TY - JOUR
T1 - Sex differences in conformity
T2 - Status and gender role interpretations
AU - Eagly, Alice H.
AU - Chrvala, Carole
N1 - Funding Information:
This research was supported by National Science Foundation Grant BNS-8023311 and BNS-8216742 to the senior author. The authors thank Deborah Rugs for help in executing the experiment and recording the data and Wendy Wood for comments on a draft of the article.
PY - 1986/9
Y1 - 1986/9
N2 - The experiment examines status and gender role explanations of the tendency for women to conform more than men in group pressure settings. Subjects believed they were assigned to groups containing two males and two females in addition to themselves and received these other group members' opinions, which were represented as deviating from the opinions that subjects had given earlier. Subjects then gave their opinions with the other group members either having or not having surveillance over these opinions. In addition, subjects were required to form impressions of each other's likability or expertise. The findings indicate that subjects' sex and age affected the extent of their conformity. Among older (19 years and older) subjects, females conformed more with surveillance than without it, whereas surveillance did not affect males' conformity. Among younger (under 19 years) subjects, surveillance had no effects. Analysis of sex differences revealed that older females were significantly more conforming than older males when under surveillance as well as when subjects formed impressions of one another's likability. Among younger subjects, there were no sex differences. These findings are discussed in terms of the theories that (a) both sex and age function as status characteristics and (b) gender roles determine conformity.
AB - The experiment examines status and gender role explanations of the tendency for women to conform more than men in group pressure settings. Subjects believed they were assigned to groups containing two males and two females in addition to themselves and received these other group members' opinions, which were represented as deviating from the opinions that subjects had given earlier. Subjects then gave their opinions with the other group members either having or not having surveillance over these opinions. In addition, subjects were required to form impressions of each other's likability or expertise. The findings indicate that subjects' sex and age affected the extent of their conformity. Among older (19 years and older) subjects, females conformed more with surveillance than without it, whereas surveillance did not affect males' conformity. Among younger (under 19 years) subjects, surveillance had no effects. Analysis of sex differences revealed that older females were significantly more conforming than older males when under surveillance as well as when subjects formed impressions of one another's likability. Among younger subjects, there were no sex differences. These findings are discussed in terms of the theories that (a) both sex and age function as status characteristics and (b) gender roles determine conformity.
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U2 - 10.1111/j.1471-6402.1986.tb00747.x
DO - 10.1111/j.1471-6402.1986.tb00747.x
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:84965571967
SN - 0361-6843
VL - 10
SP - 203
EP - 220
JO - Psychology of Women Quarterly
JF - Psychology of Women Quarterly
IS - 3
ER -