The emergence in recent years of strong female musical artists asserting their sexuality as empowerment (Andsager & Roe, 2003; Gauntlett, 2002) has necessitated an evaluation of their depictions in music videos as perceived by contemporary target audiences. This study attempts to determine how viewers’ gender role identity, based upon gender schema theory (Bem, 1981; 1993) and measured through Bem Sex-Role Inventory (BSRI), relate to perceptions of female pop and hip hop artists’ music videos. It was hypothesized that sex-typed respondents would perceive portrayals as traditional more than other groups, whereas cross-sex typed respondents would perceive empowerment more than others groups. A convenience sample of 177 female undergraduate students was used for this cross-sectional study. Results did not support the hypotheses. Though some of the traditional items were found significant, no other significant differences emerged. Overall, gender role identity was ultimately found to have little relationship to perceptions of music video portrayals.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Texas at Austin, 2007. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

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Quantitative researchers often infer the validity of a construct through some quantitative (statistical) manipulation of the numerical responses to scale or questionnaire items. The participants' meaning construction of these items, especially with affective and personality scales, are usually unexplored or assumed equivalent. The current study investigates the defensibility of such a position based on the socio-constructive view on meaning construction. The current study explored how respondents interpreted the items from the Bem Sex Role Inventory (BSRI). The instrument was chosen for its popularity, its empirically based development, and for the culturally significant issue the scale addresses. Bem also proposed a gender schema theory to account for sex related cognitive processing. Forty participants, equally divided into male and female, undergraduate and working adult groups, completed self-ratings on the Masculinity and Femininity items from the BSRI. They performed "think aloud" on half of the items while rating themselves. They also completed a follow-up interview providing more in-depth interpretations of scale items and their conceptualization of masculinity and femininity. The "think aloud" and the interviews were audiotape-recorded, transcribed, and analyzed. The results showed that the respondents constructed various meanings for each item. There were commonly shared meanings, less shared meanings, rare, and unique meanings. There were also misinterpretations. Participants conceptualized "being masculine" and "being feminine" in many dimensions, including physical features and personal appearance. The current study identified sex differences in meaning constructions, including the contexts in which meanings were situated. The current study also found substantial differences between the student and the adult participants' meaning constructions. The limitations of the current study and its implications for test construction are discussed.

Since the advent of the Bem Sex Role Inventory (Bem, 1974) two models, the Androgyny and Masculinity model, have been advanced to explain the sex role literature. This study attempts to rectify several methodological issues by experimentally controlling for the effects of self-esteem and using a quartile-split procedure for sex role type assignment. Two experiments were conducted to evaluate interpersonal problem solving ability among sex role types and to compare the predictions of the Androgyny model and the Masculinity model. The results of both experiments implicate the crucial role of self-esteem in sex role research. Self-esteem, rather than sex role type, appears to be more predictive of adequate psychological adjustment.

Recent research into sex roles has been heavily influenced by androgyny theory, and by the development of the Bern Sex-Role Inventory (BSRI; Bern, 1974). Psychological androgyny is the combination, in one individual, of both culturally defined masculine and feminine personality traits. The Sex-Rep, a new instrument for assessing sex role which is aimed at rectifying certain problems associated with the BSRI, was then described. The Sex-Rep, the BSRI (Bern, 19 34), the Texas Social Behavior Inventory (TSBI; Spence & Stapp, 1974), the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI, Beck, 1967), and a self-concept thermometer, were given to 100 male and 108 female undergraduates. Results indicated that the BSRI and the Sex-Rep are both valid sex-role instruments, insofar as they both discriminate between males and females. They tend to measure nonredundant components of sex role as indicated by a lack of overlap between their sex-role classifications. The present study did not find any support for the balance model of androgyny which suggests that high masculinity and high femininity interact by balancing each other to produce a healthier, more behaviorally flexible individual. BSRI masculinity (M) was strongly related to adjustment in both sexes, but BSRI femininity (F) had little impact. This relationship between BSRI M and adjustment was described as probably resulting from measurement artifact since (&) only socially desirable traits are included on the BSRI, (b) removing self-esteem effects from the BSRI M scale enhanced its ability to discriminate between the sexes, (c) Sex-Rep masculinity was not related to adjustment for women, and its linkage to adjustment for men was less strong than BSRI M, (d) women rated their feminine constructs as more desirable than their masculine constructs, and (e) there were no actual self-esteem differences between males and females. Thus, findings from the BSRI regarding the relationship between sex role and adjustment must be called into question. Furthermore, since there is little overlap between genderrelated personal construals and social stereotypes, it is important to discover the effects of personal gender identity on personality and behavior.

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Women comprise over 57% of all U.S. mortuary school students, yet less than 20% of all funeral directors employed in this country are women. As such, women are underrepresented as funeral directors in the funeral industry. Research to date has not established clear differences between perceived gender roles and occupations in the funeral service industry. The research questions examined the perceived differences of gender role characteristics of masculine, feminine, and androgyny between the occupations of funeral service providers and nursing. Bem's gender role theory was the theoretical framework of this study. The research compared the mean scores of male and female funeral service professionals and nursing professionals as measured by the validated Bem Sex Role Inventory (BSRI). A sample consisted of 214 randomly selected male (n = 88) and female (n = 25) funeral service professionals and male (n = 37) and female (n = 64) nurse professionals. Data scores were analyzed using the factorial multivariate analysis of variance method. Results indicated nonsignificant gender role differences between male and female funeral directors. Funeral directors appear more androgynous compared to nurses. The present study contributed to the development of this important and neglected area of research by quantitatively examining the gender role perceptions of men and women in the funeral service industry for the first time. This study results highlighted the complexity in self-perceived gender role characteristics as measured by BSRI. When the funeral profession begins to dispel gender stereotypes and discrimination issues, positive social change can occur.