Sex-role Differences in Appropriate Multiple-role Attire

Abstract

As an individual interacts in a number of roles with contradictory expectations, role strain may occur. Appearance may assistfunctioning in multiple sex-roles. Students (n=1113) in introductory Psychology classes viewed slides of a hypothetical dual-career couple and made Likert-type ratings of their attire, for six situations. Four treatments, established by varying information presented with the slides, were subjected to nonparametric univariate and multivariate analyses. Hypothesis I, differences in appearance evaluations will not occur as a function of sex of individuals in diverse settings, was rejected. Hypothesis II, differences in appearance evaluations will not occur as a function of sex of evaluator, was (1) essentially accepted when treatments were pooled and evaluations were of stimulus figures of the same sex as evaluator, (2) rejected when treatments were separated, and (3) rejected when evaluations were of stimulus figures of the opposite sex as evaluator with treatments pooled and separated The findings suggest that appearance and situation interact, but how they interact differs according to sex of actor and sex of evaluator.

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