Feminist Identity Development Scale Research Articles

Social and Family Role Stress, Feminist Identity Development, Meaning In Life and Quality of Relationships among Working and Non-Working Women

Indian women have had their fair share of power struggle over the decades. Even though the gender equality and women empowerment has been on the rise, Indian women still continually face increased stressors in their personal as well as professional life domains. This study was designed along the same lines to investigate the social and family role stress, feminist identity development, meaning in life and quality of relationships among working and non-working women in Jaipur city. The sample size of 100 was segregated on the basis of their working status (50 non working women and 50 working women). The objective of the research was to find the discrepancy in the aforesaid variables among the two groups. The following research tools were employed to test the hypotheses: Social Family Role Stress Scale (SFRS) (Vadra & Akhtar, 1990), Feminist Identity Development Scale (FIDS) (Bargad & Hyde, 1991), Meaning in Life Questionnaire (MLQ) (Steger et al., 2006), and Relationship Assessment Scale (Hendrick, 1988).

Correlation of Female Trinidadians, Bermudians, Sri-Lankans' Feminist Identity Development, and Self-Esteem: Reflection of Social Role Theory

Self-esteem and feminist identity development share symbiotic dyads. Agentic and communal characteristics shape females' identity and determine whether they see themselves as products or producers of their social system and display descriptive and/ or injunctive or prescriptive patterns of behavior. The aforementioned theoretical frameworks form the backdrop for my research which involved 40 Trinidadians, 20 Bermudians, and 38 Sri Lankans females ages 18 to 64. In my quantitative methodology study, I incorporated the Feminist Identity Development Scale (FIDS, Bargad & Hyde, 1991) and Rosenberg's (1965) Self-Esteem Model (RSE) to determine whether or not there was a significant correlation between Trinidadian and Bermudian females' self-esteem and feminist identity development. Descriptive statistics implementing a correlation matrix with the use of Mega Stats Add-Ins with Microsoft Excel determined that no significant correlation existed between Trinidadian and Bermudian female participants for their RSE and FIDS respectively. Additionally, one way ANOVA tests showed the correlation: (a) within sample group- Trinidadian females with no significant correlation between their FIDS and RSE; (b) within sample group- Afro and Indo- Trinidadians there was no significant correlation of RSE and a slight positive correlation of .0467 between participants' subscales of FIDS; (c) within sample group- there was no significant correlation between Bermudian participants' RSE but a significant negative correlation between subscales of FIDS; (d) within sample group- Sri Lankan females showed a significant negative correlation between subscales of FIDS; (e) among sample groups- Bermudian, Sri Lankan, and Trinidadian females there was a significant negative correlation among their RSE and no significant correlation of their FIDS. The findings corroborate other conclusions on FIDS and RSE and the social role theory.

Feminist identity as a predictor of eating disorder diagnostic status

Passive Acceptance (PA) and Active Commitment (AC) subscales of the Feminist Identity Development Scale (FIDS) were examined as predictors of eating disorder diagnostic status as assessed by the Questionnaire for Eating Disorder Diagnoses (Q-EDD). Results of a hierarchical regression analysis revealed PA and AC scores were not statistically significant predictors of ED diagnostic status after controlling for diagnostic subtype. Results of a multiple regression analysis revealed FIDS as a statistically significant predictor of ED diagnostic status when failing to control for ED diagnostic subtype. Discrepancies suggest ED diagnostic subtype may serve as a moderator variable in the relationship between ED diagnostic status and FIDS.

The Femininity Ideology Scale: Factor Structure, Reliability, Convergent and Discriminant Validity, and Social Contextual Variation

This study reports on the psychometric properties of the Femininity Ideology Scale (FIS) from the responses of 407 undergraduate participants in the USA. Factor analysis supported the five factor structure. Cronbach alpha coefficients of the factors and total scale were adequate. Support for discriminant validity was found after examining the relationship between the FIS and the Bem Sex Role Inventory, which measures feminine traits. Support for convergent validity was found after examining, first, with the entire sample, the relationships between the FIS and the Male Role Norm Inventory, and second, with the female sample, the relationships between the FIS and the Feminist Identity Development Scale. We also found that FIS scores vary in relationship to the social contextual variables of race/ethnicity and sex.

Feminism and Mexican American Adolescent Women

This study examined the psychometric properties of the Feminist Identity Development Scale (FIDS) and the Attitudes Toward Feminism and the Women’s Movement Scale (FWM) with 389 Mexican American 11th-grade and 12th-grade women. Results indicated internal consistency coefficients of .61, .62, .76, and .77 for the FIDS Passive Acceptance, Revelation, Embeddedness-Emanation, and Active Commitment subscales, respectively, and .67 for the FWM. Mexican American high school women scored significantly differently on the feminism scales when compared to samples from previously published studies. Results from factor analyses failed to support the previously published FIDS factor structure. A two-factor model of feminist attitudes was identified with the factors being labeled Feminist Orientation and Traditional Orientation. Implications for the assessment of feminist attitudes and feminist identity with Mexican American adolescent women are discussed.

