The sex by race interaction in cognitive measures

Data consisting of 79 cognitive measures from Project TALENT for 100,000 white and black high school students have been analyzed for possible race by sex interactions. Control variables included geographical area, grade in high school, and socio-economic class. Race by sex interactions are largest when socioeconomic class is controlled and are highly related to the size of the main effect of sex as well. White boys and girls differ more than black boys and girls whether the overall sex difference favors males or females. Sex by grade and, to a lesser extent, sex by area interactions were also moderately large and consistent with the size of the main effect of sex. Since there are no consistent relationships with other main effects, and since the measures producing sex differences also tend to produce the interactions, it is concluded that sex differences and the interactions with sex share the same causes. Differences between these results and those of Jensen are also discussed.     

Race versus social class: Social orientation and cognitive play in black and white middle SES preschool children

Black and white middle socioeconomic status (SES) preschool boys and girls were compared on the frequency with which they interacted socially with peers (people orientation) and on the frequency with which they engaged in nonsocial activity which involved being occupied with some material or task (object orientation). They also were compared on the frequency with which they engaged in the cognitive play types: functional, constructive, and dramatic. No race differences were found for people and object orientation. Sex, but not race, differences were found for level of social interaction. Boys engaged more frequently than girls in the highest level of social interaction. On frequency of the cognitive play types, neither race differences, nor sex differences, nor a race by sex interaction occurred. These findings raise questions about other assumed differences between black and white children. This study underscores the necessity not to treat black children as a monolithic group, but to recognize that sex, SES, and possibly other psychological and sociological characteristics influence their social and cognitive behaviors.     

Nursing career choice and Holland's theory: Are men and blacks different?

Professional nurses are overwhelmingly white and female despite lowered race and sex barriers to entry. In a study to examine race and sex differences in personality profile among nursing students, the Self Directed Search was administered to students entering baccalaureate nursing programs. The results generally supported Holland's typology. Race and sex differences in SDS codes were not significant; some differences were found in socioeconomic characteristics. The results provided some clues for effective vocational counseling and recruitment of men and blacks.     

Sex differences in realization of individual potential for achievement

Data from 4035 participants in Project TALENT were analyzed to examine the extent to which known sex differences in achievement held up when early potential for achievement was contolled. Original TALENT data, consisting of information on socioeconomic background, cognitive abilities, and educational and occupational aspirations, were collected in 1960 when members of the study sample were in Grade 9. Follow-up surveys measuring participants' educational and occupational attainment were conducted at 1, 5, and 11 years after the date of participants' expected graduation from high school. Women had higher high school grades and scored higher on a composite of academic ability tests taken in Grade 9 than did men. However, by 11 years after high school, men had acquired more education and were earning more money on the job. Sex differences in realization of achievement potential were found across all socioeconomic levels. At least part of the reason behind women's relative failure to translate potential into achievement may lie in the greater conflict, for women, between the roles of spouse/parent and the roles of student/worker: variables measuring the onset, duration, and extent of family-related commitments were more strongly related to female than to male realization of potential. Sex differences in achievement grew larger between the 5- and 11-year follow-ups as a greater proportion of women in the study sample became wives and mothers. The widening of the sex gap in achievement during this period was particularly pronounced among the subgroup of individuals who were in the top quartile of potential in Grade 9.     

Race differences and the Spearman hypothesis

Certain published data have been reviewed and new data presented relevant to the so-called Spearman hypothesis concerning the racial differences on cognitive tests of black and white Americans. In the published data, the correlation between the profiles of low socio-economic and high socio-economic status (SES) whites became ?.90 when sex, area of the country, and grade/age were controlled. This nearly mirror-image relationship suggests that the residual across-the-board difference between the two groups is primarily on the general factor in intelligence. In contrast, the same correlation between blacks and the low SES whites was only ?.19. This indicated not only independence of the profiles but the presence of multiple causes of differences in addition to a possible contribution of the general factor. These published interpretations have now been confirmed by obtaining correlations between general factor loadings and the group differences for most of the same tests. For the SES dochotomy in whites this correlation is .86. For blacks and the low SES whites it is .17. When the two distributions of differences are correlated, a value of .42 is obtained. The Spearman hypothesis appears to apply primarily to differences in socio-economic status rather than race. Furthermore, one cannot assume a large genetic component for each set of differences. Nor can one argue that the possibility of a large environmental component for each set indicates common environmental causes.     

