Perspective Taking Explains Gender Differences in Late Adolescents' Attitudes Toward Disadvantaged Groups

Area of Science:

• Social Psychology
• Developmental Psychology
• Adolescent Studies

Background:

• Adolescents' attitudes toward disadvantaged groups are understudied.
• Existing research indicates attitudes become more favorable over time, with girls showing more positive attitudes than boys.
• Explanations for these observed gender differences and developmental trends are lacking.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the role of social-cognitive development, specifically perspective-taking, in shaping adolescents' attitudes toward disadvantaged groups.
• To test whether enhanced perspective-taking mediates gender differences in attitudes toward Black, gay, and poor people.
• To examine developmental changes in attitudes and perspective-taking across late adolescence.

Main Methods:

• Longitudinal study of 803 late adolescents (ages 15-19) in Florida.
• Participants completed measures of perspective-taking and attitudes toward disadvantaged groups at two time points, 6 months apart.
• Analysis focused on mediation effects of perspective-taking on gender differences in attitudes.

Main Results:

• Girls reported warmer attitudes toward disadvantaged groups than boys, though this gender gap diminished over time.
• Girls consistently demonstrated higher perspective-taking abilities than boys.
• Perspective-taking significantly mediated the observed gender differences in attitudes, supporting the proposed mechanism.

Conclusions:

• Perspective-taking is a key social-cognitive mechanism driving more favorable attitudes toward disadvantaged groups during adolescence.
• While girls generally exhibit higher perspective-taking and more positive attitudes, the developmental trajectory suggests potential for attitude improvement in boys as well.
• Findings highlight the importance of fostering perspective-taking skills to promote positive intergroup relations in adolescents.