Adults' Sensitivity to Traits Exhibited by Male and Female Character Illustrations
Open Access
Author:
Robinson, Gena
Area of Honors:
Psychology
Degree:
Bachelor of Science
Document Type:
Thesis
Thesis Supervisors:
Lynn Susan Liben, Thesis Supervisor Lynn Susan Liben, Thesis Supervisor Kenneth N. Levy, Thesis Honors Advisor
Keywords:
Gender Stereotypes Traits
Abstract:
This study investigated whether the extent to which individuals are gender stereotyped influences their sensitivity to traits portrayed in images when the gender of the character enacting the trait in the image is manipulated. The main hypothesis was that high gender stereotyped individuals would rate congruent trait illustrations (e.g., feminine trait demonstrated by female character) significantly higher than incongruent trait illustrations, whereas low gender stereotyped individuals would provide comparable ratings for both congruent and incongruent trait illustrations. The sample included 130 undergraduate students (M = 19.6 years). The meanings of trait stimuli were validated: participants interpreted them as illustrating the traits they were intended to portray. Ratings on congruent versus incongruent trait illustrations did not differ in high gender stereotyped participants and low gender stereotyped participants. Female participants gave significantly more egalitarian responses than male participants on the Activities OAT-AM scale. Applications of this research pertaining to the assessment of children’s ability to identify traits in images and the development of educational materials to assist children with trait identification are discussed.
