Competition Between Females and Males at Different Age Levels on Perceptual Motor Performance.

Transcription

1 Louisiana State University LSU Digital Commons LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses Graduate School 1975 Competition Between Females and Males at Different Age Levels on Perceptual Motor Performance. Patricia Ann Johnson Louisiana State University and Agricultural & Mechanical College Follow this and additional works at: Recommended Citation Johnson, Patricia Ann, "Competition Between Females and Males at Different Age Levels on Perceptual Motor Performance." (1975). LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at LSU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in LSU Historical Dissertations and Theses by an authorized administrator of LSU Digital Commons. For more information, please contact

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3 75-22,212 JOHNSON, Patricia Ann, COMPETITION BETWEEN FEMALES AND MALES AT DIFFERENT AGE LEVELS ON PERCEPTUAL MOTOR PERFORMANCE. The Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, Ed.D., 1975 Education, physical I Xerox University M icrofilms, Ann Arbor, Michigan 48ioe

4 COMPETITION BETWEEN FEMALES AND MALES AT DIFFERENT AGE LEVELS ON PERCEPTUAL MOTOR PERFORMANCE A D i s s e r t a t i o n S u b m itte d t o th e G ra d u ate F a c u lty o f th e L o u is ia n a S t a t e U n iv e r s ity and A g r i c u l t u r a l and M ech an ical C o lle g e in p a r t i a l f u l f i l l m e n t o f th e re q u ire m e n ts f o r th e d e g re e o f D o c to r o f E d u c a tio n in The D ep artm en t o f H e a lth, P h y s ic a l, and R e c r e a tio n E d u c a tio n by P a t r i c i a Ann Jo h n so n B.A., U n iv e r s ity o f S o u th F l o r i d a, 1963 M.S., L o u is ia n a S t a t e U n i v e r s i ty, 1966 May, 1975

5 ACKNOWLEDGMENTS G r a te f u l acknow ledgem ent i s e x p re s s e d by th e w r i t e r t o D r. Ja c k K. N e lso n, c h a ir p e r s o n o f th e a u t h o r 's comm i t t e e, f o r h i s tim e, g u id an c e and e x p e r t i s e w hich a l l began lo n g b e f o r e th e d i s s e r t a t i o n was c o n te m p la te d. The w r i t e r i s e s p e c i a l l y g r a t e f u l t o D r. B a rto n R. F a r th in g f o r h i s a s s i s t a n c e in th e s t a t i s t i c a l p r e p a r a t i o n o f t h i s d i s s e r t a t i o n. S p e c ia l a p p r e c i a ti o n i s o f f e r e d t o t h e o t h e r members o f th e co m m ittee: D r. Mary Lou L i f e, D r. H elen F a n t, D r. A m elia Lee and D r. LeOra L ip e f o r t h e i r p a r t in th e c o m p le tio n o f th e s tu d y. Most o f a l l th e w r i t e r w ish e s t o e x p re s s v e ry s p e c i a l th a n k s to th e many i n d i v i d u a l s p ro m o tin g e q u a l o p p o r t u n i t i e s f o r g i r l s and women i n s p o r t whose e f f o r t s have i n s p i r e d and en co u rag ed th e w r i t i n g o f t h i s d i s s e r t a t i o n. ii

6 TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ACKNOWLEDGMENT... i i LIST OF TABLES... v i LIST OF F IG U R E S... v i i ABSTRACT......v i i i C h a p te r I. INTRODUCTION... 1 PURPOSE OF THE STUDY... 8 NEED FOR THE STUDY... 9 DEFINITION OF T E R M S DELIMITATION OF THE S T U D Y...12 LIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY...13 I I. REVIEW OF THE RELATED LITERATURE...14 LITERATURE IN PSYCHOLOGY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY RELATED TO SEX DIFFERENCES IN COMPETITIVE BEHAVIOR...14 Summary o f L i t e r a t u r e in Psychology and S o c ia l P sy c h o lo g y R e la te d t o Sex D i f f e r e n c e s i n C o m p e titiv e B e h a v io r STUDIES IN PHYSICAL EDUCATION RELATED TO SEX DIFFERENCES IN COMPETITIVE BEHAVIOR.. 23 Summary o f S tu d ie s in P h y s ic a l E d u c a tio n R e la te d t o Sex D if f e r e n c e s in C o m p e titiv e B e h a v i o r I I I. PROCEDURE OF THE STUDY...26 OVERVIEW...26 SELECTION AND SCHEDULING OF SU BJECTS...27 iii

7 iv C h a p te r page I I I. PROCEDURE OF THE STUDY ( c o n tin u e d ) RESEARCH ASSISTANT TESTING EQUIPMENT DESCRIPTION OF PERCEPTUAL-MOTOR TASK TESTING PROCEDURES STATISTICAL ANALYSIS IV. PRESENTATION AND ANALYSIS OF D A T A ANALYSIS OF THE EFFECTS OF THE EXPERIMENTAL CONDITIONS UPON PERFORMANCE SCORES C om parison o f P e rfo rm a n ce S c o re s by Sex o f S u b j e c t s...39 C om parison o f th e E f f e c t s o f th e E x p e rim e n ta l C o n d itio n s Upon Mean P erfo rm an ce S c o re s. 39 C om parison o f th e P e rfo rm a n ce Mean S c o re s o f 8, 12, 16 and 20 Y ear Old S u b je c ts.. 39 I n t e r a c t i o n E f f e c t s o f Sex and Age On Mean P e rfo rm a n c e S c o re s I n t e r a c t i o n E f f e c t s o f Sex and Sam e-sex and C ro s s -S e x C o m p e titio n Upon Mean P e rfo rm a n c e S c o re s I n t e r a c t i o n E f f e c t s o f Age L e v e ls ana Same- Sex and CroB S-Sex C o m p e titio n Upon Mean P e rfo rm a n c e S e e " j I n t e r a c t i o n E f f e c t s o f S e x, Age and Same- S ex C ro s s -S e x C o m p e titio n Upon Mean P e rfo rm a n ce S c o re s V. SUMMARY, FINDINGS AND CONCLUSIONS SUMMARY FIN D IN G S DISCUSSION OF FINDINGS CONCLUSIONS RECOMMENDATIONS 33

8 C h a p te r Page SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY A P P E N D IX V I T A... 61

9 LIST OF TABLES TABLE PAGE 1. A n a ly s is o f V a ria n c e o f C ard S o r tin g P erfo rm an ce S c o re s o f th e 240 6, 12, 16 and 20 Y ear Old Fem ale and Male S u b je c ts P e rfo rm in g U nder Two E x p e rim e n ta l C o n d itio n s Mean P erfo rm an ce S c o re s f o r th e V a rio u s C om parisons Made in th e Two-By-Two-By-Four A n a ly s is of V a ria n c e o f th e Card S o r t i n g Task 40 vi

10 LIST OF FIGURES FIGURE PAGE 1. T e s tin g E q u ip m e n t P erfo rm an ce i n Sam e-sex D y a d P erfo rm an ce i n C ro s s -S e x D y a d vii

