Sex role patterns in an Irish student sample as measured by the bem sex role inventory (comparisons with an American sample)

Sex roles in 171 male and 180 female university students in Ireland were examined by the Bem Sex Role Inventory (BSRI). The distribution of scores for masculinity and femininity showed the same general pattern as in American samples. However, the Irish males rated themselves significantly lower in masculinity and significantly higher in femininity than the American males, indicating a more androgynous profile. Irish females rated themselves significantly lower than American females in both masculinity and femininity, and were less androgynous relative to Irish males. The distribution of subjects on sex role types showed a larger percentage of androgynous males and undifferentiated females in the Irish sample than in American samples. Both the male and the female Irish students scored lower than American students on the Social Desirability Scale. Separate scores were calculated for the positive and the negative items of the Social Desirability Scale, and it was found that positive items were assigned considerably higher ratings than the negative (reversed) items in both sexes. When controlled for social desirability, the masculinity and femininity scores were found to be uncorrelated. Factor analysis of the BSRI revealed six factors, which correspond to previous findings. In general, the present results support the view that masculinity and femininity, as measured by the BSRI, can be treated as separate dimensions, but that a more complex model than the two-factor structure is required.This is a joint report from the Psychosomatic Unit of the Irish Foundation for Human Development, Dublin; the Department of Psychiatry and Psychology, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm; and the Department of Psychology, University of Stockholm. This collaboration was made possible by a twinning grant to Dr. John Cullen and Professor Marianne Frankenhaeuser from the European Training Programme in Brain and Behavior Research, European Science Foundation. Financial support was also obtained as grants from the Swedish Medical Research Council (Project No. 979) and the Swedish Council for Research in the Humanities and Social Sciences. The authors are indebted to Professor Desmond Swan, University College, Dublin, for his generous support, particularly during the initial stages of our work, and to Professor Liam Ryan, Maynooth College, who also gave valuable assistance.     

Gender-schematic processing: An extended replication of the Larsen and Seidman study

This study is an extended replication of the Larsen and Seidman study (1986) on the Bem Sex-Role Inventory (BSRI) as a measurement instrument for gender-schematic processing. Using a Dutch sample and the GRAS (Groninger Androgyny Scale)—a Dutch sex-role inventory—responses to this inventory were factor-analysed separately for sex-typed and non-sex-typed groups. The extremity of response style on GRAS items and the degree of self-indicated cross-situational variability on GRAS items were used as additional indices for gender-schematic processing. Similar to Larsen and Seidman's (1986) study, bipolar factors were found for the sex-typed groups and unipolar factors for the non-sex-typed groups. Similar to a study conducted by Bem (1981) into differences among the sex-types in their response latencies to the attributes of the BSRI, sex-typed subjects showed more extremity of response style on attributes of the GRAS when making schema-consistent judgements about themselves, and showed less extremity of response style when making schema-inconsistent judgements about themselves. The data on cross-situational variability were less equivocal. It is concluded that the degree of gender-schematic processing in individuals can be well measured by means of a sex-role inventory.     

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.     

Sex-role-related differences in self-concept and mental health

Examined the differences in serf-concept and psychological health between androgynous, sex-typed, cross-sex-typed, and undifferentiated males and females. Two hundred forty-nine students who were enrolled in introductory psychology classes were classified according to sex type on the basis of their scores on the Bem Sex-Role Inventory. Nine aspects of self-concept and five aspects of psychological health, obtained, from the Tennessee Self-Concept Scale, were analyzed as a function of Sex and Sex Type. A series of analyses of variance and subsequent individual comparisons across groups revealed a clear pattern wherein androgynous subjects manifested more positive self-concepts and more positive psychological health than sex-typed subjects. Undifferentiated subjects manifested the poorest self-concepts, while results for sex-typed and cross-sex-typed subjects varied more as a function of the sex of the subject. The data are discussed as appearing to be consistent with Bem's hypothesis that androgynous people may represent a more appropriate societal definition of mental health than strongly sex-typed people. Qualifications of this support are also discussed.     

