Academic Gender Bias and Women's Behavioral Agency Self-Efficacy

The relationship between academic gender bias and female students' agentic self-efficacy expectations was examined. Agentic self-efficacy expectations was defined as an individual's beliefs about her ability to successfully engage in proactive educational and career facilitative behaviors. Participants included 67 full-time junior and senior undergraduate women enrolled in traditional, nontraditional, and gender-neutral majors. Results revealed that perceived academic gender bias was significantly predictive of agentic self-efficacy expectations, above and beyond the contributions of sex role attitudes, gender concentration of major, and race/ethnicity. Implications for women's career development and future research are discussed.     

Gender Role Attitudes and Careers: A Longitudinal Study

Data from the Monitoring the Future Study were used to examine the impact of early gender role attitudes on later career outcomes for women and men. We also examined the impact of marriage, children, and labor market outcomes on changes in gender role attitudes. Women’s early gender role attitudes predicted their later work hours and earnings. Women’s work hours predicted their later gender egalitarianism. Children were negatively associated with later gender egalitarianism for both women and men. Findings indicated that gender role attitudes influence subsequent behavior, but they may also be adjusted to accommodate to situational constraints.     

Gender Role Egalitarian Attitudes Among Chinese College Students

This study was designed to examine the relationships between gender role egalitarian attitudes and gender, age, parents’ education and occupations, anticipated age of marriage and child bearing, desired family size, career choices, and preference for sex of the children among 470 Chinese college students. Statistically significant relationships were observed between gender role egalitarian attitudes and gender, age, and anticipated age of marriage and childbearing. There were no relationships between gender role egalitarian attitudes and preference for sex of the children, desired family size, parents’ education and occupation, and Chinese students’ career choices.     

家庭社会经济地位与青少年自我效能感的关系：家庭支持的中介作用与性别因素的调节作用

为探讨家庭社会经济地位对青少年自我效能感的影响及其作用机制,该研究采用问卷法对520名青少年进行调查。结果表明：(1)家庭社会经济地位、家庭支持、自我效能感两两均显著正相关;女生的家庭支持显著高于男生,自我效能感显著低于男生;(2)家庭支持在家庭社会经济地位对自我效能感的影响中起中介作用;(3)该中介作用受到性别因素的调节,较之男生,女生的家庭支持受到家庭社会经济地位的影响作用更为显著。     

Family Patterns of Gender Role Attitudes

Study goals were to identify family patterns of gender role attitudes, to examine the conditions under which these patterns emerged, and to assess the implications of gender attitude patterns for family conflict. Participants were mothers, fathers, and first- and second-born adolescents from 358 White, working and middle-class US families. Results of cluster analysis revealed three gender role attitude patterns: egalitarian parents and children, traditional parents and children, and a divergent pattern, with parents more traditional and children more egalitarian. Mixed-model ANOVAs indicated that these family patterns were related to socioeconomic status, parents’ time spent in gendered household tasks and with children, and the gender constellation of the sibling dyad. The traditional family group reported the most family conflict.     

Male Role Norm Endorsement and Sexism Predict Heterosexual College Men’s Attitudes Toward Casual Sex,Intoxicated Sexual Contact,and Casual Sex

This study examined whether gender roles, particularly male role beliefs and sexism, may underlie self-reported attitudes toward and participation in casual sex and intoxication prior to sexual contact in a sample of heterosexual undergraduate men from the United States. We utilized online survey methods to examine whether men’s (N?=?223 from a large mid-Atlantic University) endorsement of traditional masculinity (power and status, toughness, and anti-femininity) and sexist attitudes regarding women’s roles (hostile, benevolent) were related to engagement in casual sex (i.e., number of one-time-only sex partners), and whether masculinity was related to intoxicated sexual contact (i.e., propensity to consume alcohol prior to sexual contact). Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) revealed that, as expected, endorsement of the toughness male role norm was positively associated with favorable attitudes toward casual sex, and endorsement of benevolent sexism was negatively associated with favorable attitudes toward casual sex. Favorable attitudes toward casual sex, in turn, were positively associated with men’s reported number of casual sex partners, as partially mediated by intoxicated sexual contact. Further, toughness endorsement was positively associated with number of casual sex partners via its positive association with intoxicated sexual contact; whereas power and status demonstrated the opposite, negative pattern. We discuss the contribution of this research to the broader literature on gender roles and sexual behavior and the utility of the findings for interventions aimed at reducing men’s casual sex behavior and intoxication prior to sexual contact.     

