Brief report: Gender and ethnicity predict adolescent self-silencing above and beyond gender ideology

Abstract

IntroductionFeminist scholars have proposed that adolescents experience a loss of voice termed “self-silencing” due to the internalization of gender norms. A growing literature shows that the content and strength of adolescents' gender norms is dependent on ethic socialization practices. MethodsWe examined the association among self-silencing behaviors and gender ideology, measured both explicitly and implicitly, in a racially/ethnically and socioeconomically diverse sample of 12–14 year old American adolescents (N = 119, 62 female). Results & conclusionMultiple regression analyses indicated that self-silencing was weakly associated with implicit gender ideology, but being White and female were larger risk factors for self-silencing. The internalization of implicit gender norms weakly predicted self-silencing when adjusting for ethnicity and gender, but we challenge past research by showing gender and ethnicity to be stronger predictors than gender ideology. Self-silencing occurred in both boys and girls, but was slightly more salient in girls. We report preliminary findings intended for replication due to limitations on statistical power and the introduction of an implicit measurement tool for assessing gender attitudes with adolescents. Implications include clarification of the widely debated association between self-silencing and gender ideology and the development of more culturally nuanced theories of interpersonal development as it relates to gender and ethnicity during adolescence