Sex-role Traditionalism Research Articles

The Effects of Children, Dual Earner Status, Sex Role Traditionalism, and Marital Structure on Marital Happiness Over Time

In this study, the link between marital happiness and the advent of children is demonstrated, accounting for dual earner status, sex role traditionalism, and marital structure. A subset of 1,275 respondents from a longitudinal data set (Marital Instability Over the Life Course: A Three Wave Panel Study, 1980–1988) whom remained married through the 3 waves was used to compare the level of marital happiness of respondents who added children between waves to those who did not. Although the addition of children negatively affected marital structure and thus indirectly lowered marital happiness, results showed children also had positive counterbalancing direct effects. Dual-earner status, income, and sex role nontraditionalism were shown to mitigate the negative effects of children on marital happiness.

The family and disease management in Hispanic and European-American patients with type 2 diabetes.

To determine the relationship between the characteristics of families involved in disease management and the self-care practices of Hispanic and European-American (EA) patients with type 2 diabetes. A total of 74 Hispanic patients and 113 EA patients with type 2 diabetes recruited from managed care settings were assessed on three domains of family life (family structure/organization, family world view, and family emotion management [four scales]) and five areas of disease management (biological, general health and function status, emotional tone, quality of life, and behavioral [seven scales]). Analyses assessed the independent associations of patient sex, family, and sex by family interactions with disease management. Both sex and the three domains of family life were related to disease management, but the results varied by ethnic group. For EA patients, sex, family world view, and family emotion management were related to disease management (scores for Family Coherence were negatively associated with HbA1c level and depression, and poor scores for Conflict Resolution were linked with high depression); for Hispanic patients, sex and family structure/organization were related to disease management (high scores for Organized Cohesiveness were associated with good diet and exercise, and high scores for Family Sex-Role Traditionalism were related to high quality of life). No significant interactions with sex occurred. Characteristics of the family setting in which disease management takes place are significantly linked to patient self-care behavior, and these linkages vary by patient ethnicity. A family's multiple independent dimensions provide multiple targets for intervention, and differences in family norms, structures, and emotion management should be considered to ensure that interventions are compatible with the setting of disease management.

Beliefs About the Nature of Sex/Gender and Ethnic Inequality

This research examines five lay explanations of the nature of sex/gender inequality - supernatural, genetic, individualistic, cultural, and social - and empirically links these beliefs to lay theories about the nature of ethnic inequality. Using data from a sample of Dutch metropolitan residents, it was found that supernatural, genetic and individualistic explanations of men-women differences are strongly related and that all correlate negatively with a social and a cultural view. The findings also showed that beliefs about sex/gender inequality and beliefs about ethnic inequality are remarkably similar; the greater the acceptance, for example, of a genetic or supernatural explanation of men-women inequality, the greater the likelihood of a genetic and supernatural belief about ethnic inequality. Significant relationships were observed between lay beliefs and church membership, education, age, sex-role traditionalism and Christian belief. No differences in explanations were found between male and female respondents.

Beliefs About the Nature of Sex/Gender and Ethnic Inequality

This research examines five lay explanations of the nature of sex/gender inequality - supernatural, genetic, individualistic, cultural, and social - and empirically links these beliefs to lay theories about the nature of ethnic inequality. Using data from a sample of Dutch metropolitan residents, it was found that supernatural, genetic and individualistic explanations of men-women differences are strongly related and that all correlate negatively with a social and a cultural view. The findings also showed that beliefs about sex/gender inequality and beliefs about ethnic inequality are remarkably similar; the greater the acceptance, for example, of a genetic or supernatural explanation of men-women inequality, the greater the likelihood of a genetic and supernatural belief about ethnic inequality. Significant relationships were observed between lay beliefs and church membership, education, age, sex-role traditionalism and Christian belief. No differences in explanations were found between male and female respondents.

