Feminist, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Commons^™

How Gender Roles Impact The Social Perceptions Of Sexual Assault, Autumn Zwakenberg

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

This study set out to examine how different factors such as the gender of the victim, the gender of the perpetrator, and the scenario of sexual assault, can influence an outsider’s opinion of the sexual assault. There were two main hypotheses: the first is male and female participants would perceive the push-away scenario as sexual assault at equal rates, but significantly more female participants would perceive the victim allowing the perpetrator to unbuckle their pants scenario as sexual assault. The second is male and female participants would view the male perpetrator scenarios as sexual assault equally, but significantly more female …

Sexism's Effect On Female Suicide Ideation & Non-Suicidal Self-Injury Through Body Surveillance & Self-Esteem, Caitlin Gregory

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Research has shown that women face an average of three sexist events per week (Fischer & Holz, 2010). These sexist experiences can present within domains of daily living, social media usage, workplace discrimination, psychological distress, and sexual objectification (Baires & Koch, 2020; Duggan, 2014; Oswald, et al. 2019; Perez, 2019; Rollero, 2013). Additionally, the literature has shown that types of sexist experiences can determine the severity of the impact on mental health outcomes, as benevolent sexism has showcased significant consequences on females’ self-esteem and body objectification and hostile sexism has been shown to impact selfevaluation and self-worth (Calogero & Jost, …

Shame, Perceived Social Support, And Ptsd: Bridging The Gap Between Female And Male Survivors Of Sexual Assault, Kelsey Camille Woodward

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Sexual assault (SA) is prevalent in both females and males, with approximately 25% of females and 10% to 20% of males experiencing SA at some point of their lives. Social support and shame are important factors that are related to PTSD for SA survivors. However, little research has compared female and male SA survivors on these factors. Consequently, the purpose of the present study was to investigate the role of social support on PTSD in female and male SA survivors. Sex of the SA survivor was also examined as a moderator of the relationship between PTSD and social support and …

Sexual Victimization, Trauma, & Resilience To Disordered Eating, Ava Fergerson

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

It is widely known that sexual assault disproportionately affects women. College-aged women are the highest risk population of all ages, in fact. Sexual assault can occur at any age and may have a varying range of emotional consequences for survivors. This includes pathological coping mechanisms, such as disordered eating behaviors. This study examined the mediating effect of resilience on the relationship between sexual assault and disordered eating behavior in a sample of women who reported negative sexual experiences. A sample of 519 undergraduate women at Western Kentucky University completed a survey assessing sexual experiences, trauma symptoms, disordered eating behavior, and …

Personality Factors, Obsessive-Compulsive Behavior, And Sexual Fantasy As Predictors Of Paraphilic Disorder Intensity, Ethan Jack Edwards

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Researchers vary on their definitions of paraphilia. A difference exists between an individual possessing a paraphilia versus an individual possessing a paraphilic disorder. Hanson (2010) proposed a dimensional model of sexual deviance that includes a measure of intensity. However, research on sexual intensity has been lacking. A majority of existing research focuses on the potential risk factors of possessing a paraphilia or paraphilic disorder (e.g., criminality). There is less focus on whom in the population has the potential to develop a paraphilia; or which factors predict paraphilic behavior.

The Big Five personality factors (openness to experience, conscientiousness, extraversion, agreeableness, and …

Objecting Objectification: Finding The Links Between Self-Objectification, Views On Harassment, And Agreement With Traditional Sex Roles, Amy M. Bishop

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

The purpose of this study is to explore the relationships between self-objectification levels, opinions on the impact of non-violent stranger sexual harassment on a personal and societal level, and agreement with traditional gender roles in college women. College women at Western Kentucky University were surveyed using the Objectified Body Consciousness Scale, the Social Roles Questionnaire, and original scales to measure views of street harassment. The hypotheses that viewing stranger harassment as both individually direct and complimentary would be positively correlated with self- objectification, and viewing it as innocuous in society were supported with correlation coefficients of r(103) = .211, p …

Benevolent Vs. Hostile Sexism Impact On Work Performance For Women In Turkey, Crystal M. Bonneau-Kaya

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

All studies to date that have assessed the direct impact of benevolent vs. hostile sexism on performance outcomes have done so in the context of a Western society. Because of this void in the literature, it remained unknown how living in a low egalitarian and/or non-Western society may impact women's experiences of sexism. The purpose of this study is to address this gap in the literature. This study investigates the impact of benevolent vs. hostile sexism on women in four Turkish textile factories. 210 Turkish female textile factory workers were randomly assigned to the benevolent sexism, hostile sexism, or control …

Sex Role Orientation And Self-Esteem Of Female Varsity Athletes, Recreational Athletes And Nonathletes, Jo Ann Utley

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The relationship between athletic participation, sex role orientation and self-esteem has received little attention from researchers and the relationship of these variables among females has not received as much attention as it has among males. It has been theorized that participation in sports, particularly team sports, may effect an increase in self-esteem due to increased positive body image and tend to “masculinize” women and/or attract females who possess or value more masculine traits and behaviors.

