Social norms' influence on gendered behaviors

• Main Author: Ewing Lee, Elizabeth Ann
• Format: Dissertation
• Language: English
• Published: ProQuest Dissertations & Theses 01.01.2013
• Subjects: Gender studies; Personality psychology; Psychology
• ISBN: 130331116X; 9781303311161

Individual variability in engagement in gendered behavior is primarily assumed to be the result of variability in gender roles (i.e., femininity, masculinity; Bem, 1981). However, contextual factors have also been shown to influence behaving in gendered ways (Leszczynski & Strough, 2008; Pickard & Strough, 2003). The current studies sought to explore engagement in gendered behaviors by examining the influence of social norms on gendered behaviors, as well as how those perceptions interact with gender self-concepts (i.e., gendered contingencies of self-worth, self-efficacy for behaving in gendered ways, similarity to others of one's sex) to influence engagement in gendered behaviors. Two studies were conducted in which participant behavior was measured by having them complete tasks with ambiguous gender stereotypes associated with them: pain threshold and endurance. The norms were presented through direct feedback in Study 1 and through behavioral modeling from confederates in Study 2. Each study also examined the moderating effect of gender self-concepts: gendered contingencies of selfworth, self-efficacy for behaving in gendered ways, and similarity to others of one's sex. In study 1, sex differences were found such that men who were told that their sex was superior evidenced elevated pain threshold when compared to men who were not given any gender specific information. Furthermore, similarity to others of one's sex moderated the association. In study 2, direct tests of the effect of presented norms on groups were not found to be significant. However, when controlling for each of the gender self-concepts, individuals who had same-sex superiority demonstrated had significantly higher pain threshold than those who had observed same-sex confederates demonstrating inferior pain threshold and endurance. Additionally, individuals with higher levels of gender self-efficacy were more likely to have the gendered information impact their behavior than individuals with low levels of gender self-efficacy. Overall, social norms were found to have an impact on individuals' engagement in gendered behaviors, although individual personality factors moderated those relationships. The current work shines a light on how gender norms can both heighten or diminish engagement in gendered behaviors, and underscores the need to examine individual differences when exploring the impact of contextual norms.