11 ABSTRACT The p u rp o se o f t h i s s tu d y was to com pare p e r c e p t u a l - m o to r p e rfo rm an c e o f fem a le s and m a le s a t d i f f e r e n t age l e v e l s when com peting w ith members o f th e same se x and members o f th e o p p o s ite s e x. A c a r d s o r t i n g t a s k was em ployed as th e p a ra m e te r t o d e te r m in e th e e f f e c t s o f th e tw o tr e a tm e n t c o n d itio n s. The t a s k c o n s i s t e d o f s o r t i n g c o lo r -c o d e d c a rd s in to a c o lo r - c o d e d c o m p a rtm e n ta liz e d box f o r a th ir t y - s e c o n d p e r io d. Two i n d i v i d u a l p r a c t i c e t r i a l s w ere a d m in is te r e d p r i o r to a c t u a l c o m p e titio n th u s a llo w in g f o r i n i t i a l le a r n in g o f th e t a s k. U t i l i z i n g a c o u n te r b a la n c e d t e s t i n g o r d e r, each s u b j e c t p e rfo rm ed u n d e r two tr e a tm e n t c o n d itio n s : (1 ) c o m p e titio n a g a i n s t an opponent o f th e same se x and (2 ) c o m p e titio n a g a i n s t an opp o n en t o f t h e o p p o s ite s e x. Two ex am in e rs c o n d u c te d e a c h t e s t i n g s e s s i o n, one fem ale and one m a le. S u b je c ts f o r t h i s i n v e s t i g a t i o n w ere 240 s tu d e n ts e n r o l l e d in L a f a y e tte, L o u is ia n a s c h o o l s. T h i r t y w h ite, r ig h t- h a n d e d fem ale and t h i r t y w h i t e, r ig h t- h a n d e d m ale v o l u n te e r s w ere s e le c te d from e a c h o f f o u r age g ro u p s: (1 ) e ig h t y e a r o ld s ; (2 ) tw e lv e y e a r o l d s ; (3 ) s i x t e e n y e a r o ld s and (4 ) tw e n ty y e a r o l d s. The c o ll e c t e d d a ta w ere s u b je c te d t o a s p l i t - p l o t f a c t o r i a l a n a ly s is o f v a r i a n c e. The m ain p l o t s c o n s is te d o f th e f o u r age groups and th e tw o g e n d e r g ro u p s w h ile th e v i i i

12 ix s p l i t - p l o t c o n s is te d o f th e two tr e a tm e n t e f f e c t s. S t a t i s t i c a l a n a ly s is re v e a le d t h a t : 1. On th e card s o r tin g t a s k, p e rfo rm an c e s o f fem a le s when com peting w ith th e same sex a n d /o r com peting a g a in s t th e o p p o s ite sex were s i g n i f i c a n t l y s u p e r io r to m ales p erfo rm in g u n d er th e same c o n d itio n s. 2. No s i g n i f i c a n t d if f e r e n c e was found in th e comp a ris o n o f fem ale and male p erfo rm an ces when com peting w ith members o f th e same sex and members o f th e o p p o s ite se x. 3. The s u p e r i o r i t y o f th e fe m a le s on th e p e rc e p tu a l- m o to r ta s k was g r e a t e r under c o m p e titio n a g a in s t th e o p p o s ite sex th a n in co m p e titio n w ith o p p o n en ts o f th e same s e x. 4. Male s u b je c ts perform ed a p p ro x im a te ly th e same in c ro s s - s e x and sam e-sex p a ir in g c o m p e titio n. 5. R e g a rd le ss o f th e e x p e rim e n ta l c o n d itio n a s i g n i f i c a n t l i n e a r improvement in p erfo rm an ce w ith age was fo u n d. Based on th e r e s u l t s o b ta in e d in t h i s s tu d y, th e fo llo w in g c o n c lu sio n s ap p ear co be w a rra n te d : 1. In th e ta s k u t i l i z e d in t h i s s tu d y, fem ales o u t perform ed m ales r e g a r d le s s o f age o r c o m p e titiv e s i t u a t i o n. 2. P e rc e p tu a l-m o to r perform ance im proved w ith in c re a s e d a g e. 3. O v e r a ll, co m p etitio n w ith th e o p p o s ite sex was n o t d i f f e r e n t from c o m p e titio n w ith th e same s e x. However, th e r e was e v id en ce t h a t c o m p e titio n w ith th e o p p o s ite sex

13 enhanced th e perform ance o f th e fe m a le s.

14 CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION P h y s ic a l e d u c a to rs and a t h l e t i c a d m i n i s t r a t o r s have r e c e n t l y been fa c e d w ith t h e m u l t i f a c e t e d p ro b lem o f co m p ly in g w ith l e g i s l a t i o n d e s ig n e d t o e q u a liz e o p p o rtu n i t i e s f o r fem ale p a r t i c i p a t i o n i n c o m p e titiv e a t h l e t i c s. The t r a d i t i o n a l se x d i s c r i m i n a t i o n t h a t h a s e x i s t e d i s l a r g e l y b a se d on m yths and c u l t u r a l r o l e e x p e c ta ti o n s. T h e o r e t i c a l l y, n e a r ly a l l p e r s o n s w ould a g re e t h a t i t i s i n d e f e n s i b l e to deny an i n d i v i d u a l t h e o p p o r tu n ity f o r p a r t i c i p a t i o n and o p tim a l a c h ie v e m e n t i n s p o r t s c o m p e titio n on th e b a s i s o f s e x. T r a d i t i o n a l l y, fe m a le s and m ales have had d i f f e r e n t r o l e e x p e c ta tio n s w hich in some c a s e s h av e r e s u l t e d in d i s c r i m i n a t i o n. an e a r l y a g e. Such s t e r e o t y p in g o f r o l e s i s e v id e n t from In r e s e a r c h o f c h i l d r a i s i n g p a t t e r n s, Bern and Bern r e v e a le d t h a t " p a r e n ts b e g in *o r a i s e t h e i r c h i l d r e n i n a c c o rd w ith p o p u la r s t e r e o t y p e s from th e v e ry b e g in n i n g." 1 S u p p o rtiv e r e s e a r c h h a s d i s c l o s e d t h a t as e a r l y as t h i r t e e n m onths o f age b a b ie s who w ere b a r r ic a d e d from t h e i r m others r e a c te d d i f f e r e n t l y a c c o rd in g to t h e i r 1S. Bern and D. Bern, "C ase S tu d y o f N onconscious Id e o lo g y : T r a in in g th e Woman t o Know H er P l a c e," c i t e d in D. J. Bern, B e l i e f s. A t t it u d e s and Human A f f a i r s. (B elm ont, C a l i f o r n i a : B ro o k s/c o le Company, ), p