To address these issues, a comparison of sex role orientation and level of self-esteem was made with female varsity athletes, recreational athletes and nonathletes at …

Sex Role Orientation And Its Effect On A Woman’S Decision To Parent, Agnes Van Buren

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Female undergraduates from a private college on the east coast were surveyed regarding their feelings about having children and were asked to complete the Bem Sex Role Inventory (BSRI). Eighty-one percent of the respondents indicated a desire to have one or more children. Nineteen percent responded negatively or were uncertain of their feelings at that time. On the BSRI, 12% were classified as Masculine, 38% as Feminine, 37% as Androgynous, 13% as Undifferentiated. Comparison of the Masculine, Feminine and Androgynous groups (the Undifferentiated group was excluded from analysis) showed that the proportion of Feminine women indicating a desire to have …

Psychological Androgyny & Gender Attribution To Hypothetical Persons, Deanna Mader

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Previous research concerning sex-role stereotyping, psychological androgyny, and mental health as it relates both to sex-role stereotyping and androgyny was reviewed. The literature indicated the need for a reevaluation of mental health standards with regard to sex-role stereotypes. The present study attempted to approach this need by examining the relationship between psychological androgyny and attitudes toward sex-role stereotyping. It was hypothesized that androgynous individuals would be more likely than other individuals to state that a hypothetical person possessing a specific set of traits could be either male or female. IL was anticipated that this would be true regardless of the …

The Relationship Of Emotio-Sexual Orientation In Females To Androgyny & Social Self-Esteem, Joyce Gayles

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The research on sex-role development, psychological androgyny, and personality variables in lesbian women was reviewed. Since previous research suggested that lesbian women tend to have characteristics which might be labelled androgynous, a study was undertaken to assess the presence of androgyny among lesbian and heterosexual women and to cross-validate the findings on the relationship between androgyny and self-esteem. In order to assess sex-role classification, the PRF-Andro Scale was administered to 30 lesbian and 30 heterosexual women. The Texas Social Behavior Inventory was used to measure self-esteem. Results showed that a significantly greater proportion of the lesbians were androgynous, and a …

Personality Variables & Sex-Role Classifications Of "Total Woman" Participants, Lou Brown

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The "Total Woman" philosophy and previous research concerning the development of sex-roles, androgyny, how women view themselves and personality differences in group members were reviewed. Since no previous research on the personality variables and the sex-role classification of "Total Woman" participants had been reported, an exploratory study was undertaken. In order to assess personality variables the Personality Research Form-E was administered to 67 "Total Woman" participants from two southern cities. The "Total Woman" subjects were found to have a significantly higher need for Harmavoidance and a significantly lower need for Autonomy, Change, Play and Understanding than the norm group. The …

The Relative Efficiencey Of The Wechsler Adult Intelligence Scale (Wais) As A Predictor Of College Academic Achievement, Ollie Dennis

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

This study examined the predictive validity of the WAIS in an academic setting. Traditional WAIS IQ scores and subtests of 127 male and 163 female college students were correlated with Grade Point Averages at the end of four semesters and within five academic areas. Five groups were examined including the total group, male group, female group, black group, and white group. The academic University's general and Communication of areas investigated corresponded to the education requirements; Organization Ideas, Humanities, Social and Behavioral Studies, Natural Science and Mathematics, and Physical Development. Results indicated that dictor of both semester GPA and five groups. …

The Relationship Of Age & Marital Status To Affiliative Imagery & Fear Of Success In Women, Brenda Francis

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Horner postulated the existence of an avoidance motive called the motive to avoid success and suggested that many women experience anxiety about achieving success because they expect negative consequences as a result of succeeding. Horner's fear of success concept has been widely cited as an explanation for the lack of stability and predictability in research on female achievement motivation. Recent research by Tomlinson-Keasey has demonstrated much lower fear of success in older, married college women than in a younger, single group. This finding was attributed to the age difference between the married and single groups, but more specifically to role …