Relationships between vocational development and self-concept in sixth grade students

Super, in his self-concept theory of vocational development, indicates the existence of a strong relationship between vocational development and the development of self-concept in adolescent and adult subjects. This study was designed to test for this relationship in preadolescent subjects. The study investigated the relationships among a measure of career maturity, self-concept, socioeconomic status, race, sex, place of residence, and age. The research sample included 300 randomly selected sixth grade students enrolled in 22 public schools in the state of Georgia during the fall quarter of 1978. Data were obtained by the administration of two instruments, the Career Maturity Inventory-Attitude Scale (CMI-AS) and the Piers-Harris (P-H) Children's Self-Concept Scale. A multiple regression analysis was utilized to analyze the data. Results of this study indicate a positive but low correlation between the total scores on the CMI-AS and the P-H Scale. All six of the self-concept factors on the P-H Scale were found to be significantly correlated to the CMI-AS score. Socioeconomic status was found to be significantly correlated to the CMI-AS score. Although race was not found to be a significant source of variance on the CMI-AS, the interaction of race and socioeconomic status was found to be significant. Sex, place of residence (urban and rural), and age were not found to be significant sources of variance on the CMI-AS.     

Job search methods,job search outcomes,and job satisfaction of college graduates: a comparison of race and sex

A nationally representative sample of college graduates (N =11,152) were surveyed regarding their job‐seeking behaviors and outcomes. Race and sex differences among the job search strategies used, number of job interviews, number of job offers, annual salary, and job satisfaction were examined. Results indicated significant race and sex differences in job search methods used. There were significant differences in underemployment and job satisfaction as a function of race, and in underemployment and annual salary as a function of sex. There were no significant differences in number of job interviews or job offers regardless of race or sex.     

Subgroup Differences in Situational Judgment Test Performance: A Meta-Analysis

In this article, we describe a systematic review of mean race and sex differences in situational judgment test (SJT) performance. On average, White test takers perform better on SJTs than Black, Hispanic, and Asian test takers. Female examinees perform slightly better than male test takers on SJTs. We investigate two moderators of these differences: loading of g or personality on the SJT, and response instructions. Mean race differences between Black, Hispanic, Asian and White examinees in SJT performance are largely explained by the cognitive loading of the SJT such that the larger the cognitive load, the larger the mean race differences. Regarding the effect of personality loadings of SJTs on race differences, Black–White and Asian–White differences are smaller to the extent that the SJT is correlated with emotional stability and Hispanic–White differences are smaller to the extent that SJTs are correlated with conscientiousness and agreeableness. Cognitive loading has minimal effect on male–female SJT score differences; however, SJT score differences are larger, favoring women, when SJTs are correlated with conscientiousness and agreeableness. Concerning response instructions, knowledge response instructions showed greater race differences than behavioral tendency instructions. The mean correlations show that these differences are largely because of the greater g loading of knowledge instructions. A second study showed that when used in hiring, SJTs are likely to have adverse impact by race but not by sex.     

Relations of socioeconomic status and sex variables to the complexity of worker functions in the occupational choices of elementary school children

The relationships of sex and socioeconomic status to complexity of worker functions in the occupational choices of elementary school children were studied. Complexity of worker functions was defined in terms of the most complex level of interaction required of a worker, when interacting with data, people, and things. The children included in the study were third- and fifth-grade students, divided on the basis of grade, sex, and socioeconomic status. The children's occupational choices were scored for complexity with the code numbers of the worker function hierarchies of the U.S. Employment Service's Dictionary of Occupational Titles (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Govt. Printing Office, 1977, 4th ed.). Findings based on the obtained data indicated the following: (a) a positive relationship between socioeconomic status and complexity of data manipulation in occupational choices; and (b) greater complexity of interaction with things in the occupational choices of boys, than girls. The positive relationship between socioeconomic status and complexity of data manipulation was accounted for by the children's exposure to their parents' orientation toward data manipulation. Apparent differences in the play activities of boys and girls was used to explain differences between the sexes in the levels of complexity of interactions with inanimate objects and animals.     

Cognitive function in older adults according to current socioeconomic status

Cognitive function may be influenced by education, socioeconomic status, sex, and health status. Furthermore, aging interacts with these factors to influence cognition and dementia risk in late life. Factors that may increase or decrease successful cognitive aging are of critical importance, particularly if they are modifiable. The purpose of this study was to determine if economic status in late life is associated with cognition independent of socioeconomic status in early life. Cross-sectional demographic, socioeconomic, and cognitive function data were obtained in 2592 older adults (average age 71.6 years) from the Center for Disease Control’s National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey (NHANES) and analyzed with linear regression modeling. Cognitive function, as measured with a test of processing speed, was significantly associated with poverty index scores after adjusting for educational attainment as an estimate of childhood socioeconomic status, ethnic background, age, health status, and sex (P < 0.001). Our findings suggest that current economic status is independently associated with cognitive function in adults over age 60 years.     