15 s e x. Male t o d d l e r s t r i e d p h y s i c a l l y t o g e t aro u n d th e b a r r i e r s w h ile fe m a le s sto o d in th e m id d le o f th e room and 2 c r i e d. Such e a r l y p e rc e p tio n s o f a p p r o p r i a t e b e h a v io r p a t t e r n s i n e v i t a b l y in f lu e n c e th e l i v e s o f a l l i n d iv i d u a ls and may c o n t r i b u t e to th e l i m i t i n g o f th e f u l l d ev elo p m en t o f human p o t e n t i a l. S c o tt s t a t e d : I n to d a y s s o c i e t y, one sh o u ld be p r e p a r e d to behave a g g r e s s iv e l y, a t tim e s, to s u r v i v e. To have f r i e n d s, a t tim e s one sh o u ld be p re p a re d t o b eh av e i n a g e n tle way. U n f o r tu n a te ly, p e o p le a re u s u a l l y a tr o p h ie d in to one ex trem e o r th e o th e r. Men know how t o be v e ry a g g r e s s iv e and to u g h, and th e y o f t e n a r e. Women, on t h e o t h e r h a n d, u s u a lly have been s o c i a l i z e d i n t o p a s s i v i t y, and th e y have t h a t down v e ry w e l l. 5 S t e r e o t y p i c a l l y fem in in e b e h a v io r p a t t e r n s have lo n g b een th e l e a s t d e s i r a b l e b e h a v io r p a t t e r n in s o c i e t y. U lr ic h n o te d t h a t " th e fem ale i s t y p i c a l l y c h a r a c t e r i z e d a s d e p e n d e n t, p a s s i v e, f r a g i l e, n o n a g g r e s s iv e, noncom peti t i v e, y i e l d i n g, r e c e p t i v e, s u p p o r t i v e, and e m o tio n a lly ll p l i a b l e. " In d i r e c t c o n t r a s t, m ales a re d e p ic te d as " in d e p e n d e n t, a g g r e s s iv e, c o m p e titiv e, a s s e r t i v e, s tr o n g, e n d u rin g, c o u ra g e o u s, a c t i v e, d i s c i p l i n e d, and e m o tio n a lly c o n t r o l l e d. 2 M ichael L ew is, "T h e re s No U n ise x i n th e N u rs e ry, P sy c h o lo g y T oday. (.May 1972), 5 ^-57 ^ Ja c k S c o t t, "M asculine O b s e s sio n i n S p o r t s," in Women's A t h l e t i c s : C oping w ith C o n tro v e rs y (W ash in g to n, D.'tf.: AAiiPER,' T ^ T T p p : ll C e le s te U l r i c h, "She Can P la y As Good As Any Boy, P h i D e lta K appan, LV (O c to b e r Ibid.

16 3 Broverm an and o th e r s 6 e x p lo re d th e s u b j e c t i v e o p in io n s o f c o lle g e s tu d e n ts and c l i n i c i a n s c o n c e rn in g th e t r a i t s o f fe m a le s and m a le s. The S ex R ole S t e r e o ty p e Q u e s tio n n a ir e c o n s i s t i n g o f 122 b i p o l a r ite m s was adm ini s t e r e d t o a c t i v e l y f u n c tio n in g c l i n i c i a n s and c o lle g e s t u d e n t s. The c l i n i c i a n s in c lu d e d p s y c h i a t r i s t s, c l i n i c a l l y t r a i n e d p s y c h o lo g is ts and s o c i a l w o rk e rs. T h ere w ere t h r e e s e t s o f i n s t r u c t i o n s w hich c a l l e d f o r th e s u b j e c t s to d e s c r i b e a h e a l th y, m a tu re, s o c i a l l y c o m p e te n t: (1 ) a d u l t, se x u n s p e c if ie d ; ( 2 ) a man and ( 3 ) a woman. They c o n clu d ed t h a t c l i n i c a l ju d g m e n ts a b o u t t h e c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s o f h e a lth y i n d iv i d u a ls d i f f e r e d a s a f u n c tio n o f s e x o f th e p e rs o n ju d g e d, and f u r th e r m o r e, t h a t th e s e d i f f e r e n c e s in c l i n i c a l ju d g m en ts p a r a l l e l e d s t e r e o t y p i c s e x - r o l e d i f f e r e n c e s. I t was a l s o found t h a t b e h a v io rs and c h a r a c t e r i s t i c s judged h e a l t h y f o r an a d u l t, se x u n s p e c i f i e d, w hich w ere presum ed t o r e f l e c t an i d e a l s ta n d a r d o f h e a l t h, resem b led b e h a v io r s ju d g e d h e a lth y f o r men, b u t d i f f e r e d from b e h a v io rs ju d g e d h e a l th y f o r women. In g e n e r a l, fe m a le s w ere c o n s id e r e d " n o t a t a l l c o m p e tit i v e and m ales w ere th o u g h t t o be " v e ry c o m p e ti t iv e." I t was c o n clu d ed t h a t s t e r e o t y p i c a l l y m a s c u lin e t r a i t s a re m ore o f t e n p e rc e iv e d as s o c i a l l y d e s i r a b l e th a n a re a t t r i b u te s w hich a r e s t e r e o t y p i c a l l y f e m in in e. ' g Inge K. B roverm an, D onald M. B roverm an, F ra n k E. C la rk s o n, P a u l S. R o s e n k ra n tz, and S u san R. V o g el, "S ex- R o le S te r e o ty p e s and C l i n i c a l Judgm ents o f M en tal H e a l t h, J o u r n a l o f C o n s u ltin g and C l i n i c a l P s y c h o lo g y, XXXIV (F e b - r u a r y

17 4 C u l t u r a l c h an g e, and i t s a t t e n d e n t a l t e r a t i o n o f a t t i t u d e and b e h a v io r i s a slow b u t p e n e t r a t i n g f o r c e. New s o c i a l movements have had an im p act on b e h a v io r p a t t e r n s and p e rh a p s have a lr e a d y s u g g e ste d new o r th o d o x ie s o f se x 7 r o l e s. C r a s e ' s u g g e ste d t h a t su ch c u l t u r a l a l t e r a t i o n s p o in t to w ard a v a lu in g o f c o o p e r a tio n r a t h e r th a n c o m p e tit i o n in o u r s o c i e t y. A c co rd in g to L ew is, I t i s p ro b a b ly no a c c id e n t t h a t th e new s o c i a l movem ents com bine a p a r t i a l r e j e c t i o n o f m a s c u lin e i d e a l s l i k e i n te n s e c o m p e titiv e n e s s o r c l e a r l y d e fin e d s e x - r e l a t e d r o l e s w ith an i n t e n s i f i c a t i o n o f to u c h in g and f e e l i n g i n t e r a c t i o n s, and t h a t t h e s e new movements a l l have a communal p a th e r th a n i n d i v i d u a l i s t i c f l a v o r. Knowing t h i s, p e o p le i n t e r e s t e d i n f e e l i n g and i n group i n t e r a c t i o n m ust move to w ard an em brace o f th e fe m in in e i d e a l th e f e m in iz a tio n r a t h e r th a n th e m asc u l i n i z a t i o n o f o u r s o c ie ty. T ech n o lo g y, coupled w ith su c h s o c i a l s t r u c t u r e c h an g e, h a s a ls o c o n tr ib u te d to an a l t e r a t i o n i n c u l t u r a l p e r s p e c t i v e s. The m other/hom em aker r o l e h a s b een re n d e re d much l e s s a p p e a lin g. New a t t i t u d e s, i n t e r e s t s and in c e n t i v e s a re ta k in g p la c e in s o c i e t y. P ro fo u n d changes r e g a r d in g th e r o l e o f women in A m erican c u l t u r e in c lu d e : (1 ) g r e a t e r econom ic in d ep e n d en c e; ( 2 ) g r e a t e r e q u a l i t y among th e s e x e s ; (3 ) s tr o n g e r em p h asis on s u c c e s s and a c h ie v e m e n t; (4 ) an expanded view o f th e fe m a le r o l e, w ith w id e r c h o ic e o f c u l t u r a l l y a c c e p te d b e h a v io r m o d els; and ^ D ix ie R. C ra s e, " S ig n if ic a n c e o f M a s c u lin ity and F e m in in ity," H e a lth E d u c a tio n. VI ( J a n u a r y - F e b r u a r y 1975)» 54. SL ew is, p. 57*

