Sex Roles and Self-Disclosure

Abstract

The present study examined the contradictory findings concerning the relationship between sex and self-disclosure. Among the findings are that women disclose more than men (3, 6 ) , men disclose more than women (5, 8 ) , and men and women appear to self-disclose to the same extent (4, 7 ) . Two hundred and ten women and 209 men, enrolled in a large midwestern university, completed the Bem Sex-role Inventory ( 1 ) and the Self-disclosure Situations Survey ( 2 ) . The femininity and masculinity scales on the Bem were trichotomized, and subjects were classified as low (masculinity score L Gg), moderate (masculinity score between 69 and 78) , or high (masculinity score k 78) on masculiniry and as low (femininity score L 6 6 ) , moderate (femininity score between 66 and 74 ) , or high (femininity score 5 74). on femininity. A 3 X 3 X 2 (femininity x masculinity x sex) completely randomized design was used. Regression analysis demonstrated no significant difference in the total selfdisclosure of men and women. However, masculine women self-disclosed more total information than women low in masculinity ( P = 9.40, P = .002). Tukey's H S D test showed that women low in masculinity and women high in masculinity differed significantly in their self-disclosure ( H S D = 4.18, 206; observed difference = 5.521). Furthermore, feminine men self-disclosed more total information than men low in femininity ( P = 13.71, P = .0005). Tukey's H S D test showed that men high in femininity make more total disclosures than men who are moderate in femininity ( H S D = 4.74, 205; observed difference = 4.88) and make more total disclosures than men low in femininity ( H S D = 4.74, 205; observed difference = 7.33). Sex roles appear to provide a more accurate predictor of self-disclosure than biological sex. Previous conflicting findings on self-disclosure may be a result of ignoring sex roles, an apparently important mediating variable.