A Developmental Comparison of Social Class and Verbal Ability Influences on Piagetian Tasks

Summary

The present investigation attempted to evaluate the respective influences of socioeconomic status and verbal ability levels, as determinants of performance on Piagetian concrete operations tasks. A sample of 160 subjects (kindergarten to fourth grade) were matched on socioeconomic status and verbal ability levels. A battery of Piagetian tasks was administered, including a relational terms pretest, provoked and unprovoked numerical correspondence, unidimensional seriation, height and width, multiple seriation, and conservation of surface area. Results of factorial (grade level × sodoeconomic status × verbal ability × sex) analyses of variance indicated (a) an absence of significant socioeconomic status effects for any of the Piagetian tasks, (6) a significant main effect for the verbal ability and age-grade level factors on the majority of tasks excluding unidimensional height seriation, (c) a general absence of sex main effects or higher order interactions. The lack of difference with regard to socioeconomic-status levels indicates that the previous research which revealed notable socioeconomic-status influences may have had socioeconomic status confounded to varying degrees with differences in underlying verbal skills.     

The Role of Parental Attitudes and Monitoring in the Risk Exposure of Young Children1

The parental monitoring literature debates the role of parental activity, as opposed to parental knowledge in childhood risk taking. We examined parents’ attitudes and behaviors regarding roadside supervision of children aged 4 to 6 years using self‐report and observational measures. Although parents perceived sons as less careful than daughters, they reported no sex differences in the age children would be allowed out unsupervised. There were no self‐report differences in supervision according to socioeconomic status. However, roadside observations showed that boys and children from a lower socioeconomic area received less supervision than girls or those from a higher socioeconomic area. Such findings contribute to our understanding of the sex and socioeconomic differences in accident involvement and the role of parental monitoring.     

Hypertension differentially impacts cognition in men and women in early midlife

The current study aimed to understand how sex differences in the timing of hypertension onset contribute to early midlife risk for cognitive decline that may differ by sex and whether sex-dependent advantages in normotensive populations are influenced by the presence of hypertension. One hundred and ninety-five adults aged 45–55 from the New England Family Study underwent neuropsychological testing to assess attention, executive function, and memory. Physician-diagnosed hypertension status was self-reported via questionnaire. Mid-adulthood hypertension was associated with worse performance on measures of attention and memory, but the cognitive domains impacted varied by sex. Hypertension was associated with only attention in men, whereas in women it was associated with attention and associative and working memory. Sex differences in midlife cognitive performance found in normotensive adults were attenuated in those with hypertension. Our results underscore the importance of accounting for sex when assessing the impact of hypertension on midlife cognition that could be indicative of later decline and risk for cognitive impairment and dementia, given hypertension is an independent risk factor.     

Experimental measures of cognitive privilege/deprivation and some of their correlates

An operational definition of intellectual privilege and deprivation was used to develop measures of that construct in each sex from information furnished by 10th-grade students in Project Talent about their family and health background. Information such as reports of high school grades that directly reflected the ability of the students was excluded. The correlation between the experimental measure and the Talent intelligence composite is about .65 in contrast to the usual value of about .40 for a traditional measure of socioeconomic status. Sex differences in the items keyed are minimal. Using a similar definition, measures were also developed for Vernon's mechanical-spatial major group factor (1960), but the level of validity achieved is lower. The measures of privilege/deprivation developed for the two criteria show some degree of differential validity, but there is more generality in the two kinds of privilege than in tested abilities. The measures of intellectual privilege are almost congeneric measures of general intelligence, but there are significant departures from parallel profiles of relationships with other cognitive tests in Talent. The measures of intellectual privilege for both sexes add to the accuracy of prediction obtained from the intelligence criterion of scores on verbal academic and aesthetic information, but add nothing in predicting scores on measures of spatial visualization and rote memory. The possibility of constructing a test of general intelligence using item types that would minimize the correlation with privilige/deprivation is discussed.     

Concrete operational thought in children with learning disabilities and children with normal achievement.

