women) rated their desire to get married and completed measures of their valuing of marital, parental, and occupational roles; concern about others' views of them; and feminist attitudes. We found that women had a higher DTM than did men. In both genders, DTM was predicted by the value of parental role and by concern about others' views of them. In women, DTM was also predicted by traditional attitudes toward gender roles, and there was a trend for women who valued the occupational role to have a lower DTM. Conservative women, women who valued the parental role, and women with a higher DTM were also more likely to want to use the title “Mrs.” and to adopt their husband's surname. An earlier version of this paper was presented at the annual meeting of the Midwestern Psychological Association in May 2004.     

Gender Differences in the Influence of Professional Tenure on Work Attitudes

In this study we examined gender differences in the influence of professional tenure on 3 work attitudes: career salience, organizational commitment, and job involvement. In total, 220 men and 125 women working in high-level jobs in a large multinational organization completed a written questionnaire. Using hierarchical regression analyses, and controlling for differences between men and women in age, the presence of children, and number of working hours, we found no significant gender differences in the 3 work attitudes. The results further show that although career salience, job involvement, and organizational commitment increase with age, these work attitudes decrease with professional tenure. In terms of organizational commitment, the negative influence of professional tenure was significantly stronger for women than for men. Finally, the implications for future studies and for organizational practice are discussed.     

Social Exclusion and the Transition from School to Work: The Case of Young People Not in Education, Employment, or Training (NEET)

In the modern labor market what Côté (1996) describes as “identity capital”—comprising educational, social, and psychological resources—is at a premium in entering and maintaining employment. One consequence is the extension of education and training while young people acquire the qualifications and skills that will enhance their employability. In accordance with the perspective of life span developmental psychology, this places particular pressure on those young people growing up in disadvantaged circumstances and lacking support, especially when attempting to negotiate the transition from school to work. A particular policy concern in Britain has been directed at those young people who leave full-time education at the minimum age of 16 and then spend a substantial period not in education, employment, or training (NEET). This article reports the result of analyzing longitudinal data, collected for a subsample of the 1970 British Birth Cohort Study surveyed at age 21, to model the relationship of NEET status to earlier educational achievement and circumstances and to assess the added difficulties NEET poses in relation to the building of adult identity capital. It is concluded that although poor educational achievement is the major factor in entering NEET, inner city living for boys and lack of parental interest in their education for girls are also important. For young men the consequences of NEET lie mainly in subsequent poor labor market experience. For young women, the majority of whom are teenage mothers, the damaging effects of NEET extend to the psychological domain as well. It is concluded that effective counseling targeted at high risk groups, along the lines of the new UK “ConneXions” service, are needed to help young people avoid the damaging effects of NEET and make a successful transition to adult life.     

Gender Differences in Psychological Distress Among Immigrants from the Former Soviet Union

In this study we compared rates and correlates of psychological distress among immigrant women and men from the former Soviet Union. A demographic, migration, and social network questionnaire and the Symptom Checklist-90-R were administered to 935 female and 706 male immigrants. Older age and less time in the United States predicted distress in both gender groups. However, having less education, leaving relatives behind, and not being sponsored by friends or a religious organization predicted greater distress for women. Women reported significantly more distress than men except for those men who were married and retired.     

Attracting Applicants in the War for Talent: Differences in Work Preferences Among High Achievers

This study examines how several indicators of ability and achievement are associated with individual differences in preferences for job and organizational attributes. Results from a sample of 378 business and liberal arts students suggest that students with high cognitive ability and all types of high achievement place greater importance on interesting and challenging work than do other students. However, on other work attributes (e.g., job flexibility, pay practices, fast-track promotion systems), students with high cognitive ability and high academic achievement (i.e., grade point average) appear to have different preference patterns from those with high social achievement (e.g., extracurricular and leadership activities). Results are discussed in terms of implications for employers and future research.     

Longitudinal Changes of Planned Happenstance Skills by Gender,Community Types,and Employment Status in a Sample of College Students in School‐to‐Work Transition

This study examined the characteristics of college students who are transitioning from school to work by measuring their mean differences on planned happenstance skills subscales at 3 separate time points. The results indicated that the mean of planned happenstance skills changed across the 3 time points and are somewhat different through demographic factors, such as gender, community types, and employment status. In addition, 2‐way and 3‐way multivariate analysis of variance results showed that the interaction effects of 3 demographic variables on 5 planned happenstance skills were not significant. Practical implications for career counselors are discussed.     

Individual Differences in Experiences of and Responses to Guilt and Shame: Examining the Lenses of Gender and Gender Role

How are experiences of and reactions to guilt and shame a function of gendered views of the self? Individual differences in guilt and shame responses were explored in a sample of 104 young adults, most of whom were European American. Results indicated that, although women reported greater proneness to guilt and shame, men reported more trait guilt. Heightened levels of guilt- and shame-proneness were observed among both men and women with traditionally feminine gender roles, whereas a more traditionally masculine self-concept was associated with decreased shame-proneness for women. Gender schematic women favored verbal responses to ameliorate the experience of guilt, whereas gender schematic men preferred action-oriented responses. These results are discussed as gendered outcomes of schematic versus aschematic gender role socialization.     

Gender and Age Differences in Social Skills Among Children with ADHD: Peer Problems and Prosocial Behavior

Abstract

Gender differences in peer problems and prosocial behavior among children with attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) were examined. Parents and teachers rated social functioning on the Strengths and Difficulties Questionnaire (SDQ) among 592 children (age 5–10?years) with ADHD and among 215 children (age 6–10?years) in a community sample. Results in the clinical group revealed significant interaction effects where older boys showed fewer peer problems than younger boys, but older girls had similar peer problems as younger girls. Teachers reported less prosocial behavior among younger girls than older girls. No gender differences in social problems emerged for the nonclinical comparison group.     