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-role stereotyping and patterns of self-disclosure

Students enrolled in psychology courses completed a Bem Sex-Role Inventory and a self-disclosure scale. A three way ANOVA (sex by sex role by target of disclosure) was used to determine if androgynous subjects differed from stereotyped by not conforming to standard sex differences in: (a) pattern of targets disclosed to; (b) amount of intimate disclosure. Results indicated: (a) androgynous females reported a peers first profile, typical of males; (b) androgynous males reported more disclosure than stereotyped males, especially on intimate topics; (c) androgynous females reported more nonintimate discussions with their fathers; and (d) androgynous males reported the highest level of intimate disclosures to father. Sex role is a better predictor of reported self-disclosure than is sex.The order of the authors' names was randomly determined: Both contributed equally. Correspondence should be sent to either author at the following address: Department of Psychology, State University of New York, College at Cortland, Cortland, New York 13045.     

Self-rated adjustment and sex-typing on the Bem Sex-Role Inventory: Is masculinity the primary predictor of adjustment?

Questions concerning the relationship between self-rated adjustment and the Bem Sex-Role Inventory (BSRI) were examined in two studies. In Study I, whether sex-typing was defined by Bem's original t-test criterion or the newer median-split criterion, superior adjustment was associated with androgynous vs. traditional typing only among women, not men. Also in conflict with the androgyny position, adjustment differences among sex-types were accounted for by differences in masculinity, not in femininity or androgyny per se. The greater contribution of masculinity vs. femininity to self-rated adjustment may be exaggerated because BSRI femininity includes items which do not load on a unidimensional femininity factor. In Study II, inspection of these unrelated items suggested that they reduce the desirability of BSRI femininity, thereby reducing its relationship to adjustment. Comparisons between standard BSRI scoring and an alternative based on unidimensional subscales revealed that the alternative femininity subscale was judged to be more desirable, and it reduced the degree of difference between masculinity and femininity in their relationships to adjustment. Superior adjustment, however, was again associated with androgynous vs. traditional sex-typing only among women, and adjustment differences among sex-types were again accounted for by differences in masculinity.The authors acknowledge the assistance of the following persons who helped in the administration, scoring, or preparation of questionnaire materials: Jill Jamison, Eric Isberg, Kay Peter, Steve Zalinger, Walter Davis, James Ball, Mark Jensen, and Heidi Sanft. Correspondence should addressed to Dr. Louise Silvern, Psychology Department, University of Colorado, Boulder, Colorado 80309.     

Gender role orientation and physical health: A study among young adults

The purpose to this study was to examine the relationship between gender role orientation and physical health among young adults. One hundred forty-five undergraduates (103 females, 42 males) completed a measure of gender role orientation (Bem Sex Role Inventory), self-reported physical health (Personal Health Questionnaire), health related behaviors (Health Behaviors Inventory), and neuroticism (Eysenck Personality Inventory). The sample consisted of European-American (89%), African-American (8%), and Asian-American (3%) individuals. Results showed that gender role orientation was significantly related to health-related behaviors (e.g., smoking, exercise), but not to self-reported physical health (e.g., upper respiratory infections). Overall, androgynous individuals had better health-related behaviors than masculine, feminine, and undifferentiated individuals.We thank Karen Hooker and Randall Jorgensen for their useful advice regarding this article. We also thank Sue Rosenberg Zalk and an anonymous reviewer for their comments on previous drafts of this article. This work was supported in part by the Graduate Student Committee of the Psychology Department at Syracuse University.     

The relationship between sex-role identity and beliefs in personal control

Three hundred and ten college undergraduate students completed the Bem Sex-Role Inventory and Rotter's Internal-External Scale measuring locus of control. Males were significantly more internal than females. Both males and females who had high same-sex scale scores were significantly more internal than those with low same-sex scale scores. That is, males who were masculine or androgynous and females who were feminine or androgynous reported greater internal locus of control beliefs than did those males who were feminine or undifferentiated and those females who were masculine or undifferentiated. It was suggested that these findings result from different styles of power typically associated with sex-role stereotypes.     

