Expectations and identifications : a case study of masculinities

Abstract

In this study, we investigate how behaviors that are considered masculine and self-reported identifications with masculine gender roles are related to each other. We used several questionnaires for measuring participants’ self-rated dominance, identification with ideologies of masculinity, aggression, sociosexual orientation, and attitudes towards women, and discovered that these are all related. Our analysis showed that the two gender role questionnaires that we used (Bem’s Sex Role Inventory and Multicultural Masculine Ideology Scale) focus on different aspects of masculinity. We analyze the main concepts related to gender roles and discuss our findings within the frames of Social Role Theory and Sexual Selection Theory.