Achievement motivation in high achieving Latina women

This study investigated achievement motivation in high achieving, Latina women. Sixty‐three Latina women (43 doctoral graduates, 20 completers of doctoral course work) were administered the Work and Family Orientation Questionnaire (WOFO) (Helmreich & Spence, 1978), Sex‐Role Traditionalism Scale (SRTS) (Soto, 1979), Fear‐of‐Success Scale (FOSS) (Cohen, 1974) and a demographic questionnaire. A 90‐minute interview was conducted on a subsample of 10 of these women. Varying strengths in intrinsic achievement motives of mastery, work, competitiveness, and personal unconcern; low levels of sex‐role traditionalism (SRT); and low to average levels of fear of success (FOS) were quantitatively supported in the overall sample. The motives of work and mastery, and an extrinsic motive of generativity, as well as a range of SRT, emerged prominently from the subsample. Various affective, behavioral and cognitive manifestations of FOS, and negative consequences associated with SRT and FOS were qualitatively indicated. A ...

Spousal violence among Anglos, Blacks, and Mexican Americans: The role of demographic variables, psychosocial predictors, and alcohol consumption

Racial/ethnic differences in the prevalence and correlates of self-reported spousal violence in a community sample of Anglo, Black, and Mexican American adults are examined. Females, the formerly married, and Black females in particular (up to 60% of formerly married) were most likely to report both being beaten by and beating a spouse. Multivariate analyses controlling for demographic variables, financial stress, social desirability, sex role traditionalism and drinking quantity (and spouse's drinking among the currently married) did not eliminate the greater likelihood of reports of both beating and being beaten among married Black females. There was little consistent evidence to suggest greater violence propensity among Mexican American than Anglo respondents. The findings raise questions about simplistic socioeconomic status or financial stress explanations of observed racial/ethnic differences in spousal violence. Further, curvilinear effects of alcohol quantity and spouse drinking upon reported violence question simple “disinhibition” arguments and suggest the need for data regarding couple dynamics.

Maternal depressive symptomatology over the transition to parenthood: Assessing the influence of marital satisfaction and marital sex role traditionalism.

This longitudinal study examined the importance of the marital context in predicting maternal depressive symptomatology, as assessed with marital satisfaction and the endorsement of traditional sex role beliefs about the marriage, in 142 first-time mothers and their husbands or partners. Data were collected during pregnancy and at 6 weeks and 9 months infant age. Maternal and paternal reports about the marriage were assessed, and analyses were done on the way in which marital context scores interacted with earlier and concurrent levels of maternal depressive symptomatology. A hierarchical multiple regression analysis revealed that the final model explained 57% of the variance; marital context contributed 18% of the variance beyond that of earlier symptom levels in predicting mothers'depressive symptoms 9 months after the birth of the first child

Maternal depressive symptomatology over the transition to parenthood: Assessing the influence of marital satisfaction and marital sex role traditionalism.

This longitudinal study examined the importance of the marital context in predicting maternal depressive symptomatology, as assessed with marital satisfaction and the endorsement of traditional sex role beliefs about the marriage, in 142 first-time mothers and their husbands or partners. Data were collected during pregnancy and at 6 weeks and 9 months infant age. Maternal and paternal reports about the marriage were assessed, and analyses were done on the way in which marital context scores interacted with earlier and concurrent levels of maternal depressive symptomatology. A hierarchical multiple regression analysis revealed that the final model explained 57% of the variance; marital context contributed 18% of the variance beyond that of earlier symptom levels in predicting mothers'depressive symptoms 9 months after the birth of the first child

The California Family Health Project: IV. Family structure/organization and adult health.

This research explores the relationships between each of four "domains" of family life and the health of husbands and wives in a community-based sample of 225 families. In this article we report the association between Family Structure/Organization and adult Health. This family domain refers to the architecture of the family or the structural frame of roles and rules within which the family operates. Interrelationships among 13 self-reported, family Structure/Organization scales are described, using principle components analysis (PCA) and multidimensional scaling analysis (MDS). Derived, joint-spouse or couple Structure/Organization variables also were created using inter-battery factor analysis. The PCA yielded a poor solution, whereas the MDS yielded a good two-dimensional solution, which roughly displayed the scales in a circular pattern for both husbands and wives. The analyses indicated that no single dimension or set of separate subdimensions adequately described the Structure/Organization variables. All 13 scales than were associated with a battery of 14 adult health scales for husbands and wives separately, using canonical correlation. Different aspects of family Structure/Organization were correlated with health for husbands and wives: Organized Cohesiveness, Sex Role Traditionalism, Role Flexibility and Shared Roles for husbands; and Organized Cohesiveness and Differentiated Sharing for wives. Different patterns of health scores also emerged by gender, with behavioral indicators, such as Smoking and Drinking, more salient for husbands, and mood indicators, such as Anxiety and Depression, more salient for wives.