18 ( 5 ) g r e a t e r e d u c a tio n a l o p p o r t u n it i e s and a t t a i n m e n t.^ O th e r v ie w p o in ts have a t t r i b u t e d t h e s e ch an g e s to th e more h u m a n is tic a t t i t u d e o f A m ericans to d a y. O ltm an^0 s u g g e s te d t h a t t h i s evolvem ent p ro b a b ly o c c u r re d as a r e s u l t o f th e i n c r e a s i n g aw areness o f t h e c o s t s o f e n v ir o n m e n ta l p o l l u t i o n, r a c i a l d i s c r im i n a t io n and w a r. Such f a c t o r s have b ro u g h t a b o u t an i n c r e a s in g movement to s t r i k e down a l l b a r r i e r s to human p o t e n t i a l and e x p r e s s io n. H ist o r i c a l l y, aw areness o f se x u a l b a r r i e r s f o llo w s aw aren ess o f r a c i a l o n e s. ^ Such a h u m a n is tic a t t i t u d e h a s b e e n r e f l e c t e d in r e c e n t e v e n ts in v o lv in g th e a n tiw a r m ovem ent, s t u d e n t s ' r i g h t s, w om en's r i g h t s, W a te rg a te, c h a l le n g e s o f a u t h o r i t y, a c c o u n t a b i l i t y and r e le v a n c e. In d e e d, t h e r i g i d a c c e p t an ce and a d h eren c e t o t r a d i t i o n hab l o s t i t s a p p e a l i n many a r e a s o f human b e h a v io r. S te re o ty p e d r o l e s f o r fe m a le s and m ales in th e p h y s i c a l dom ain o f a t h l e t i c c o m p e titio n p r o b a b ly w ere r o o te d in th e e a r l y n eed f o r p h y s ic a l j + r e n g t h f o r s u r v i v a l. The p h y s ic a l demands o f h u n tin g, t x 'a v e lin g and p ro t e c t i n g th e f a m ily fa v o re d th e l a r g e r and s t r o n g e r m ale. M oreover, c h il d b e a r i n g and n u r s in g r e s p o n s i b i l i t i e s g r e a t l y ^ C a rl E. K la fs and M. Joan L yon, The Fem ale A th le te ( S t. L o u is, M is s o u ri: C. V. Moeby Company, 1 ^ 3 )» p.? 1. ^ R u t h M. O ltm an, "Women in th e P r o f e s s i o n a l Cauc u s e s," A m erican J e h a v i o r a l S c i e n t i s t, XV (N ovem ber- Dee e m b e r T i m T r ^ f e ^

19 lim ite d th e freedom o f t h e fe m a le. G e n e ra tio n a f t e r gener a t i o n h as p e rp e tu a te d t h e c o n c e p t o f g r e a t e r freedom f o r th e m ale as has been d e m o n s tra te d in l e g a l, s o c i a l and e d u c a tio n a l s t r u c t u r e s. P h y s ic a l e d u c a to r s have e x p lo re d v a r io u s s o c i a l and p s y c h o lo g ic a l a s p e c ts o f p e rfo rm a n c e. U n d o u b ted ly, i n d iv i d u a ls r a r e l y p e rfo rm w ith o u t e x p e r ie n c in g some e f f e c t o f t h e i r s o c i a l e n v iro n m en t and s u c h p e rfo rm a n c e i s e v a l u a te d by t h e i n d iv i d u a l b y c o m p arin g h e r s e l f o r h im s e lf to 12 o th e r s o f h e r o r h is age and l e v e l o f e x p e r ie n c e. M artens s u g g e s te d t h a t, "The co m p lex s o c i a l p r o c e s s e s o c c u r r in g betw een i n d i v i d u a l s, i n d i v i d u a l s and groups and betw een g ro u p s th e m se lv e s form much o f th e s u b s ta n c e of p h y s ic a l a c t i v i t y. I t would fo llo w t h a t a s o n e 's s o c i a l environm ent c h a n g e s, i. e. new a t t i t u d e s, c h a n g in g c o n c e p ts o f mascul i n i t y and f e m i n in i t y, new av en u es o f i n t e r a c t i o n and e x p r e s s io n, one c o u ld e x p e c t c h a n g e s i n p e rfo rm a n c e. An im p o rta n t s o c i a l v a r i a b l e ir p h y s i c a l p erfo rm an ce i s t h a t o f c o m p e titio n. W hile c o m p e titio n seem s to be an i n f l u e n t i a l and c o v e te d a s p e c t o f th e A m erican s o c i a l s t r u c t u r e, p a r t i c u l a r l y i n r e l a t i o n s h i p to p e r c e p t u a l- m o to r p e rfo rm an c e and l e a r n i n g, t h e r e a re many a s p e c ts of 12 B ry a n t J. C r a t t y, P sy c h o lo g y and P h y s ic a l A c tiv i t y (Englewood C l i f f s, New J e r s e y! P r e n t i c e - H a l l, I n c., T9&8), p ^R ain er M a rte n s, "A S o c i a l P sy ch o lo g y o f P h y s ic a l A c t i v i t y, " (Ju e st. XIV (J u n e, ), 11.

20 c o m p e titio n u n e x p lo re d e x p e r im e n ta lly The v a e t m a j o r i t y o f l i t e r a t u r e r e l a t i n g to compet i t i o n h a s c e n te r e d around m ale p e rfo rm a n c e. D e m o n stra tiv e o f p a s t o p in io n s c o n c e rn in g su c h p e rfo rm an c e i s A tk in s o n 's re f e r e n c e to a t h l e t i c c o m p e titio n a s a " f a i r l y u n i v e r s a l ach iev em en t t r a i n i n g e x p e rie n c e f o r a l l m ales in t h i s s o c i e t y.,f l 5 V ery l i t t l e r e s e a r c h h as exam ined th e p e r c e p t u a l- m otor p e rfo rm a n c e s o f fe m a le s and m ales as a r e s u l t o f sam e-sex and c r o s s - s e x c o m p e titio n. I n v e s t i g a t i o n s h av e fo c u se d on sa m e -se x c o m p e titio n c o m p a riso n s. R e s e a rc h e rs have r e p e a t e d l y c o n c lu d e d t h a t m ales become i n c r e a s i n g l y c o m p e titiv e, a g g r e s s iv e and in d e p e n d e n t w ith age w h ereas fe m a le s, r e g a r d l e s s o f a g e, a re more accom m odative, p a s s i v e and d e p e n d e n t. I t i s g e n e r a l l y a g re e d t h a t th e s e b ehavi o r s a re le a r n e d s o c i a l c o n v e n tio n s. As fe m a le s heed th e s te r e o ty p e d r o l e e x p e c ta tio n s o f p a r e n t s, e d u c a to r s and s o c i e t y i n g e n e r a l, th e y c a n n o t d is p l a y b e h a v io r c o n d u c iv e t o r e s p o n s i b i l i t y and in d e p e n d e n c e. A c o n f l i c t a r i s e s betw een w hat i s v a lu e d in s o c i e t y and what i s e x p e c te d o f them b e h a v i o r a l l y. At a tim e when c i v i l i z a t i o n i s d e p e n d e n t upon th e f u l l e s t developm ent o f human p o t e n t i a l, t h e w o rld can i l l a f f o r d s u p p re s s io n o f a p p ro x im a te ly f i f t y - t w o p e rc e n t o f th e p o p u la tio n. 14 B ry a n t J. C r a t t y, Movement B e h a v io r and M otor L e a rn in g ( P h i l a d e l p h i a : Lea & F e b ig e r, 1 % 7 J, p. ^ J o h n W. A tk in s o n, M otives in F a n ta s y : A c tio n and S o c ie ty (New Y ork: D. Van N o stra n d Co., I n c., 1*258), p. b l l.