Perceived Parenting Style of Fathers and Iranian Adolescents' Self-efficacy: The Moderating Role of Gender and Education

The authors examined the moderating role of adolescent's gender and father's education on the associations between perceived paternal parenting styles and self-efficacy in a socioeconomical diverse sample of Iranian ado-lescents (n = 382). Results revealed that paternal authoritative parenting was significantly and positively related to self-efficacy. Interestingly, a significant and positive relation was also found between paternal authoritarian parenting and self-efficacy. This finding might have been the result of the fact that this study was conducted as part of a collectivist culture. In addition, the results indicated that boys who perceived their fathers as highly authoritative indicated higher self-efficacy than girls did. Furthermore, the findings demonstrated that higher educational levels attenuate the negative impact of the permissive parenting style on self-efficacy. The present findings underscore the need to focus on the role of gender and father's education when assessing the link between parenting style and adolescents' self-efficacy.     

Relations Among Ethnicity, Gender, Beliefs, Attitudes, and Intention to Pursue a Career in Information Technology

Using data from 159 African Americans and 98 Anglo Americans, we examined relations among ethnicity, gender, information technology (IT) self-efficacy, occupational stereotypes, attitudes toward IT, and IT career intentions. Results revealed that IT self-efficacy and occupational stereotypes were related to attitudes toward IT jobs, and these attitudes were positively related to career intentions. In addition, there were ethnic and gender differences in IT self-efficacy and occupational stereotypes. In particular, African American men reported higher levels of IT self-efficacy, whereas Anglo American women reported lower levels of IT self-efficacy than did members of all other groups. Furthermore, Anglo Americans had more negative stereotypes of IT professionals than did African Americans. Implications for research and practice are discussed.     

Marital Processes Linking Gender Role Attitudes and Marital Satisfaction Among Mexican‐Origin Couples: Application of an Actor–Partner Interdependence Mediation Model

Informed by dyadic approaches and culturally informed, ecological perspectives of marriage, we applied an actor–partner interdependence mediation model (APIMeM) in a sample of 120 Mexican‐origin couples to examine (a) the associations linking Mexican immigrant husbands’ and wives’ gender role attitudes to marital satisfaction directly and indirectly through marital processes (i.e., warmth and negativity) and (b) whether the associations between spouses’ gender role attitudes and marital processes were moderated by wives’ employment. Although previous research has identified spouses’ gender role attitudes as potential predictors of spouses’ marital satisfaction, no study has examined these links in a dyadic model that elucidates how gender role attitudes may operate through processes to shape marital satisfaction and conditions under which associations may differ. We found that when spouses reported less sex‐typed attitudes, their partners reported feeling more connected to them and more satisfied with the marriage, regardless of whether wives were employed. Our results suggest that marital satisfaction was highest for those Mexican‐origin couples in which marital partners were less sex‐typed in their attitudes about marital roles to the extent that partners’ attitudinal role flexibility promoted spouses’ feelings of warmth and connection to their partner.     

The Moderating Role of Gender and Gender Role Attitudes on the Link Between Spousal Support and Marital Quality

Researchers who examine the relation of gender role attitudes to division of household labor and marital quality often overlook its relation to emotional spousal support. Moreover, research on gender and marriage often ignores how gender role attitudes may explain the link between spousal support and marital quality. Secondary data analyses on a nationally representative sample of U.S. adults examined the interaction of gender and gender role attitudes on spousal support and marital quality. Emotional spousal support predicted better marital satisfaction and less conflict for traditional women and egalitarian men, whereas both instrumental and emotional spousal support predicted better marital satisfaction for egalitarian women and traditional men. These results suggest that within, as well as between, gender differences are important for understanding the contribution of spousal support to perceived marital quality.     