This study compared Piagetian cognitive development in normal achieving children and two groups of children with learning disabilities designated as either auditory-linguistic or visual-spatial on the basis of Verbal-Performance IQ differences on the Wechsler Intelligence Scale for Children-Revised (WISC-R; 1974). The two groups with learning disabilities were matched with normal achieving controls on intelligence, socioeconomic status, sex, race, and age. Piagetian tasks measuring conservation, seriation, and classification were administered to each child to determine level of operative thought. The auditory-linguistic group scored significantly below normal controls in operativity, and significantly fewer were at a concrete operational level on a conservation of length task than were normal achieving children. The visual-spatial group did not differ significantly from normal controls. These results suggest that auditory-linguistic disabilities may be more detrimental than visual-spatial disabilities to development of operativity.     

An empirical evaluation of a scale to measure occupational aspiration level

Data from 34,118 American high school students are used to evaluate the Occupational Aspiration Scale (OAS). The OAS is successively reevaluated for each of 16 subsamples (cells) generated by cross-classifying respondents by grade in school (9–12), sex, and socioeconomic status (SES). In each cell the OAS is found to be essentially unifactorial, and that factor is identified as level of occupational aspiration (LOA). The reliability of the OAS is slightly lower among females ($\text{r}$_kk = .681) than among males ($\text{r}$_kk = .756); it does not vary appreciably by grade or SES. The mean scores are lower for youth from low SES families than for those from high SES families, in accord with previous research. Mean OAS differences due to sex and grade are small. No important differences by age, sex, or SES are found in the standard deviations of the test scores. This and previously published data from small, local samples indicate that the reliability and validity of the OAS are sufficient for research on high school youth of both sexes and from both higher and lower SES levels.     

Brain size and cognitive ability: Correlations with age,sex, social class,and race

Using data from magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), autopsy, endocranial measurements, and other techniques, we show that (1) brain size is correlated with cognitive ability about .44 using MRI; (2) brain size varies by age, sex, social class, and race; and (3) cognitive ability varies by age, sex, social class, and race. Brain size and cognitive ability show a curvilinear relation with age, increasing to young adulthood and then decreasing; increasing from women to men; increasing with socioeconomic status; and increasing from Africans to Europeans to Asians. Although only further research can determine if such correlations represent cause and effect, it is clear that the direction of the brain-size/cognitive-ability relationships described by Paul Broca (1824–1880), Francis Galton (1822–1911), and other nineteenth-century visionaries is true, and that the null hypothesis of no relation, strongly advocated over the last half century, is false.     

Sex differences in regret: all for love or some for lust?

Few sex differences in regret or counterfactual thinking are evident in past research. The authors discovered a sex difference in regret that is both domain-specific (i.e., unique to romantic relationships) and interpretable within a convergence of theories of evolution and regulatory focus. Three studies showed that within romantic relationships, men emphasize regrets of inaction over action (which correspond to promotion vs. prevention goals, respectively), whereas women report regrets of inaction and action with equivalent frequency. Sex differences were not evident in other interpersonal regrets (friendship, parental, sibling interactions) and were not moderated by relationship status. Although the sex difference was evident in regrets centering on both sexual and nonsexual relationship aspects, it was substantially larger for sexual regrets. These findings underscore the utility of applying an evolutionary perspective to better understand goal-regulating, cognitive processes.     

Sex differences in cognition are stable over a 10-year period in adulthood and old age

Sex differences in declarative memory and visuospatial ability are robust in cross-sectional studies. The present longitudinal study examined whether sex differences in cognition were present over a 10-year period, and whether age modified the magnitude of sex differences. Tests assessing episodic and semantic memory, and visuospatial ability were administered to 625 nondemented adults (initially aged 35-80 years), participating in the population-based Betula study at two follow-up occasions. There was stability of sex differences across five age groups and over a 10-year period. Women performed at a higher level than men on episodic recall, face and verbal recognition, and semantic fluency, whereas men performed better than women on a task-assessing, visuospatial ability. Sex differences in cognitive functions are stable over a 10-year period and from 35 to 90 years of age.     

Sex stereotypes and health care: The case of treatment for kidney failure

Differential health care is a potential source of differences in women's and men's health status. This paper discusses sex, race, and age differences in treatment for kidney failure. Women, blacks, and older persons are less likely to receive a kidney transplant (the optimal treatment for kidney failure) than are men, whites, and younger persons. Differences between women's and men's transplant rates have been increasing since 1978. Neither legitimate medical factors nor differential ability to pay explain these sex differences in treatment. Physicians appear to favor males when they select transplant candidates. One reason for this may be that physicians consider it more important to facilitate males' return to employment. Sex stereotypes may be an important influence on the allocation of scarce medical treatments, contributing to sex differences in health status.This paper was originally prepared for the annual meeting of the American Sociological Association in Atlanta, Georgia, August 1988. The research was supported in part by End Stage Renal Disease Network 20.