sex differences in relationships

Sex Differences in Relationships:

Comparing Stereotypes to Self-reports

Elizabeth F. BroadySarah J. HickmanHanover College

Attitudes Toward Marriage

Theoretical Perspectives Evolutionary theory

Men may be more likely to cheat and show less commitment because the costs of pregnancy are lower (Buss & Schmitt, 1993; Cann, Magnum & Wells, 2001).

Social role theory Women have been primarily responsible for

work inside the home which has led them to develop more communal attitudes including more positive attitudes toward marriage (Eagly,1987)

Empirical Evidence

Oliver and Hyde, 1993 Men have more sexual partners than

women (d=.25) Men are more likely to engage in

extramarital sex than women (d=.29)

Graphical representation of effect size

Why stereotypes? Belle, 1985

We tend to focus on the differences when we are faced with two of anything

Hypotheses Males and females will not differ in their self-

reported attitudes toward marriage, commitment, or fidelity

Females will perceive males as having more negative attitudes toward marriage, lower commitment, and lower fidelity than males themselves report

Males will perceive females as having more positive attitudes toward marriage, higher commitment, and higher fidelity than females themselves report

Variables of interest Attitudes toward marriage Commitment Fidelity

Method Participants

133 (37 male, 96 female) Age range (18-47, M=21.5) Ethnicity

79.7% Caucasian, 7.2% African American

Procedure Informed Consent Survey (counterbalanced) Debriefing

Questionnaire Attitudes Towards Marriage (Wallin, 1954)

If you marry, to what extent will you miss the life you have had as a single person? Not at all (1) Very much (6)

Questionnaire Commitment Scale (Lund, 1985)

I would rather spend my free time with my partner than doing other things or seeing other people.

Not at all (1) Very much (6)

Questionnaire Infidelity Scale

I have had a purely physical relationship with someone other than my partner.

Never Once Twice More than twice

Data Analysis Mixed Model ANOVA

Between-subjects variable= Sex Within-subjects variable= Ratee

Followed significant results with appropriate post-hoc comparisons

Attitudes Toward Marriage

3.54

4.49 4.574.23

11.5

22.5

33.5

44.5

55.5

6

FemaleRatingMale

Male Self-

Report

FemaleSelf-

Report

MaleRatingFemale

Att

itu

des

To

war

d M

arri

age NS

Attitudes Toward Marriage

3.54

4.49 4.574.23

11.5

22.5

33.5

44.5

55.5

6

FemaleRatingMale

Male Self-Report

FemaleSelf-

Report

MaleRatingFemale

Att

itu

des

To

war

d M

arri

age NSp < .001

Attitudes Toward Marriage

3.54

4.49 4.574.23

11.5

22.5

33.5

44.5

55.5

6

FemaleRatingMale

Male Self-Report

FemaleSelf-

Report

MaleRatingFemale

Att

itu

des

To

war

d M

arri

age NSp < .001 NS

Commitment

4.21

4.96 4.88 4.73

11.5

22.5

33.5

44.5

55.5

6

FemaleRatingMale

Male Self-

Report

FemaleSelf-

Report

MaleRatingFemale

Co

mm

itm

ent

p= .001 NS NS

Fidelity

3.24

3.67 3.743.44

1

1.5

2

2.5

3

3.5

4

FemaleRatingMale

Male Self-

Report

FemaleSelf-

Report

MaleRatingFemale

Fid

elit

yp= .002 NS p=.003

Discussion Men and women showed no significant

differences in their self-reported attitudes and behaviors

Women viewed men as having more negative attitudes and behaviors than men self-reported

Men were relatively accurate in predicting women’s attitudes

Men viewed women more negatively in regards to fidelity than women self-reported

Discussion Women are more likely than men to discuss

relationship issues (Brody & Hall, 1993)

Popular media emphasizes that men have difficulty in relationships

Women and men perceive themselves more positively than the opposite sex (Epley & Dunning, 2000)

Implications Stereotype inflation is a problem (Hyde,

2005) Couple conflict Communication