人类大脑结构和功能的性别差异：来自脑成像研究的证据

大脑的性别差异近年来受到了广泛关注。脑成像技术的出现为脑结构和脑功能性别差异的研究开辟了新的道路。借助结构磁共振成像和弥散张量成像等脑结构信息, 以及脑电图、正电子发射断层扫描技术和功能性磁共振成像等脑功能信息, 当前研究主要探讨了脑灰质、脑白质和大脑的基线活动在脑局部区域、脑子系统、全脑连接组三个层次上的性别差异及其在年龄上的发展变化。此外, 为了更好地理解脑性别差异, 当前文章还探讨了脑性别差异研究领域的一些认识误区。有关脑性别差异的研究虽然已经取得了丰富的成果, 但现有的研究结果存在很多分歧, 仍然有深入挖掘的空间。未来应该加强对具有性别特异性的心理疾病脑机制的研究, 关注基因和环境对脑性别差异的交互作用, 并利用脑功能活动动态变化的特性、以及结合多模态的脑成像技术进一步阐明脑性别差异。     

Individual Differences in Sensitivity to Disempowering Acts: A Comparison of Gender and Identity-Based Explanations for Perceived Offensiveness

Policy-makers, courts, employers, and individuals must understand perceptual differences among individuals when managing workplace behaviors. Offensive acts that lead to employee disempowerment require particular attention as these behaviors are related to several negative organizational consequences. Women tend to be more sensitive to offensive behavior, but it is unknown whether gender or other factors explain this higher sensitivity. In this study, sensitivity to disempowering acts was assessed by measuring perceived offensiveness reported by male and female observers of videotaped segments of highly confrontive verbal exchanges. Competing hypotheses tested gender and identification with the target of disempowering acts as the underlying reason for women's higher sensitivity. Findings indicated that women reported higher perceived offensiveness regardless of the gender of the target of disempowerment.     

Women and Men Go to University: Mathematical Background and Gender Differences in Choice of Field in Higher Education

Gender segregation in higher education is well documented. Female students major in mathematics, technology, and sciences less often than men, and they concentrate in humanities and social sciences. Using multinomial logit on the 6,139 applicants to Tel Aviv University in Israel in 1994, I examined the claim that one of the roots of gender segregation in higher education lies in course-taking patterns in high school. The main findings are as follows: Women are underrepresented among the applicants to the mathematics-related fields of study; mathematical background in high school is particularly effective in narrowing the gender gap in applying to selective and attractive, but not mathematically related, fields of study at the university; women rely on high qualifications more than men when applying to selective and male-dominated fields of study. Several explanations of the findings will be discussed.     

Age-Related Differences in the Transition from Adolescence to Adulthood and Links with Family Relationships

This study examined differences on major aspects of attaining adult status in the transition from adolescence into young adulthood. The attainment of developmental tasks and the quality of parent–child relationships were compared across adolescence and young adulthood. In addition, the extent to which relationships with parents are related to the attainment of young adulthood developmental tasks was also investigated. The study was conducted on 169 Israeli adolescents, early young adults, and late young adults. Results showed that developmental tasks are attained at different stages, and that the consolidation of adult status is achieved closer to the end of the third decade of life. Relationships with parents were found to be more positive following the transition from adolescence to early young adulthood. Adaptation of young adults was explained by the quality of relationships with parents and especially with fathers.     

Responding to and Retreating from the Call: Career Salience,Work Satisfaction,and Depression Among Clergywomen

The authors examined career salience, work satisfaction, and depression among 189 clergywomen from all geographic regions of the United States. Participants demonstrated, on average, a moderate level of commitment to their careers and exhibited a high degree of work satisfaction, yet the majority also showed many symptoms of non-clinical depression. A regression model controlling for demographics and work history and conditions revealed that work satisfaction had a significant negative effect on depression, suggesting that higher job satisfaction results in less depression. The effect of career commitment on depression approached significance, suggesting greater levels of commitment resulted in higher levels of depression.     

Attitudes to Marriage and Sexual Behaviors: A Survey of Gender and Culture Differences in China and United Kingdom

This paper reports a survey carried out among 505 university students in China and 338 students in the United Kingdom. The survey included questions on attitudes toward mate-selection preferences, marriage, and sexual behavior. The findings show that traditional values in mate-selection preferences persist more in China than in the United Kingdom and indicate that, despite a profound social revolution over the last two decades, a relatively conservative sexual culture still exists in China today. Traditional morality and attitudes prevail especially among women. Gender and culture differences are discussed.     

From Posttrauma to Gender and Back: A Gender Motivation Theory-Explanation of Gender Differences in Trauma Exposure,Symptoms, Diagnosis,and Implications

This article proposes the “gender motivation theory” as a potential starting point for the study of gender differences in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Grounded in evolutionary and sociological theories, the gender motivational theory argues that men are generally motivated by status enhancement, whereas women are motivated by risk reduction. Accordingly, the theory considers these differing motivations as the core factor differentiating men and women in challenging situations regarding their perception, meaning, experience, and behavior. The theory refers to PTSD as a subjectively perceived failure fulfilling gender motives. Applying this theory to trauma victims enables expanding and increasing gender sensibility for an understanding of PTSD and its various consequences. It also allows a broader and deeper understanding of gender beyond normative boundaries. The article examines the validity of the gender motivation theory in view of the cumulative empirical evidence of gender differences in the study of PTSD as well as other fields of knowledge. Additionally, the proposed theory offers a coherent perspective and guidelines for further examination and practical applications in PTSD research.