Non-cognitive antecedents of pay and pay expectations: gender-based differences in a masculine work setting

Research on gender differences in the effects of non-cognitive traits and behaviours on pay is rather scant and focuses largely on the big five personality traits. To address this gap, we consider the equivocal findings regarding the direct associations of intrinsic motivation, self-efficacy, and networking with pay, arguing for gender differences in the degree to which actual pay and pay expectations are influenced by these non-cognitive factors. Hypotheses are tested using a sample of 250 individuals working in traditionally masculine jobs at a single high-technology firm. Participants completed two surveys, and income data were retrieved from the firm’s archives. Intrinsic motivation was positively related to actual pay and pay expectations among men and was negatively related to both pay measures among women. Self-efficacy was positively related to actual pay among women and was unrelated to actual pay among men. Networking was positively related to actual pay among men and was negatively related to actual pay among women. Finally, self-efficacy and networking were unrelated to pay expectations among both men and women. We draw from notions of gender stereotypes, backlash, and tokenism to discuss gender-based differences in how organizations appraise and reward non-cognitive traits and behaviours.     

Gender Role Violations and Identity Misclassification: The Roles of Audience and Actor Variables

When people violate certain social role norms, they risk false categorization into a stigmatized group. For example, heterosexual men who perform female stereotypic behaviors are often misclassified as gay. This identity misclassification is aversive because it threatens fundamental psychological needs. Findings presented here reveal that expectations of identity misclassification fuel heterosexual actors’ (N?=?216) discomfort during imagined gender role violations and that audience variables that increase the likelihood of misclassification also increase role violators’ discomfort. Moreover, expectations of misclassification strongly predict people’s discomfort during gender role violations regardless of their standing along relevant actor dimensions (e.g., attitudes and self-views). These findings suggest that people’s—and particularly heterosexual men’s—expectations of identity misclassification are powerful mechanisms that underlie adherence to traditional gender role norms.     

Direct and Indirect Assessment of Gender Role Identification

Differences in gender role identification exist among both men and women. Earlier researchers have developed several instruments to measure the degree to which individuals identify with the masculine or feminine gender role. In the present study we examined a number of these measurement procedures. Undergraduate students (N?=?45) were administered three direct and two indirect measures of gender role identification. In addition, participants were exposed to a psychological stress test that was relatively masculine. Findings reveal that direct and indirect instruments tap different underlying constructs of gender role identification that are nevertheless positively correlated. Furthermore, results suggest that one of the indirect measures, the Gender Implicit Association Test (GIAT), is a promising instrument to provide an estimate of gender role identification. Of all gender role identification measures the GIAT was (a) most sensitive to sex differences and (b) the only significant predictor of systolic blood pressure responses during and after the relatively masculine stress task.     

Gender Role Beliefs and Attitudes toward Lesbians and Gay Men in Chile and the U.S.

We compared the relationship between gender role beliefs and antigay prejudice in Chile and the United States. Participants were Chilean and American university students. In Study 1, Chileans were more prejudiced than Americans, and men were more prejudiced than women. In Study 2, gender role beliefs mediated cultural and sex differences in prejudice. Chileans held more traditional gender role beliefs and were more antigay than Americans. Men were more prejudiced than women, particularly in their attitudes toward gay men. Further, sex differences in attitudes toward lesbians and gay men were completely mediated by gender role beliefs. Nationality differences in attitudes toward lesbians were completely mediated, and nationality differences in attitudes toward gay men were partially mediated, by gender role beliefs.     

Marital Quality of Newlywed African American Couples: Implications of Egalitarian Gender Role Dynamics

This research examined associations between husbands’ and wives’ gender role attitudes, division of household labor, and marital quality in a sample of 697 newlywed African American couples residing in the southern region of the United States. Guided by a cultural ecological framework, we tested hypotheses specific to the unique socio-cultural context of African Americans using a mixed model ANCOVA design. Results revealed that: (1) couples reported lower marital quality when husbands had relatively more traditional gender role attitudes; (2) husbands reported lower marital quality when the couple engaged in a relatively more traditional division of household labor; and (3) husbands with more traditional attitudes who also engaged in a traditional division of labor reported lower marital quality compared to all other husbands. Although African Americans are thought to have more flexible gender role orientations than other racial/ethnic groups within the U.S., these results document within group variability in couple gender dynamics and its association with variability in marital quality.     

Biological Sex and Psychological Gender as Predictors of Routine and Strategic Relational Maintenance

The current study contributes to 2 growing areas of research: one distinguishes between routine and strategic relational maintenance behaviors, and the other concerns the relative utility of biological sex and psychological gender as predictors of communication behaviors. Specifically, we sought to uncover sex and gender differences in routine and strategic maintenance and to test the relative strength of each as predictors of routine and strategic maintenance. Survey data were collected from 189 individuals in romantic relationships. Results indicated only one sex difference; women use routine openness more than men do. However, femininity was positively associated with the routine use of advice, conflict management, and openness. Masculinity was positively associated with the strategic use of openness and tasks. Femininity was not associated with strategic maintenance, and masculinity was not associated with routine maintenance. The value of distinguishing between sex and gender to explain how individuals function in relationships is discussed.     