Fear of success: The influence of sex,sex-role identity,and components of masculinity

Phase I of this experiment was conducted to determine the nature of the relationship between fear of success and sex-role identity. Eighty female and 124 male subjects completed a measure of fear of success (the Sadd Fear of Success Scale, SFOS) and two sex-role scales (the Bem Sex Role Inventory, BSRI; and the Personal Attributes Questionnaire, PAQ). Subjects were subsequently classified by their responses to the BSRI and PAQ as either androgynous, masculine, feminine, or undifferentiated. The results indicated that androgynous and masculine individuals reported less fear of success than feminine or undifferentiated individuals, regardless of their sex. Subsequent analyses revealed that fear of success was more related to the absence of masculine traits than to the presence of feminine traits. Phase II of this investigation was conducted to determine whether a specific component of masculinity was related to the fear of success. The masculinity scales were factor analyzed and factor scores were regressed on the fear-of-success scores. Factor scores reflecting high self-confidence, decisiveness, analyticalness, and independence were related to low levels of fear of success; factor scores reflecting assertiveness, competitiveness, and opinionatedness were not related to the fear of success.     

Sex-role orientation and fear of success: Clarifying an unclear relationship

Inconsistencies in research concerning the relationship between fear of success (FOS) and sex-role orientation may be due to the use of sex-role inventories considering masculinity and femininity as endpoints of a bipolar continuum. The Bem Sex-Role Inventory (BSRI; Bem, 1974), which treats masculinity and femininity as separate dimensions, was administered to 218 female undergraduates in addition to measures of FOS, achievement motivation, and performance. It was predicted that women who were androgynous (high feminine and high masculine) would evidence less FOS than women who were high masculine or high feminine. It was also predicted that women who embraced masculine characteristics (androgynous or sex-reversed) would be higher in both achievement motivation and performance than low masculine women. Both predictions were confirmed. Sex-reversed women were highest in FOS.This research was conducted with the support of a David Ross Grant from the Purdue Research Foundation to Dr. Kay Deaux and the author. Thanks are extended to William A. Fisher, Dr. Kay Deaux, and Dr. Elizabeth Farris for their helpful comments on an earlier draft of this article. All correspondence should be addressed to Brenda Major, Department of Psychology, State University of New York at Buffalo, 4230 Ridge Lea Road, Buffalo, New York 14226.     

Sex-role orientation and stereotypes about male-female sexuality

An experiment was conducted to examine the stereotypes about human sexuality held by persons of different sex-role orientations. Sex-typed and androgynous subjects were given bogus information about the sexual experience of another person. This other person was either a male or a female and either high or low in sexual experience. The subjects were then shown some erotic slides and asked to predict how sexually aroused the target person would be by viewing these stimuli. Additionally, the subjects were asked to rate the target person on traits of a sexual and evaluative nature. The results showed, as predicted, that the sexual experience of a female target influences how much sexual arousal is attributed to her. Female targets of high experience were attributed more arousal than inexperienced female targets. For male targets, no such difference was found. Ratings of the targets on an evaluative dimension revealed a double standard: Sexually experienced females were rated lower than were inexperienced females; no difference was found for male targets. In addition, sex-typed subjects tended to express more traditional stereotypes of sexuality than androgynous subjects. The influence that these stereotypes may have in guiding malefemale interactions is discussed.This article is based on the author's doctoral dissertation, submitted to Kansas State University. The author gratefully acknowledges the assistance of William Giffitt, and his helpful comments and suggestions.     

Characteristics of androgynous,undifferentiated, masculine,and feminine middle-class women

The Bem Sex-Role Inventory was given to a random sample of 369 middle-class, 20–59-year-old women during the second year of a panel study. A median split on the masculine and feminine scores was used to define feminine (47%), androgynous (24%), masculine (10%), and undifferentiated (19%) women. The four groups were compared using analysis of variance and multiple regression techniques on a variety of demographic, attitudinal, time utilization, personality, and health characteristics to investigate the relationships among sex-typing, attitudes, and behavior. Significant demographic, time utilization, personality, and attitudinal differences were generally consistent with sex-typing, but differences in health were not found.Research for this paper was funded by a National Institute of Drug Abuse grant (DA 00847) to L. S. Fidell and J. E. Prather. Correspondence should be addressed to Linda S. Fidell, Department of Psychology, California State University, Northridge, California 91330.     