21 8 On th e o th e r h a n d, c o n tin u e d male im p r in tin g o f a g g r e s s iv e n e s s and to u g h -m in d ed c o m p e titiv e n e s s may c a u se i n c r e a s in g l e v e l s o f s t r e s s and a n x ie ty. T h is would a ls o c o n t r i b u t e t o th e l i m i t a t i o n o f i n n a t e p o t e n t i a l. C u l t u r a l change e v id e n c e d to d a y may change th e fe ig n e d i n f e r i o r i t y o f th e fem a le i n many m a t t e r s. T h is m ight ta k e t h e form o f g r e a t e r c o m p e titiv e b e h a v io r, a s s e r t i v e n e s s and in d e p e n d e n c e. C o n v e rs e ly, m ales may a ls o d e v a lu e s te r e o ty p e d s e x r o l e e x p e c ta tio n s and em erge l i b e r a t e d fro m t r a d i t i o n a l b e h a v io r a l p a t t e r n s. F e m ales and m ales c o m p e tin g a t th e same t a s k i s i n e v id e n c e to d a y. Some fo rm e rly a l l m ale v a r s i t y s p o r t s team s a re b e g in n in g t o in c lu d e fe m a le p e rf o rm e rs. F r e q u e n tly fe m a le s a re p a r t o f g o lf team s and t e n n i s te a m s. At th e p r o f e s s i o n a l s p o r t s l e v e l m ixed team s i n v o l l e y b a l l have becom e a new ly s t r u c t u r e d s p o r t. Women co m p etin g a g a i n s t men on an e q u a l b a s i s i s a new c u l t u r a l e x p e r ie n c e, a p r o d u c t o f t h e tim e s. I f in d e e d t h e r e i s c u l t u r a l c li^ g e e v id e n t to d a y w ith r e s p e c t t o th e s e x e s th e n i t i s e s s e n t i a l t h a t more in f o r m a tio n be p ro v id e d c o n c e rn in g th e n a tu r e o f th e d i f f e r e n c e s an d u n d er w hat c o n d itio n s th e y e x i s t. PURPOSE OF THE STUDY The p u rp o se o f t h i s s tu d y was to com pare p e r c e p t u a l - m otor p e rfo rm a n c e s o f fe m a le s and m ales a t d i f f e r e n t age l e v e l s when co m p e tin g w ith members o f th e same sex and

22 members o f t h e o p p o s ite s e x. I t was a ls o th e p u rp o s e o f t h i s s tu d y t o d e te rm in e w h e th e r c o m p e titiv e p e rfo rm a n c e betw een th e s e x e s i s m o d ifie d by a g e. NEED FOR THE STUDY C o m p e titio n betw een and among fem a le s and m a le s i s a tim e ly t o p i c, a new problem f o r many p h y s ic a l e d u c a t o r s, c o a c h e s and a t h l e t i c d i r e c t o r s. As t h e r o l e o f women in o u r s o c i e t y i s c h an g e d, so i s t h e i r p la c e in s p o r t s compet i t i o n c h a n g e d. S e v e r a l e le m e n ts o f s o c i e t y have c o n tr i b u te d to th e n e c e s s i t y o f s tu d y in g v a r i a b l e s r e l a t e d to th e com peti t i v e b e h a v io r o f fe m a le s and m a le s. Among t h e s e a r e : The H ig h e r E d u c a tio n Act and th e E qual R ig h ts Amendment; th e e x p a n sio n o f wom en's r o l e s ; and th e in c r e a s e d a t t e n t i o n o f th e m edia and o th e r s to w a rd s wom en's a t h l e t i c s. 1 7 A l d r i c h ' r e v e a le d t h a t l i t t l e r e s e a r c h h a s been done r e g a r d i n g fe m a le s in c o m p e titio n when su c h a c t i v i t y h a s b e e n i n c r e a s i n g r a p i d l y i n o u r p r.r - m t day c u l t u r e. The a u th o r p o in te d o u t th e need f o r a d m i n i s t r a t o r s and o th e r s t o be in form ed c o n c e rn in g th e d ev elo p m en t and d i r e c t i o n o f fe m a le c o m p e titio n C a ro le O g le sb y, " F u tu re D ir e c tio n s and I s s u e s, " i n Women's A t h l e t i c s : C oping w ith C o n tro v e rs y (W a sh in g to n, D.C.: AArfWR,' T T O, p. & T A n ita A ld r ic h, " R e f le c tiv e T h o u g h ts," in Women' s A t h l e t i c s : C o p in g w ith C o n tro v e rs y (W ashington, D.C.: AAHFER, 1 ), pp 7 1.

23 10 T r a d i t i o n a l s e x r o l e p r e s c r i p t i o n s h av e s e r v e d t o in f lu e n c e c h o ic e o f s p o r t s a c t i v i t i e s and i n t e n s i t y o f 18 a t h l e t i c p e rfo rm a n c e i n th e p a s t. Such c u l t u r a l e x p e c t a t i o n s have c o n t r i b u t e d to t h e d e l i m i t a t i o n o f fe m a le and m ale b e h a v io r. V a r ia b le s o f a s o c io p s y c h o lo g ic a l n a t u r e w hich a f f e c t p e r c e p tu a l- m o to r p e rfo rm an c e d i f f e r e n c e s have l a r g e l y b een o n ly a llu d e d to in th e l i t e r a t u r e. The la c k o f r e s e a r c h c o n c e rn in g c o m p e titiv e p e r f o r m ance o f fe m a le s and m ales engaged i n th e same t a s k i s e v id e n c e o f t h e c u l t u r a l l y im posed d i r e c t i o n p h y s i c a l e d u c a to r s h av e ta k e n. Such p e rfo rm a n c e s h av e b e en cons i d e r e d in d e p e n d e n t o f one a n o th e r. In a c h a n g in g c u l t u r e t h i s i s no lo n g e r f e a s i b l e. U lr ic h h as p o in te d o u t th e need f o r e d u c a to rs to e n d o rs e p ro c e d u re s i n w hich p e o p le a re t r e a t e d a s i n d i v i d u a l s. She s t a t e d t h a t t h e r e a re "many d i f f e r e n c e s among p e o p le ; th e y a re more i n d iv i d u a l th a n s t e r e o t y p i c a l. "19 In a c h a n g in g c u l t u r e t h e r e i s a need f o r more in f o r m a tio n r e g a r d in g th e a f f e c t s o f b o 'rio p s y c h o lo g ic a l v a r i a b l e s upon p e r c e p tu a l- m o to r p erfo rm an ce r e l a t i v e t o 18 B ry a n t J. C r a t t y, Movement B e h a v io r and M otor L e a rn in g ( P h i l a d e lp h i a : Lea and F e b ig e r, p ^ U l r i c h, p. 117*

