There has been substantial interest recently in the relationships between stereotypic masculine and feminine characteristics and psychological adjustment Prior to the 1970's psychologists had argued that traditionally masculine men (e.g., assertive, dominant, self-assured) and traditionally feminine women (e.g., warm, nurturant, interpersonally sensitive) tended to be better adjusted. More recently, however, a different picture has emerged, based on a wealth of research involving two self-report measures of masculinity and femininity: the Bem Sex-Role Inventory (BSRI) and the Personal Attributes Questionnaire (PAQ). Research with these measures suggests that for women, as well as men, masculinity is the more important variable. It correlates moderately to highly with self-reported self-esteem and lower reported anxiety, depression, and neuroticism. The present subproject consists of seven studies employing multiple regression, exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis, and structural equation models (e.g., LISREL) to investigate four key measurement and methodological issues central to the interpretation of research in this area. The issues are: (a) what are the BSRI and PAQ Masculinity and Femininity scales measuring--global Masculinity and Femininity or narrower constructs, such as assertiveness and dominance (Masculinity) and nurturance and warmth (Femininity)? (b) Does some subcomponent of BSRI and PAQ Masculinity, say, assertiveness, underlie the relationships between Masculininty and adjustment? (c) Is there a neglected negative side to Masculinity involving linkages with aggressiveness and Type a behavior? Similarly, is there a neglected positive side to Femininity in form of positive correlations with self-reported lower loneliness, alineation and aggressiveness? (d) Do other modes of data collection, such as ratings, present a picture similar to that of self-report? If not, relationships between Masculinity, Femininity, and adjustment may be peculia to the self-report mode.
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