GENDER BIAS IN THE DISPOSITION OF JUVENILE COURT REFERRALS: THE EFFECTS OF TIME AND LOCATION*

Theory based on sex role traditionalism predicts a more punishing decision for female than for male offenders, while theory based on chivalry (paternalism) predicts greater leniency by the courts for female offenders. This paper tests these two models using a large sample (36,680) of juvenile court referrals in metropolitan, urban, and rural locations spanning a nine‐year period. Nonparametric analysis of covariance is used to control for differences in offense, previous contact with the court system, and other background variables. Evidence of gender bias in dispositions was found. The patterns of bias across time, location, offense committed, and previous referral to the court system supports the persistence of chivalry and a decline in sex role traditionalism in court decisions. Greater punishment for girls than boys was found only for repeat offenders committing more serious offenses. Even in those cases, girls were more likely to be taken out of the home environment by the courts through a custody transfer while boys were more likely to be sent to a lock‐up facility.

Recent Trends in Conservatism: Evidence of Non-Unitary Patterns

Abstract While some theoretical models of conservatism seemingly posit it to be a relatively stable personality characteristic, such approaches do not easily explain changes in individual or societal levels of conservatism. Recent research has assumed that increasing conservatism is general and unitary. The present study uses both trend data and true longitudinal data to examine changes in three different indicators of conservatism: political-economic conservatism, sex-role traditionalism and opposition to abortion. Analyses of trend data show the direction of political-economic increases in conservatism and opposition to abortion over the fifteen-year period 1971–1986. Sex-role traditionalism decreased, however, for the first but not the latter part of the same time period. Longitudinal comparisons for three separate cohorts show similar results for the period 1975 to 1980. Not only do these findings show that all measures of conservatism fail to exhibit the same trends, but also it is demonstrated that ...

Religious Orientation, Sex-Role Traditionalism, and Gender Identity: Contrasting Male and Female Responses to Socializing Forces

Over the last several decades much has been written and even more supposed about the relationship between religious socialization and sex-role traditionalism. The debate has two distinct, if related, aspects. Aside from identifying religious institutions and their teachings as candidates for reform by those who disapprove of the traditionally accepted sex-roles (the partisan aspect), it is also at the center of the most intricate theoretical area of social science: the systematic analysis of how the self is shaped by and, in turn, subsequently contributes to shaping social structure - the fusion of sociology and psychology.

Beliefs About the Consequences of Maternal Employment for Children

A 24-item scale was developed to measure Beliefs about the Consequences of Maternal Employment for Children (BACMEC), including beliefs about both benefits (13 items) and costs (11 items). Studies of five samples ( n = 375) demonstrate that the total BACMEC scale and its sub-scales are highly reliable and have good convergent, divergent, and concurrent validity. Scores on the Costs Subscale predicted greater sex-role traditionalism, women's employment status (not employed), and an older age of child at which mother's employment was deemed acceptable. Benefits scores predicted women's employment status (employed) and work hours (longer), younger age of child when maternal work is acceptable, and greater support for policies to aid working parents. The scales were not susceptible to a social desirability bias. Suggestions are provided for the use of the BACMEC scale in future research concerning employment and families.

Longitudinal change in sex role orientations: Differences between men and women

Longitudinal comparisons over the five-year period of 1975–1980 show that both men and women have significantly lessened in sex role traditionalism. The change among women, further, is significantly greater than that for men. Using multiple regression analysis it is found that for women, entry into marriage, but not employment, is associated with lessened traditionalism. For men, it is not entry into marriage, but continuation in it that seems important. Restricting attention only to those who are married shows a general effect of the importance of role demands for women. For married men, none of the predictor variables are important.