24 11 p h y s i c a l a c t i v i t i e s ^ 22 2^ T here i s a need t o o b t a i n m ore know ledge c o n c e rn in g th e e n v iro n m e n ta l f a c t o r s in v o lv e d in o b t a i n i n g c u l t u r e - f r e e s k i l l e d p e rfo rm a n c e s. A m a jo r g o a l o f th e p h y s ic a l e d u c a to r i s t o o b ta in o p tim a l s t u d e n t p e rfo rm a n c e and l e a r n in g. T h is s tu d y a tte m p te d t o e x te n d th e p r e s e n t knowle d g e c o n c e rn in g th e c o m p e titiv e p e rfo rm a n c e o f fe m a le s and m ales when c o m p e tin g w ith th e same se x o r th e o p p o s ite s e x. I t was hoped t h a t th e f i n d in g s o f su c h a s tu d y m ig h t a id p h y s i c a l e d u c a to r s, c o a c h e s, and a t h l e t i c d i r e c t o r s i n e s t a b l i s h i n g program s and e x p e r ie n c e s c o n d u civ e to maximum p e rfo rm a n c e f o r each s t u d e n t. DEFINITION OF TERMS The f o llo w in g term s w ere c o n s id e re d p e r t i n e n t to t h i s i n v e s t i g a t i o n : C o a c tio n. C o a c tio n was d e fin e d as th e b e h a v io r a l 24 e f f e c t s c a u se d by i n d iv i d u a ls i n t h e same a c t i v i t y. 20 B ry a n t J. C r a t t y, S o c i a l D im ensions o f P h y s ic a l A c t i v i t y (Englew ood C l i f f s, New J e r s e y : f t r e n t i c e - H a i l, ± iic.,' 1967)* p p R o b e rt N. S in g e r, M otor L e a rn in g and Human P e r - fo rm a n c e : An A p p lic a tio n to P h y s ic a l E d u c a tio n S k i l l s (flfew tfork:' ' M iicm lllan Company, 2 5 ^ G e ra ld S. K enyon, " F o re w a rd,m S o c i a l D im ensions o f P h y s ic a l A c t i v i t y. B ry a n t J. C r a t t y (Englewood 6 I i f f s, New J e r s e y : P r e n t i c e - H a l l, ;, p. v i. 2^ M a rte n s, p. 17* 24R o b e rt J. Z a jo n e, S o c ia l P sy ch o lo g y : An B x p e rim e n ta l A pproach (B elm o n t, C a l i f o r n i a : BrooKs/dJole Company, ), P. 1'5

25 12 C rob S-aex c o m p e ti t io n. C ro s s -s e x c o m p e titio n was o p e r a t i o n a l l y d e f in e d a s t a s k p e rfo rm a n c e i n th e p e r c e p t u a l - m o to r t a s k b etw een s u b j e c t s o f th e o p p o s ite s e x. P e r c e p tu a l- m o to r t a s k. P e r c e p tu a l- m o to r t a s k was d e fin e d as movement t a s k w hereby an i n d iv i d u a l m ust oper a t e in th e e le m e n ts o f s p a c e - t i m e - f o r c e. ^ O p e r a t i o n a l l y, th e p e r c e p tu a l- m o to r t a s k was a c a rd s o r t i n g t a s k. P e rfo rm a n c e s c o r e. P erfo rm an ce s c o re was d e f in e d a s a c o m p o site s c o re r e f l e c t i n g p e rfo rm a n c e on a p r e s c r i b e d c a rd s o r t i n g t a s k. Each s u b j e c t had a p e rfo rm a n c e s c o r e f o r each e x p e rim e n ta l c o n d itio n. S am e-sex c o m p e ti t io n. S am e-sex c o m p e titio n was o p e r a t i o n a l l y d e f in e d a s t h e p e rfo rm a n c e i n t h e c a rd s o r t i n g p e r c e p tu a l- m o to r t a s k b etw een two s u b j e c t s o f th e same s e x. DELIMITATIONS OF THE STUDY T h is s tu d y was d e lim ite d co 240 w h ite, r i g h t - handed s t u d e n ts e n r o l l e d i n s c h o o ls in L a f a y e t t e, L o u is i a n a. S e l e c t i o n o f s u b j e c t s was r e s t r i c t e d t o th e a g e s : 8, 1 2, 16, 8nd 20 y e a r s. The num ber o f s u b j e c t s w ere lim i t e d to t h i r t y fe m a le s and t h i r t y m ales f o r each age 25 'L e e W. H a s l i n g e r, " P e rc e p tu a l-m o to r T ask F o rc e Summary o f P e rc e p tu a l-m o to r S u rv e y," in F o u n d a tio n s and P r a c t i c e s i n P e r c e p tu a l M otor L e a rn in g : A ues~b f o r U nders ta n d in g (W ash in g to n, D.C.: AAHPER, 1971), p. I b l.

26 13 c a te g o r y. P e rfo rm a n c e was r e s t r i c t e d t o one p e r c e p t u a l - m otor t a s k, a t h i r t y - s e c o n d c a rd s o r t i n g t a s k. LIMITATIONS OP THE STUDY In t h i s s tu d y, no a tte m p t was made t o c o n t r o l th e s e l e c t i o n o f s u b j e c t s a s t o (1 ) p re v io u s c a rd s o r t i n g e x p e r ie n c e, o r (2 ) p e r s o n a l i t y t r a i t com ponent o f a g g re s s io n o r c o m p e ti t iv e n e s s. A ll s u b j e c t s had an a c q u a in ta n c e w ith th e g e n e r a l n a tu r e o f th e t a s k y e t none r e v e a le d e x te n s iv e e x p e r ie n c e. A lth o u g h an e f f o r t was made t o s e l e c t a n o n - s e x i s t p e r c e p tu a l- m o to r t a s k, t h e t a s k may have had d i f f e r e n t i a l a p p e a l f o r i n d i v i d u a l s. In a d d i t i o n, s u b j e c t s w ere n o t s c re e n e d as to p r e v io u s a c q u a in ta n c e s w ith e ac h o t h e r. T h is may o r may n o t h a v e been a m o tiv a tio n a l f a c t o r.

27 CHAPTER II REVIEW OF THE RELATED LITERATURE The review o f th e l i t e r a t u r e was d iv id e d i n to two main s e c tio n s : (1) l i t e r a t u r e in p sychology and s o c i a l p sy chology r e l a t e d to se x d i f f e r e n c e s in c o m p e titiv e b e h a v io r and (2) s t u d i e s in p h y s ic a l e d u c a tio n r e l a t e d t o sex d i f fe r e n c e s in c o m p e titiv e beh: * io r. LITERATURE IN PSYCHOLOGY AND SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY RELATED TO SEX DIFFERENCES IN COMPETITIVE BEHAVIOR The m a jo rity o f s t u d i e s w hich d e a l t w ith com petitiv e n e s s and n o n c o m p e titiv e n e ss in young c h ild r e n under th e age o f n in e f a i l e d t o r e v e a l any s i g n i f i c a n t d i f f e r en ce s in c o m p e titiv e and n o n c o m p e titiv e p erfo rm an ce. S u b je c t p o p u la tio n s v a rie d from se v e n ty -tw o t o tw elve and common in a l l w ere game s i t u a t i o n t r e a t m e n t s. 27* 28, 2 9 ^ L in d e n N elson and M illa r d C. Madsen, "C o o p e ra tio n and C o m p etitio n in F o u r-y ear-o ld s As a F u n c tio n o f Reward C o n tin g en cy and S u b c u ltu re." D evelopm ental P sy ch o lo g y. I ( J u ly, ), ^ B a r b a r a H. tfa s ik, S. K athy Senn, and Alex E pan ch in, "C o o p e ra tio n and S h a rin g B e h a v io r Among C u ltu r a lly D eprived P re sc h o o l C h ild re n," Psvchonom ic S c ie n c e. XVII (December 25, ), *S. Joyce B ro tsh y and K a rla Thomas, "C o o p e ra tiv e B e h av io r i n P re sc h o o l C h ild re n. Psvchonom ic S c ie n c e. IX (O cto b er 25, ), «. 29 sp e n c e r Kagan and M illa rd M adsden, " R iv a lry in A nglo-a m erican and M exican C h ild re n o f Two A ges," J o u rn a l o f P e r s o n a lity and S o c ia l P sy c h o lo g y. XXIV (November, ), 214-Z20. 14

