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Threat to gender representation: identity and identification
1Williams College, MA, USA.
Journal of Personality
|June 6, 1998
Summary
Threats to gender identity increase defense mechanisms like identification in college students. The extent of this effect depends on how much the feedback contradicts their self-perception.
Area of Science:
- Psychology
- Social Psychology
- Defense Mechanisms
Background:
- Gender identity is a core aspect of self-concept.
- Defense mechanisms are psychological strategies used to cope with threats to the ego.
- Understanding how gender identity threats influence defense mechanisms is crucial for psychological well-being.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine the impact of threats to gender identity on the utilization of defense mechanisms.
- To investigate whether gender-consistent or gender-contrary feedback influences defense mechanism use.
Main Methods:
- College students received false feedback about their sex-role identity.
- Participants were categorized based on gender-consistent or gender-contrary feedback.
- The use of the defense mechanism 'identification' was measured.
Main Results:
- Students receiving gender-contrary feedback showed a significant increase in using the 'identification' defense mechanism.
- This increase was more pronounced compared to students who received gender-consistent feedback.
- Both emotional changes and the use of identification were influenced by the discrepancy between feedback and self-perceived gender identity.
Conclusions:
- Threats to gender identity can activate specific defense mechanisms, notably 'identification'.
- The degree of perceived discrepancy between one's gender identity and external feedback is a key factor in this response.
- These findings highlight the psychological processes involved in maintaining gender identity in the face of challenges.
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