Development of the Conformity to Feminine Norms Inventory

This article describes the construction of the Conformity to Feminine Norms Inventory (CFNI), which was designed to assess women’s conformity to an array of feminine norms found in the dominant culture in the United States. In addition, we present four studies in which the psychometric properties of the CFNI were examined. In Study 1, factor analysis indicated that the CFNI is comprised of eight distinct factors labeled as Nice in Relationships, Thinness, Modesty, Domestic, Care for Children, Romantic Relationship, Sexual Fidelity, and Invest in Appearance. Results from Study 2 indicated that the CFNI has strong internal consistency estimates and differentiates college women from college men. In addition, Study 2 demonstrated that the CFNI Total score and subscale scores relate to Bem Sex Role Inventory and Feminist Identity Development Scale scores in theoretically consistent patterns. Study 3 indicated that the CFNI Total score and several of the subscales significantly and positively relate to scores on the Eating Disorder Inventory. Finally, Study 4 demonstrated that the CFNI Total score and subscale scores have high test-retest estimates for a 2–3 week period. The discussion focuses on potential uses of the CFNI, limitations to the study, and suggestions for future research.

Feminist Identity Development

A review of the three articles on feminist identity development in this issue indicates that (a) the Feminist Identity Development Scale (FIDS) and the Feminist Identity Composite (FIC) perform similarly and acceptably in psychometric analyses, (b) no research has properly tested whether there are true stages of feminist identity development, and (c) existing scales do not specify scoring that permits the classification of an individual into a stage. Caution is urged in using the Downing and Roush model in practice, pending the accumulation of longitudinal evidence that true stages exist.

Perceived Sexist Events and Feminist Identity Development Attitudes

Data from 104 undergraduate and 83 faculty/staff women indicated that perceived sexist events, measured by the Schedule of Sexist Events Scale (SSE), along with Passive Acceptance (PA), Revelation (R), and Embeddedness-Emanation (EE) attitudes, measured by the Feminist Identity Development Scale (FIDS), each related positively to women's psychological distress, measured by the General Severity Index (GSI) of the Brief Symptom Inventory (BSI). When social desirability, age, and socioeconomic status (SES) were entered as covariates in a multiple regression analysis, however, only recent perceived sexist events and PA accounted for unique variance in distress. In addition, PA tentatively was supported as a moderator of the relation between recent perceived sexist events and distress. Finally, PA scores related negatively, and R, EE, and Active Commitment scores related positively to perceived sexist events; beyond covariates, only PA and R scores accounted for unique variance in lifetime perceived sexist events, and only R scores accounted for unique variance in recent perceived sexist events.

Feminist Identity Development Measures

Reliability and validity of three current instruments (Feminist Identity Scale [FIS], Feminist Identity Development Scale [FIDS]J Feminist Identity Composite [FIC]) used to operationalize Downing and Roush's model of feminist identity development were compared. A sample of 245 women completed all three instruments, and a separate sample of 35 women repeated them over a 2-week interval. Only the FIC had acceptable internal consistency reliability for all subscales. Subscale stability for all instruments generally was moderate, except for Active Commitment. Subscale relations with perceived sexist events, self-esteem, social desirability, and preference for a male or female therapist generally were supportive of discriminant and convergent validity for all instruments. Content validity based on three judges' item evaluations suggested the FIDS fared best overall Finally, confirmatory factor analysis procedures did not support definitively the structural validity of any of the instruments, but trends suggested the FIC, and perhaps the FIDS, were superior to the FIS.

Assessing Women's Feminist Identity Development: Studies of Convergent, Discriminant, and Structural Validity

Researchers have called for increasing sophistication in the assessment of women's feminist identity development (Enns & Hackett, 1990; Hackett, Enns, & Zetzer, 1992) to understand important psychological processes. This series of studies examined recent efforts to operationalize Downing and Roush's (1985) model of feminist identity development. Specifically, the psychometric properties of two existing measures—the Feminist Identity Development Scale (Bargad & Hyde, 1991) and the Feminist Identity Scale (Rickard, 1987)—were examined in two studies with separate samples of women (total N = 486). Results of Study 1 indicated the strengths and significant limitations associated with each scale (e.g., low internal consistency for some subscales, item-subscale inconsistency). A composite measure (derived from these scales) with better overall psychometric properties is described. In Study 2, we found good support for the composite instrument's internal consistency, as well as convergent, discriminant, and factorial validity in a sample that included a wide age range and nonstudent community residents.

Feminist Identity, Gender Traits, and Symptoms of Disturbed Eating Among College Women

This study explored relationships among feminist identity, gender traits, and symptoms of disturbed eating. Seventy-one college women completed the following: weight-related questions, Feminist Identity Development Scale, Personal Attributes Questionnaire, Figure Rating Scale, and Eating Disorders Inventory. Identification with feminist values negatively correlated with body dissatisfaction, bulimic symptoms, and feelings of ineffectiveness. Identification with stereotypical masculine traits was inversely related to perfectionist tendencies and feelings of ineffectiveness, but was unrelated to body concerns. These results suggest factors promoting body dissatisfaction and disturbed eating may have less impact on college women identifying with feminist values, such as commitment to nonsexist roles and personal empowerment.

Women's Studies: A Study of Feminist Identity Development in Women

The present study investigated the effects of women's studies courses on women students' feminist identity development as defined by Downing and Roush (1984). In Study 1, the authors operationalized the five stages of the Downing and Roush model. Factor and reliability analyses performed in both Study 1 and Study 2 yielded a 39-item, self-descriptive, closed-ended feminist identity development scale (FIDS). In Study 2, the FIDS was administered at the beginning and end of the semester to 184 students in introductory women's studies courses and 39 controls. MANOVA and qualitative data from an open-ended questionnaire and semistructured interviews revealed that the women's studies students did experience development in terms of the model's stages, while the controls did not. In addition to suggesting a novel approach to evaluating women's studies courses, the results provided preliminary validity for the FIDS and the model on which it was based.