Gender differences and similarities in sex and love

One's attitudes toward love and sexuality are influenced by many factors, including gender. To explore the role of gender (and other variables) in participants' attitudinal orientations toward love and sexuality, data were collected in the United States at three time points (1988, 1992, 1993), resulting in a total sample of 1,090 participants. Data analyses showed gender differences in both sexual attitudes and love. Men were more sexually permissive than women (consistent with previous research), although women and men similarly endorsed other aspects of sexuality, including sex as an emotional experience. Men and women differed on several relationship variables (e.g., women were more oriented to friendship-based love, and men to game-playing love). However, correlational analyses showed many similar patterns for women and men. These findings underline the need to consider both gender differences and similarities in sex and love within intimate relationships.     

A Comparison of Eating Disorder Symptomatology, Role Concerns, Figure Preference and Social Comparison Between Women Who Have Attended Single Sex and Coeducational Schools

This study sought to examine the effect of high school gender composition on eating disorder symptomatology and attitudes of female Australian university students. We compared female students who had previously attended single sex (n?=?52) or coeducational (n?=?43) high schools on measures of eating disorder symptomatology, role concerns, figure preference and social comparison so as to examine the effect of high school gender composition on these measures. Importantly, the groups compared here were not significantly different in age, body mass index, socioeconomic status, or whether they had previously sought advice about their weight. Contrary to predictions based on previous research, there were no significant differences between the groups on eating disorder symptomatology, role concern, or social comparison measures. However, students who had previously attended single sex schools endorsed significantly thinner figure preferences overall, suggesting that school environment was an important cultural factor in the development of aspiration towards a thin idea. Additionally, both groups perceived their current figure to be larger than the figure they perceived as most attractive. Our findings provide mixed support for the notion that high school gender composition impacted on the eating-related behaviour and attitudes of university students. Methodological differences that may account for the discrepancies between the findings of the current study and those of earlier work are discussed. Further research including longitudinal studies that employ larger sample sizes is required to clarify these findings.     

Through the Lenses of Gender, Race, and Class: Students’ Perceptions of Childless/Childfree Individuals and Couples

Earlier research has documented negative perceptions of childless couples, particularly the voluntarily childfree, among college students. In this project we used hypothetical vignettes to assess variations in students’ (N?=?478) perceptions of childless couples related to the couple’s race, occupations of husband and wife, and assumed reasons for childlessness. Perceptions were strongly influenced by occupational status and gender, but we found few race differences. Neither infertility nor chosen childlessness was rated negatively, but couples were rated more positively if they were perceived as temporarily rather than permanently childless. Our findings suggest that delayed parenthood is regarded as normative and that students have few negative biases regarding infertility or chosen childlessness. Perceptions were strongly conditioned by economic and employment considerations, which reflect current concerns about balancing work and family trajectories.     

Gender Role Differences in College Students from One- and Two-Parent Families

This study explores three aspects of gender roles: the person's perceptions of their own gender role, the person's perceptions of socially idealized gender roles, and the fit between an individual's gender role and their perception of the ideal person's gender role. Because parent–child relationships and gender models and attitudes in one- and two-parent families may differ, the gender roles of college students raised in one- versus two-parent families may differ. Participants in one- and two-parent families were paired based on gender, age, race, and family of origin's current income. Forty-five pairs resulted (30 Caucasian, 12 African-American, and 3 Asian-American pairs). Twenty-one of the pairs were lower middle class, 11 were middle class, and 13 were upper middle class. Differences in gender roles were found. Males and females raised in mother-headed one-parent families were more likely than males and females raised in intact two-parent families to view their own gender role in terms of traditionally masculine characteristics (independence, assertiveness, self-reliance, self-sufficiency, etc.) and to report a low level of traditionally feminine characteristics. In contrast, females in intact two-parent families were more likely than females in mother-headed one-parent families to view themselves as androgenous. No differences in idealized gender roles were found between students raised in one- versus two-parent families; students from both types of families perceived the ideal person as androgenous.