Joan C. Chrisler

Handbook of Gender Research in Psychology

Handbook of gender research in psychology. , Handbook of gender research in psychology. , کتابخانه دیجیتال جندی شاپور اهواز

Women and weight : Gendered messages on magazine covers

In this content analysis, the covers of 21popular womens and mens magazines were examined forgendered messages related to bodily appearance. Magazinecovers were divided according to gender of readers and each cover was reviewed using a checklistdesigned to analyze visual images and text as well asthe placement of each on the covers. Analyses showedthat 78% of the covers of the womens magazinescontained a message regarding bodily appearance, whereasnone of the covers of the mens magazines did so.Twenty-five percent of the womens magazine coverscontained conflicting messages regarding weightloss and dietary habits.In addition, the positioning ofweight-related messages on the covers often implied thatlosing weight may lead to a better life. Mens magazinesfocus on providing entertainment and expanding knowledge, hobbies, and activities; womensmagazines continue to focus on improving ones life bychanging ones appearance.

The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Ms. Hyde: How PMS Became a Cultural Phenomenon and a Psychiatric Disorder

Abstract In this article we trace the historical, cultural, political, and economic forces that led to the social construction of premenstrual syndrome (PMS) and premenstrual dysphoric disorder (PMDD). The popularity of these diagnostic labels among medical professionals, the general public, and women themselves is considered and explored, as is the damage that the labels can do to women in general, as well as those who receive a diagnosis. Suggestions are provided for psychotherapists who might work with women who present with premenstrual symptoms.

Definitions of Gender and Sex: The Subtleties of Meaning

Definitions of the word “gender” were collected from 137 participants, who also completed questionnaires designed to determine aspects of the usage of the words “gender” and “sex.” The majority of participants were European American (86.9%), followed by Latino/a (3.6%), Asian/Asian American (2.9%), African American (2.2%), Native American (1.5%), and West Indian (1.5%). Most participants (70.9%) had attended at least some college and occupations included students (43%), professionals (27.8%), health care workers (4.3%), technical workers (5%), sales and service workers (9.4%), maintenance workers (1.4%), and business owners (1.4%). Data were examined to see which common themes emerged from the free form “define gender” question, the amount of interchangeability of “sex” and “gender” in a sentence completion task, and the varieties of beliefs about the relation between the terms “gender” and “sex.” Results indicate a variety of understandings and beliefs about gender that range from the common response that “gender” is the same as ”sex” to some less common responses that associate gender with females or discrimination. Implications of the ambiguous meaning of “gender” are discussed with an emphasis on the responsibility of researchers to clarify their own understanding of the terms when they discuss gender or sex in their research and publications.

Body esteem, eating attitudes, and gender-role orientation in three age groups of children

The purpose of this study was to assess body esteem, eating attitudes, and gender-role orientation in three age groups (first, third, and fifth graders). The first graders were interviewed individually; the third and fifth graders completed a questionnaire in a group setting in which the questions were read aloud to set a pace and help those who may have had difficulty reading. All children completed the Children’s Sex Stereotypes Measure, the children’s version of the Eating Attitudes Test, and the Body Esteem Scale. It was hypothesized that children as young as six or seven do understand the connection between eating and body weight, that a proportion of children do experience eating and weight concerns, and that feminine children are most likely to experience such concerns. The results demonstrated that children, as early as first grade, were indeed engaging in eating disordered behaviors and expressing dieting and weight concerns. The children appeared to understand the connection between eating and weight, and body esteem was found to be significantly lower in the fifth than the third graders. However, feminine children were not more likely to exhibit eating disordered behaviors.

Leaks, Lumps, and Lines: Stigma and Women's Bodies.

Women’s bodies have often been positioned in art and popular culture as monstrous or defiled and women’s bodily products (e.g., menstrual fluid, breast milk) as disgusting. This framing has led to the stigmatization of aspects of women’s bodies (e.g., leaking fluids, lumps of fat, and lines in the skin that indicate aging), especially those aspects that are perceived as threats to culture and society. In this article, the author draws on feminist theory, stigma theory, and terror management theory to explain the positioning of menstruating, fat, and old women as threatening and stigmatized. Evidence for the stigma is discussed, as are the effects of stigma on the stigmatized and the stigmatizers. Ways of resisting, reframing, and coping with stigma are suggested.

2007 PRESIDENTIAL ADDRESS: FEAR OF LOSING CONTROL: POWER, PERFECTIONISM, AND THE PSYCHOLOGY OF WOMEN

Anecdotal evidence and popular culture suggest that fear of losing control of oneself is common among North American women, yet there is little in the way of data or theory to show why so many women fear loss of control or how to help them to leave that fear behind. In this article a commonly accepted definition of self-regulation is examined through a feminist lens to see how gender-role socialization might affect womens sense of whether and when they can regulate (or control) themselves. Particular attention is paid to eating behavior, body image, and reproductive phases (e.g., premenstrual syndrome) as areas where fears of loss of control are often expressed. Intervention points suggested here are womens standards for body and behavior; the extent of the areas that doing femininity requires them to control; and their beliefs, not only about what they can control, but what they are allowed to do.

Attitudes Toward and Experience with Menstruation in the US and India

ABSTRACT Sixty-seven women students who were attending a university in southern India and 61 women students who were attending a liberal arts college in New England volunteered to participate in this study. The women supplied demographic information, information about their knowledge and levels of preparedness prior to menarche, and sources of their information about the menstrual cycle. They also completed the Menstrual Attitude Questionnaire (Indian version), the Menstrual Distress Questionnaire, and a test of knowledge about the menstrual cycle. American women scored significantly higher than Indian women on the knowledge test, and they also reported that they had better preparation for menarche than Indian women did. Indian women scored significantly higher than American women on the attitude subscales: Menstruation as a Natural Event and Denial of the Effects of Menstruation. Implications of these findings are discussed in light of cultural messages women receive.

Biographic and Personal Characteristics of Women in Management.

Abstract Ninety-five women managers from around the United States volunteered to complete a personality and biographic survey. The results of the Bem Sex Role Inventory and the Attitudes Toward Women Scale reveal that most of the women were androgynous or masculine in their gender-role orientation and had highly egalitarian views of womens role in society. They shared a number of biographical correlates. The majority were from middle class families, had close relationships with their parents, had mothers who were employed outside the home, had mostly male role models, and played a sport in their youth. The findings were compared to models of career choice developed by Farmer (1985) and Fassinger (1985, 1990) .

Development of a New Scale to Measure Beliefs about and Attitudes Toward Menstruation (BATM): Data from Mexico and the United States

This article introduces the Beliefs about and Attitudes toward Menstruation Questionnaire (BATM). It is a 5-point Likert scale that was normed on 1,090 Mexican people of different ages and educational levels. In a second study data from 274 undergraduate students from Mexico and the United States were compared. Four factors emerged in both samples: secrecy, annoyance, proscriptions and prescriptions, and pleasant. Mexican students scored significantly higher than U.S. students on the Proscriptions and Prescriptions subscale. Men scored significantly higher on this subscale than women. Implications of these findings are discussed, as is the possible utility of the questionnaire for future research.