Religion and Gender Differences in the Perception of Success

Abstract

This study was conducted to investigate differences between men and women in how they perceive success. It was hypothesized that men would perceive success more in terms of self-development and material accomplishments while women would consider relationships, specifically the family, to be the most important element in success. A questionnaire, with the question “What is success in your life?”, was administered to 21 religious men, 29 religious women, 19 nonreligious men, and 30 non-religious women. The most often mentioned categories of success were family, self-development, personal accomplishment, spirituality, and material possessions. Among non-religious persons there were large differences between men and women, but differences between religious men and women were small.