The Family-Building Process: Childbearing Choices by Parity

Nationally representative US panel data from 1020 husbands and wives who remained in intact marriages and where the wife was under 40 interviewed in 1980 and 1983 are used to test the implications of exchange theory for fertility decisions. Birth of an additional child is computed by comparing the 1980 report of children the respondent had ever had with the 1983 report. 32% had a child: 53% at 0 parity 22% at the 2nd and 7% at the 3rd. Because costs and rewards attached to alternatives as well as the alternatives themselves vary by parity whether the determinants of fertility choices vary by parity was tested. The results of a multiple regression technic suggest a significant nonlinear component to the determinants of fertility especially for those factors related to womens roles. Neither sex-role traditionalism nor wives achievement in nonfamilial roles has a simple negative effect on fertility: both encourage adoption of the parenthood role while simultaneously discouraging large families. Simple demographic variables such as wifes age length of interval and previous parity have significant and substantial negative effects on fertility. 5 of the variables seem to be parity-dependent e.g. age and interval are stronger at parities of 0 and 1. Traditional sex-role values appear to encourage only the 1st child. 2 direct measures of womens extrafamilial opportunities: education and highly satisfactory work show an unexpectedly positive link to fertility again at low parities. Womens employment appears to affect fertility negatively when the employment opportunity is not satisfactory. It is suggested that female employment encourages low-parity fertility by providing an additional field for women to excel in. There is no evidence from these data of husbands income increasing family formation or building.

Changes in Role Orientations of Women

Longitudinal data were used to estimate the extent to which changes in life situations affected sex role traditionalism of women during a five-year period. An overall decrease in traditionalism was found, which was more pronounced for younger women. Multiple regression analysis indicated that experiences such as becoming married, having a child, and becoming employed were associated with lessened traditionalism. The implications of these findings are discussed.

Changes in sex-role orientations: A five-year longitudinal comparison

A longitudinal design employing survey techniques and a cohort structure is used to assess change in a Likert-type measure of sex-role traditionalism. The overall change during a five-year period was for respondents to decrease in traditionalism. This varied importantly for subgroups: Women changed more than men, and those of the most recent cohort changed more than those in either of the earlier cohorts. Trends suggesting the importance of role incumbency are noted and implications are discussed.

Cohabitation with the Future Spouse: Its Influence upon Marital Satisfaction and Communication

The relationship between cohabitation and subsequent marital quality was investigated with data from 309 recently married couples. Having cohabited premaritally was associated with significantly lower perceived quality of communication for wives and significantly lower marital satisfaction for both spouses. After controlling for sex-role traditionalism, church attendance, and other sociocultural differences between cohabitors and noncohabitors, having cohabited was still associated with slightly lower satisfaction for husbands and wives. The decrement in satisfaction associated with cohabitation is not accounted for either by differential commitment to marital permanence or by the greater amount of time in which cohabitors have been intimately involved.

Southern traditionalism and sex-role ideology: A research note

Sociological literature, as well as popular folklore, suggests the existence of a Southern regional subculture, of which sex-role traditionalism is an integral part. To test the empirical validity of this assumption, the present study employed the 1975 National Fertility Study data, a probability sample of 3,403 currently married white women, of whom eight sex-role questions were asked. A factor analysis of these questions was used to calculate a sex-role summary score for each respondent. Wife's employment in 1975 and her attainment of high levels of education were the two strongest predictors of a nontraditional sex-role score. The sex-role attitudes of Southern and non-Southern women did not differ significantly. The implications for research and policy are discussed.

Predicting premarital cohabitation: Employing individuals versus couples as the units of analysis

This study employs a sample of 309 recently married couples to discover predictors of cohabitation and cohabital duration before marriage. On the individual level religiosity and sex-role traditionalism were negatively related to the probability of having cohabited for both husbands and wives. However, couple-level analyses revealed that these variables significantly predictnot cohabiting only whenboth partners are religious or traditional. A history of previous divorce is related to a greater propensity to cohabit only when the wife has been married before, but the husband has not. No variables were significantly related to cohabital duration.