(Un)Changing Menopausal Bodies: How Women Think and Act in the Face of a Reproductive Transition and Gendered Beauty Ideals

Biomedical literature suggests that menopause primarily represents negative change in women’s lives. Feminist literature on menopause proposes that it can represent positive change or is a neutral experience for individual women. Conflicting characterizations result from different empirical emphases; biomedical research has focused on bodily change, and feminist research has highlighted social contexts for menopause. Results from interviews with a snowball sample of 61 women in 2001 illustrate how a change discourse on menopause and gendered beauty ideals combine to create a context within which some women believe that changes in their physical appearances can be attributed to menopause and that bodily change is problematic. In addition, during focus groups and in-depth interviews, women suggested that, in the face of these discourses or ideologies and changing external bodies, they face a “category crisis.’’ Interviewees also discussed how they attempt to prevent/mask bodily change in order to remain attractive, visibly feminine, and desirable in the eyes of men. Findings from this qualitative study illustrate that we must continue to explore women’s perceptions and experiences of bodily change during menopause, as we lack a full understanding of this developmental transition and its biosocial contexts.     

If Bill Clinton Were a Woman: The Effectiveness of Male and Female Politicians' Account Strategies Following Alleged Transgressions

As persons whose careers depend upon the support of the public, politicians by definition are required to be concerned with the management of their public impressions. This research considers the impact of a politician's sex on citizens' evaluations following alleged transgressions. The study uses an experimental design to test how the sex of the politician affects the acceptability of various accounts following transgressions. The interaction of sex with the nature of the offense and the type of account offered is examined. Analysis suggests that sex, type of account, and type of transgression affect citizens' evaluations although not always in obvious or direct ways. Most significantly, the analysis shows that women are not judged more harshly than men when involved in a transgression.     

From beliefs to behavior: the mediating role of hostile response selection in predicting aggression

This study evaluated the complementary roles that aggressive normative beliefs and hostile response selections play in predicting adolescents' aggressive behavior. Self‐, peer‐, and teacher‐reported data were collected from 2003 young adolescents from a variety of ethnic backgrounds (Black, Latino, Asian, White) during the fall of their sixth grade year to test the hypothesis that adolescents' hostile response selections mediate the association between their normative beliefs and aggressive reputations among their peers and teachers. Structural equation modeling analyses supported our hypothesis, and the model was found to be consistent across both gender and ethnicity. The results suggest that even though gender and ethnic differences in average levels of aggressive cognitions and behavior exist, the general process linking cognitions and behaviors is the same for all young adolescents. Aggr. Behav. 00:1–20, 2005. © 2005 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

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.     

Rape Perception Differences Between Japanese and American College Students: On the Mediating Influence of Gender Role Traditionality

This study was designed to examine the differences in rape perceptions between Japanese and American college students. It was found that the Japanese minimized the seriousness of rapes, blamed the victims, and excused the rapists more than did the Americans. Cross-cultural differences in the gender role traditionality (GRT) were found to mediate these differences. GRT-mediated tendencies for increases in the intimacy between the victim and the perpetrator to be associated with increases in rape minimization and victim blame were also found. These latter tendencies were found to be greater among the Japanese than among the Americans. Gender differences in rape perception were also found among the Japanese participants.     

Marital Status and Health Beliefs: Different Relations for Men and Women

Although relations between marital status and health have been substantiated, the results of relatively few studies suggest how or why marriage is associated with health. To understand how marriage and health are associated, this study was designed to examine the role of health beliefs. Two thousand two hundred and six (2,206) adults who participated in the New Jersey Family Health Survey provided information about their marital status, proactive health beliefs, and proactive health behaviors. Results indicated that being married (vs. single) was positively associated with men's proactive health beliefs, whereas marriage did not appear to influence women's proactive health beliefs positively. Significant relations between participants' reports of proactive health beliefs and proactive health behaviors were found. Findings are discussed in terms of the importance of understanding the complex nature of associations between social relationships and health.     

Antecedents and Consequences of System-Justifying Ideologies

Abstract— According to system justification theory, there is a psychological motive to defend and justify the status quo. There are both dispositional antecedents (e.g., need for closure, openness to experience) and situational antecedents (e.g., system threat, mortality salience) of the tendency to embrace system-justifying ideologies. Consequences of system justification sometimes differ for members of advantaged versus disadvantaged groups, with the former experiencing increased and the latter decreased self-esteem, well-being, and in-group favoritism. In accordance with the palliative function of system justification, endorsement of such ideologies is associated with reduced negative affect for everyone, as well as weakened support for social change and redistribution of resources.     

中国人的人格特点(II):善良

该研究的目的是探讨不同性别、年龄、职业和婚姻状况的被试在善良人格维度上的特点。1276名被试在中国人人格量表(QZPS)的善良维度上的分数存在不同程度的性别、年龄、职业和婚姻状况差异,其中尤以性别和年龄的影响最大,年龄和职业的交互作用明显,而且婚姻状况会明显影响个体1的重感情倾向。文中还讨论了善良人格维度差异的意义以及将来研究的方向。     

自我主观标准决定执行任务和观察任务中的结果评价

为了解结果的自我相关性对执行任务和观察任务中内侧额叶负波的影响, 研究使用事件相关电位技术观测男女被试在两种任务中, 知觉自己结果和他人结果时的神经活动。结果发现执行任务中内侧额叶负波波幅大于观察任务; 在执行任务中, 男性的内侧额叶负波相对于他人结果, 观察自己结果时的波幅更大; 在观察任务中, 女性的内侧额叶负波相对于自己结果, 观察他人结果时的波幅更大, 这些结果说明内侧额叶负波反映了个体按照主观标准对结果的情绪动机意义进行监测, 男女对社会信息的奖赏评价具有不同的方向性。     

大学生勇气与主观幸福感的关系:一个有调节的中介模型

在健全人格理论基础上构建有调节的中介模型,探讨勇气影响大学生主观幸福感的中介机制及其调节因素。采用整群抽样法选取重庆市550名18～28岁大学生为调查对象,让其自我报告勇气、主观幸福感、社会取向自我价值感等情况。多元回归分析表明：（1）大学生勇气对主观幸福感有显著正向预测作用。（2）大学生勇气通过社会取向自我价值感的中介作用间接影响主观幸福感。（3）该间接效应受到性别的调节,即女生的间接效应比男生更显著。研究结果验证了中国文化背景下大学生勇气具有预测主观幸福感的功能,并一定程度上揭示了二者关系背后可能的作用机制。