A growing body of literature shows that adherence to some aspects of Western masculinity norms, including the suppression of emotional vulnerability, avoidance of seeking support from others, and exaggerated physical toughness, is associated with poorer psychological and social outcomes. While existing research suggests that parental gender…

This study investigated longitudinal trajectories of stigma (i.e., enacted, anticipated, internalized, concealed); stress-sensitive mental health disorder symptoms (i.e., depression, social anxiety); and their associations across 8 annual assessments in a sample of 128 young gay and bisexual U.S. university students. All forms of stigma…

In this issue, P. Hegarty comments on an article by G. Rieger, J. A. W. Linsenmeier, L. Gygax, and J. M. Bailey (2008) that compared videos of homosexual and heterosexual people from childhood and adulthood. The current authors claim it is reasonable to treat masculinity-femininity as a bipolar scale and present justification for the approach used…

In this commentary, the author reviews methodological and conceptual shortcomings of recent articles by K. D. Drummond, S. J. Bradley, M. Peterson-Badali, and K. J. Zucker (2008) as well as G. Rieger, J. A. W. Linsenmeier, L. Gygax, and J. M. Bailey (2008), which sought to predict adult sexual identity from childhood gender identity. The author…

Sex differences in play are apparent in a number of mammalian species, including humans. Prenatal testosterone may contribute to these differences. The authors report the first attempt to correlate gender-typed play in a normative sample of humans with measurements of amniotic testosterone (aT). Testosterone was measured in the amniotic fluid of…

In the first of two studies, the number of feminine women and androgynous men in the oldest age category was found to increase. This suggests that each gender may become more feminine with age. In the second study, a majority of people remained in the same gender-role category over a 10-year period. (BC)

Male and female college students were assessed on measures of ego identity development, intimacy development, and sex role orientation. For both males and females, identity was related to masculinity; also, there were more high-intimacy females than males. This low identity-high intimacy finding in women is discussed with respect to proposed…

Challenges previous studies concluding that masculinity and femininity fluctuate as a function of the individual's family life stage. Findings from 582 Australian survey respondents showed that involvement in work and study has a greater impact on masculinity and femininity scores than does the presence of children. (Author/CB)

Scores on the Masculinity (M) and Femininity scales of the Personal Attributes Questionnaire were compared in male and female high school students, college students, parents of elementary school children, and parents of college students. (Author/MP)

Examined gender-typed behavior and interests in 2- to 10-year-old girls with congenital adrenal hyperplasia (CAH) and in unaffected girls matched for age. Found that, compared with unaffected girls, girls with CAH were more interested in masculine toys and less interested in feminine toys and were more likely to report having male playmates and…

This longitudinal study of adolescent girls and boys examined the contributions of social (peer appearance context), psychological (internalized appearance ideals and appearance social comparison), and biological (body mass) factors to the development of body dissatisfaction. Students (165 girls and 139 boys) completed questionnaires when they…

Examines the development of feminine and masculine patterns of sexual identity in boyhood and the relation between these patterns and later sexual orientation. (Author/RWB)

Compared gender-related inferences and judgments of third and fifth graders from Taiwan (a traditional collectivistic culture), and Israel (a less traditional modern culture). Found that Taiwanese children distinguished more than did Israeli children between male targets in stories behaving stereotypically and counterstereotypically. Interpreted…