28 15 Two s t u d i e s w ith young c h i l d r e n s e r v i n g as s u b j e c t s d i d, how ever, r e p o r t s i g n i f i c a n t s e x d i f f e r e n c e s. S p ir o ^ 0 o b se rv e d c h i l d r e n o f one t o f i v e y e a r s o f ag e i n an I s r a e l i k ib b u tz and r e p o r te d t h a t " i n a l l (age3 g ro u p s g i r l s a r e more i n t e g r a t i v e ( g i v e, a i d, s h a r e, a c t a f f e c t i o n a t e, c o o p e r a te ) th a n b o y s, and boys a re more d i s i n t e g r a t i v e. In i n v e s t i g a t i n g th e c o m p e titiv e b e h a v io r o f p r e s c h o o le r s from v a ry in g so c io -e c o n o m ic b a c k g ro u n d s, McKee and L e a d e r t e s t e d p a i r s o f n u r s e r y sc h o o l c h i l d r e n on a to y c o n s t r u c t i o n b lo c k gam e. The r e s e a r c h e r s r e v e a le d t h a t m id d le - and lo w e r - c la s s p a i r s o f n u r s e r y s c h o o l boys w ere more c o m p e titiv e th a n p a i r s o f fem ale p e e r s. ^ U t i l i z i n g a c o m p e titiv e b o a rd game, V in ack e and G u llic k s o n s tu d ie d se x and age d i f f e r e n c e s i n t h e b e h a v io r o f sa m e-se x t r i a d s. The age g ro u p s w ere 7-8, , and c o ll e g e s t u d e n t s. The i n v e s t i g a t o r s fo u n d t h a t fe m a le s, r e g a r d l e s s o f a g e, w ere n o t d i r e c t l y c o m p e titiv e b u t r a t h e r w ere accom m odative in t h e i r b e h a v io r. I t was f u r t h e r conc lu d e d t h a t m ales became c'- r p e t i t i v o l i '- x p l o i t a t i v e w ith a g e. T h is l i n e a r tr e n d was e x p la in e d as a le a r n e d phenome n o n. ^ ^ M. E. S p ir o, C h ild re n and th e K ib b u tz (New Y ork: Schocken B ooks, ), p. & }. 31 " Jo h n P. McKee and F lo re n c e B. L e a d e r, "The R e la t i o n s h i p o f S o c io -ec o n o m ic S t a tu s and A g g re s s io n t o th e C o m p e titiv e B e h a v io r o f P re -S c h o o l C h i ld r e n," C h ild D ev elopm ent, XXVI (J u n e, ), *. E dgar V inacke and G ary R. G u llic k s o n, "Age and Sex D if f e r e n c e s in th e F o rm atio n o f C o a l i t i o n s, " C h ild D ev elo pm ent, XXXV (D ecem ber, ),

29 16 In e v a l u a t i n g s tu d y r e s u l t s u s in g a d u l t s u b j e c t s w here se x d i f f e r e n c e s w ere o b ta in e d a lo n g w ith o t h e r s i g n i f i c a n t v a r i a b l e s, V in ack e p o in te d o u t t h a t thebe d i f f e r e n c e s w ere b e s t d e s c r ib e d as e x p l o i t a t i v e v e r s u s accom m o d a tiv e r a t h e r th a n sim p ly c o m p e titiv e v e r s u s c o o p e r a t i v e. In a l l, th e i n v e s t i g a t o r found accom m odation more t y p i c a l o f fe m a le s and e x p l o i t a t i o n more t y p i c a l o f m a l e s.33 Due t o t h e c o m p le x ity o f human b e h a v io r, t h e i n t e g r a t i o n o f g e n e r a l c u l t u r a l s e x - r o l e s t e r e o t y p e s c a n n o t be o v e rlo o k e d i n su c h a re v ie w, i t h a s b een p o in te d o u t t h a t su c h s t e r e o t y p i n g may in f lu e n c e i n v e s t i g a t o r y r e s u l t s a s w e ll a s be used t o g u id e and e v a l u a t e b e h a v io r p a t t e r n s. a s s e r t e d : 34 F o r ex am p le, P ia g e t r a t h e r c h a u v i n i s t i c a l l y The m ost s u p e r f i c i a l o b s e r v a tio n i s s u f f i c i e n t t o show t h a t in th e m ain th e l e g a l se n s e i s f a r l e s s d e v e lo p e d i n l i t t l e g i r l s th a n i n b o y s. We d id n o t su c c e e d in f i n d i n g a s i n g l e c o l l e c t i v e game p la y e d by g i r l s in w hich t h e r e w ere a s many r u l e s and above a l l, a s f i n e and c o n s i s t e n t o r g a n i z a t i o n and c o d i f i c a t i o n o f th e s e r u l e s as i n t h e game o f m a r b le s.*9 R o s e n k ra n tz, Vogel 3 6 B ee, B r o v r raan and B roverm an^ 3 3*. E d g ar V in a c k e, " V a ria b le s i n E x p e rim e n ta l Games: Toward a F i e ld T h e o ry," P s y c h o lo g ic a l B u l l e t i n, LXXI ( A p r i l, ), ^ H aro ld Cook and S a n d ra S t i n g l e, " C o o p e ra tiv e B e h a v io r i n C h i ld r e n," P s y c h o lo g ic a l B u l l e t i n. LXXXI (D ecem ber, ), je a n P i a g e t, The M oral Judgm ent o f th e C h ild (New Y ork: F re e P r e s s, 1 9 ^ 5 ), P«7 7 * ~ 36P a u l R o s e n k ra n tz, S u san V o g e t, H e le n B ee, In g e B roverm an, and D onald M. B roverm an, "Sex R o le S te r e o ty p e s and S e lf- C o n c e p ts in C o lle g e S t u d e n ts," J o u r n a l o f Cons u l t i n g and C l i n i c a l P s y c h o lo g y. XXXII ( ), *

