Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

Gender differences in affiliation and instrumentality across adulthood.

N H Fultz1, A R Herzog

  • 1Survey Research Center, Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan, Ann Arbor 48106-1248.

Psychology and Aging
|December 1, 1991
PubMed
Summary

This study found no evidence that gender differences in affiliation and instrumentality decrease in later adulthood. Analysis of large-scale surveys indicates that men and women’s orientations do not converge with age.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

Prevalence and burden of overactive bladder in the United States.

World journal of urology·2003
Same author

National estimates of the quantity and cost of informal caregiving for the elderly with dementia.

Journal of general internal medicine·2001
Same author

Changes in driving patterns and worsening depressive symptoms among older adults.

The journals of gerontology. Series B, Psychological sciences and social sciences·2001
Same author

Coping strategies and health care-seeking behavior in a US national sample of adults with symptoms suggestive of overactive bladder.

Clinical therapeutics·2001
Same author

Self-reported social and emotional impact of urinary incontinence.

Journal of the American Geriatrics Society·2001
Same author

Prevalence of urinary incontinence in middle-aged and older women: a survey-based methodological experiment.

Journal of aging and health·2001

Area of Science:

  • Psychology
  • Sociology
  • Gerontology

Background:

  • Societal expectations suggest gender roles may converge in later life.
  • Theories propose that reduced parenting responsibilities might lessen gender differentiation.
  • Previous research has yielded mixed results on age-related changes in gender differences.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To test the hypothesis that gender differences in psychological orientations diminish across adulthood.
  • To examine if age and sex interact to influence affiliation and instrumentality.
  • To investigate the role of parenting status in potential gender convergence.

Main Methods:

  • Secondary data analysis of two large-scale U.S. surveys: The Quality of American Life (1971) and Americans View Their Mental Health (1976).

Related Experiment Videos

  • Inclusion of approximately 2,200 adult participants selected via probability sampling.
  • Statistical comparison of variance explained by age and sex versus age, sex, and their interaction terms for six key measures.

    • Main Results:

    • The inclusion of Age x Sex interaction terms did not significantly increase the explained variance (R2) for any of the affiliation or instrumentality measures.
    • No significant evidence was found to support a late-life convergence of men's and women's psychological orientations.
    • Restricting analyses to respondents with children did not alter the primary conclusion regarding the lack of gender differentiation decline.

    Conclusions:

    • The hypothesis that gender differences decline across adulthood is not supported by this analysis.
    • Factors such as the release from active parenting do not appear to drive a convergence of gender roles or orientations in later life.
    • Gender differentiation in affiliation and instrumentality remains relatively stable throughout adulthood based on these data.