Parental antecedents of sex-role orientation in college men and women

Parental modeling and reinforcement antecedents of masculine, feminine, androgynous, and undifferentiated sex-role orientation were tested for 228 college men and women using self and parent versions of the Bem Sex Role Inventory and the Parent Behavior Form. Parent scale differences indicated that psychological androgyny is associated with high levels of masculinity and femininity in both parents, with high levels of warmth and involvement, particularly with the same-sex parent, and, in females, with maternal cognitive/achievement encouragement. Sex typing occurred where both parents modeled traditional sex-role attributes and, for females, with extreme closeness with father in the absence of maternal cognitive/intellectual encouragement. An undifferentiated sex-role orientation was associated with low emotional and cognitive involvement with father in males and with an undifferentiated but emotionally involved mother in females. Finally, cross-sex typing in both sexes was associated with parental rejection, low feminity in both parents, and an absence of warmth or cognitive encouragement from either parent. These findings confirm and expand those of an earlier study for androgynous subjects, but differ markedly for cross-sex-typed subjects.     

DOMESTIC DIVISION OF LABOR AMONG WORKING COUPLES

This study examined the relationship of gender and sex role orientation (SRO) to the domestic division of labor in 139 working couples. Couples completed the Bem Sex Role Inventory as well as questions about who performed domestic tasks, why, and the amount of conflict generated. While women performed more tasks than men, androgynous and feminine-oriented individuals performed more than masculine-oriented individuals. Androgynous individuals also experienced the least conflict over domestic tasks. In couples where the male was androgynous or feminine in SRO, both spouses performed more tasks than spouses in undifferentiated male dyads. In male sex-typed dyads, however, wives performed more tasks than wives in other dyads, while husbands performed less than husbands in other dyads. Women's motivation to perform these tasks was based on their belief that it was their responsibility or that the tasks wouldn't get done otherwise, while men reportedly performed domestic tasks to help out.     

Relationships Between Psychological Androgyny, Social Conformity, and Perceived Locus of Control

The decisions and attitudes of sex-stereotyped and androgynous individuals (as defined by the Bem Sex Role Inventory) were compared in a social conformity paradigm and on two measures of locus of control. Stereotypic females conformed significantly more often than androgynous females and stereotypic males (N = 30 per group). In response to a post-experimental questionnaire, stereotypic females indicated that they had been the most influenced, whereas androgynous females reported the least amount of influence from others. Data from the Personal Opinion Survey developed by Coan, Hanson, and Dobyns (1972) showed that androgynous females were reliably more internal in locus of control than stereotypic females on six of the seven factors. Implications of these data are discussed with regard to traditional effects of sex in the social conformity and locus of control literature.     

Androgyny and creativity: a study of the relationship between a balanced sex-role and creative functioning

The relationship between creativity and androgyny was studied in 163 women and men with the Creative Functioning Test (CFT) and the Bem Sex Role Inventory (BSRI). A 2 (femininity: high/low) x 2 (masculinity: high/low) x 2 (sex) ANOVA was conducted on subjects' CFT scores. A significant interaction effect between femininity and masculinity was found showing that subjects high on both femininity and masculinity (androgynous) and low on both scales (undifferentiated) reached higher CFT scores than female-typed and male-typed subjects. Further, a significant three-way interaction including sex of subject indicated that the former two-way interaction was accounted for by men only.     

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.     

母亲拒绝惩罚与6～9年级学生受欺负、社会能力的关系:性别角色类型的调节作用

选取858名6~9年级上海学生为被试,采用自评和他评问卷探讨被试性别角色类型、受欺负和社会能力与母亲拒绝惩罚的关系。结果显示:(1)未分化型学生人数最多,其社会能力低于另两种类型;(2)性别角色类型在母亲拒绝惩罚预测学生受欺负和社会能力中起调节作用:母亲拒绝惩罚正向预测未分化型学生受欺负,负向预测其社会能力;母亲拒绝惩罚无法预测双性化和单性化型学生受欺负和社会能力。未分化型个体受到母亲拒绝惩罚是其学校适应问题的风险因素。     

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.