30 e x p lo re d th e e x t e n t t o w hich a e x - r o l e s t e r e o t y p e s, w ith t h e i r a s s o c i a t e d s o c i a l v a lu e s, i n f lu e n c e th e s e l f - c o n c e p t s o f men and women. A S te r e o ty p e Q u e s tio n n a ir e was adm ini s t e r e d t o s e v e n t y - f o u r c o ll e g e m a le s, y e a r s o f a g e, and e i g h t y c o ll e g e f e m a le s, age I t was c o n clu d ed t h a t s e x - r o l e s t e r e o t y p e s c o n tin u e t o be c l e a r l y d e fin e d f o r th e s e x e s and th o s e a s s o c i a t e d w ith m a s c u l in i t y a re more s o c i a l l y d e s i r a b l e th a n th o s e a s s o c i a t e d w ith femi n i n i t y. I t was f u r t h e r c o n c lu d e d t h a t fe m a le s h o ld nega t i v e v a lu e s o f t h e i r w o rth r e l a t i v e t o m a le s. In a s tu d y c o n d u cted by B a r r y, B acon, and C h ild, i t was found t h a t t h e im p r in tin g of s e x - r o l e s te r e o ty p e d b e h a v io r was e v id e n t e a r l y i n c h ild h o o d. The r e s e a r c h e r s c o n c lu d e d t h a t m ales w ere e n co u rag ed t o be a g g r e s s iv e, c o m p e titiv e, and in d e p e n d e n t, w h ereas g i r l s were* rew arded f o r b e in g p a s s i v e and d e p e n d e n t. ^ S o c i e t y '8 a ssu m p tio n t h a t m ales p o s s e s s more d e s i r a b l e and p o s i t i v e t r a i t s th a n fe m a le s h as been r e p e a t e d l y d e m o n s tra te d i r th e l i t e r a i : vr' s. I n an e a r l y s tu d y c o n d u c te d by S m ith, a s e r i e s of q u e s tio n s w ere posed to 100 boys and 100 g i r l s betw een th e a g e s o f e ig h t and f i f t e e n a s t o w hich se x p o s s e s s e d th e m ost s o c i a l l y d e s i r a b l e t r a i t s and th e m ost s o c i a l l y u n d e s ir a b le t r a i t s. I t was c o n c lu d e d t h a t as boys and g i r l s g o t o l d e r th e y V ) H e rb e rt B a r ry, I I I, M a rg a re t K. B acon, and I r v i n C. C h ild, "A C ro ss C u l tu r a l S tu d y o f Some Sex D iff e re n c e s i n S o c i a l i z a t i o n, " Jo u r n a l o f Abnorm al and S o c i a l P sy c h o l o g y, LV (N ovem ber, 1 9 5? ), ^ 6-3 ^ 2.

31 18 b o th h e ld h ig h e r o p in io n s o f m ales and lo w e r o p in io n s o f 58 f e m a le s. As a r e s u l t o f th e a fo re m e n tio n e d d e v e lo p m e n ta l p a t t e r n, P r a t h e r s u g g e s te d t h a t g i r l s l e a r n t o v a lu e th e m se lv e s f a r l e s s th a n th e y v a lu e boys a s th e y m a tu re. The r e s e a r c h e r c o n c lu d e d t h a t fe m a le s i n o u r s o c i e t y from th e c r i b a re s o c i a l i z e d t o be more o r i e n t e d to w a rd p e o p le, t o be o t h e r - d i r e c t e d and d e p e n d e n t, w h ereas m ales a re r e a r e d t o be more in d e p e n d e n t, a g g r e s s iv e ( c o m p e ti t iv e ), and a c h ie v e m e n t- o r ie n te d. G i r l s l e a r n t o e q u a te s u c c e s s a t a g iv e n t a s k w ith t h e d e m o n s tr a tio n o f m a s c u lin e t r a i t s, 5 9 so m eth in g m ost fe m a le s a r e r e l u c t a n t to d o. T hese a t t i t u d e s, B ardw ick su g g e s te d a r e d i r e c t l y r e l a t e d t o th e b e h a v io r s fe m a le s d e m o n s tra te. The w r i t e r a s s e r te d t h a t th e v a lu e one p la c e d on s e l f d e te rm in e d th e l e v e l o f s e l f - e s t e e m t h a t p e rs o n h e l d. I t was a ls o p o in te d o u t t h a t b e c a u se fe m a le s h e ld lo w e r s e l f - e s t e e m p r o f i l e s th a ti t h e i r m ale c o u n t e r p a r t s th e n fe m a le s may be h e s i t a n t t o engage i n b e h a v io rs r e q u i r i n g th e h ig h ly v a lu e d m ale s e x - r o le a p p r o p r i a te t r a i t s. T h is, th e a u th o r a s s e r t e d, would a f f e c t t h e a c h ie v e m e n t- d ir e c te d b e h a v io r 5 8 'S te v e n s o n S m ith, "Age and Sex D if f e r e n c e s in C h i l d r e n 's O p in io n s C o n c e rn in g S ex D i f f e r e n c e s," J o u r n a l o f G e n e tic P s y c h o lo g y. LIV ( ), ^ ^ Ja n e P r a t h e r, "Why C a n 't Women Be More L ik e Men: A Summary o f th e S o c io p s y c h o lo g ic a l F a c to r s H in d e rin g Women's Advancem ent i n t h e P r o f e s s i o n s," A m erican B e h a v io ra l S c i e n t i s t, XV (N ovem ber-d eeem ber, ),

32 4 0 o f a fe m a le. 19 H o m e r a t t r i b u t e d su ch fe m a le p e rfo rm a n c e b e h av i o r s to a "m o tiv e t o a v o id s u c c e s s " w h ich was d e f in e d as " th e f e a r t h a t s u c c e s s i n c o m p e titiv e s i t u a t i o n s w i l l le a d t o n e g a tiv e c o n se q u e n c e s su c h as u n p o p u la r ity and l o s s o f 41 f e m i n i n i t y." In a fo llo w -u p s tu d y H o rn e r m easured th e m o tiv e to a v o id s u c c e s s. The p e rfo rm a n c e s o f c o ll e g e women w ere com pared i n c o m p e titiv e and n o n c o m p e titiv e s i t u a t i o n s. C l a s s i f i c a t i o n s o f h ig h and low s c o r e s in th e m o tiv e t o a v o id s u c c e s s w ere o b ta in e d f o r each s u b j e c t. The i n v e s t i g a t o r fo u n d t h a t s u b j e c t s h ig h in t h e m o tiv e to a v o id s u c c e s s p e rfo rm e d l e s s w e ll i n a m ix e d -se x c o m p e tit i v e s i t u a t i o n th a n i n a n o n c o m p e titiv e s i t u a t i o n. The r e v e r s e was t r u e f o r s u b j e c t s low in th e m o tiv e to av o id 42 s u c c e s s. B ased on H o r n e r 's f i n d i n g s, O 'L e a ry c o n c lu d e d t h a t women would re s p o n d n e g a t i v e l y to s u c c e s s in a t r a d i t i o n a l l y m a s c u lin e c o n te x t ( c o m p e titio n ) and t h a t " su c h s u c c e s s i s lin k e d w ith f e a r o f s o c i a l r e j e c t i o n and d o u b ts a b o u t 4o o n e 's f e m i n in i t y and n o r m a lity. 4 0 J. M. B a rd w ick, P sy ch o lo g y o f Women: A S tu d y o f B io - C u ltu r a l C o n f l i c t s (New York: H a rp e r and kow Co., I 9 7 l ). B r ig h t Women," P sy ^ M a r t i n a S. H o m e r, " P a i l : c h o lo g y T o d ay. I l l ( ), ? M a rtin a S. H o m e r, "Toward An U n d e rsta n d in g o f A chievem ent R e la te d C o n f l i c t s i n Women," J o u r n a l o f S o c ia l I s s u e s. XXVIII ( ), ^ V i r g i n i a E. O 'L e a ry, "Some A t t i t u d i n a l B a r r i e r s to O c c u p a tio n a l A s p ir a tio n s in Women," P s y c h o lo g ic a l B u lle t i n, LXXXI (N ovem ber, 197*0,