androgyny and BSRI

Question 1

explain defining androgyny?

Answer 1

• someone with a personality type that is characterised by a balance of masculine and feminine traits
• associated with psychological well being
• better equipped to adapt to a range of situations that non-androgynous people would find difficult

Question 2

explain measuring androgyny

Answer 2

• Bem Sex Role inventory (BSRI)
• scale presents 20 characteristics that would be commonly identified as masculine e.g..aggression and feminine e.g.. gentle
• responders would rate themselves on a 7 point rating scale
• 1-never true of me/ 7-always true of me

Question 3

explain a hypothetical of how results form the BSRI would look like?

Answer 3

• high masc, low fem= masculine
• low masc, high fem= feminine
• low masc, low fem= undifferentiated
• high masc, high fem= androgynous

Question 4

evaluate how the scale is reliable?

Answer 4

• STRENGTH
• developed by asking 50men+50 women to rate 200 terms of how desirable they were for men and women
• traits with highest scores become top 20 masc and fem traits on the BSRI
• was piloted w/ 1000 students= validity

Question 5

evaluate the association with androgyny and well being?

Answer 5

• WEAKNESS
• this emphasis believes androgynous people will find it easier to cope with situations than non-androgynous people
• however it is argued that masc traits means people are better adjusted+ more valued in society
• androgynous definition doesn’t take into account cultural contexts

Question 6

evaluate oversimplification?

Answer 6

• WEAKNESS
• gender identity is too complex to be reduced to a simple score
• alternatives to BSRI eg. PAQ which replaces masculinity/femininity division
• gender identity is more of a global concept, in order to understand fully broader issues should be considered eg. persons interests