AN IDIOGRAPHIC APPROACH TO THE STUDY OF WOMEN'S ACHIEVEMENT STRIVING

Biographical interviews with 80 women ranging in age from the late teens to the 80s (Mean Age = 46.8 years; SD = 7.8 years) elicited information concerning personality characteristics that predispose women toward achievement-striving behavior, taking into account the effects of family, friends, and role models. When asked if they had ever been in a situation where they were about to succeed and feared the success, the majority of women (91 %) replied "no". A large percentage of women (96%) did report that they wonder if their achievements are worth it and asked "success at what cost?" In addition, compared to older women, younger women were more concerned with interpersonal relationships and less concerned with competitive achievement. The reality status of the fear of success construct as well as methodological advances in its measurement are discussed.     

Measurement of adult performance on Piaget's water horizontality task

Three versions of Piaget's water-level-horizontality task (multiple choice, drawing, and apparatus tests) were administered to 121 female and 74 male adult volunteers. Sex differences and container orientation effects were replicated. Men were more accurate than women and horizontal and vertical container orientations evoked more accurate responses than oblique orientation. Reliability estimates ranged from .78 to .97 and correlations among the measures ranged from .78 to .88. The relative merits of alternative water-level testing and scoring methods and the orientation and type of stimuli to be used are discussed.     

Fear of success and failure,or norms for achievement?

Previous research has indicated that success in competitive situations is differentially perceived, considering the level of success and sex of person who succeeded. The amount of projected negative imagery of 100 college students under various degrees of a man's or woman's failure in medical school was investigated in the present study. Data indicated a pervasive tendency to downgrade unsuccessful men in relation to unsuccessful women. The possibility that subjects' responses reflect anxiety about the level of success and failure obtained, rather than anxiety about success and failure in general, is discussed.The authors thank D. F. Ricks for his helpful comments on an earlier draft of this article. Portions of this article were presented at the 6th Annual Conference for Research on Women and Education, Pacific Grove, California, December, 1980.     

The effect of forced choice on color discrimination

Color discrimination ability was measured at four spectral regions usually named blue, green, yellow, and red. Two methods, temporal forced-choice and phenomenal report, were compared. Data suggest that for color discrimination, phenomenal report is a preferable technique.     

Theoretical models of choice and strategy behavior: Stable state behavior in the two-choice uncertain outcome situation

A theoretical approach to the understanding of human behavior in uncertain outcome situations is suggested, an approach which draws upon utility theory, decision-making theory, and statistical association theory. Experimental evidence supporting this approach as opposed to alternative approaches is summarized. Three different formalizations are presented, and a variety of experimental tests is suggested.This paper was written while the author was at the Center for Advanced Study in the Behavioral Sciences, and it has benefited greatly from discussions with many colleagues there. In particular, some of the features of Models I and II emerged from work with Robert P. Abelson, and Model III was developed to its present state partly as a result of consultations with Claude Shannon, and John C. Harsanyi (of the Department of Economics at Stanford University). The treatment of all three models was sharpened during many discussions with Robert M. Solow.