Dissertations / Theses on the topic 'Australian Sex Role Scale'

Many risk factors have been put forward to account for the significant increase in adolescent male suicide over the last 20 years, and the pronounced sex difference in suicide statistics. In particular, hopelessness has been shown to be a strong indicator of suicidality. This study investigated the relationship of gender role, stress, and coping to hopelessness in a normal adolescent population. It was hypothesized that stress, coping and a masculine gender role would contribute to hopelessness. 288 adolescent students between the ages of 15 and 18 were surveyed using the Adolescent Stress Scale, the Beck Hopelessness Scale, the Australian Sex Role Scale, and the Adolescent Coping Scale. Contrary to expectation, having a masculine gender role was not related to hopelessness; students with an undifferentiated gender role had higher levels of hopelessness than androgynous, masculine, and feminine students. However, the majority of students who had an undifferentiated gender role were male. Hopelessness was also associated with high levels of stress and the use of avoidance coping strategies. The results are discussed within the transactional stress model and the stress-diathesis model.

The purpose of the present study was to develop a measure of feminine gender role stress appraisal (FGRS), the cognitive tendency to appraise threats and challenges to femininity as stressful. Stressors particularly salient for women were identified. Through factor analysis these stressors were categorized as situations involving emotional detachment, evaluation of physical attractiveness, potential victimization, assertive coping, and evaluations of nurturance. The FGRS appraisal style should create additional stress in the lives of women to the extent they are faced with these types of stressors. Thus, it was predicted that women high on FGRS would be more vulnerable to stress related disorders that disproportionately afflict women. Supporting this hypothesis, women with high FGRS scores reported more depression and, to a lesser extent, anxiety. Additionally, the psychometric properties of the FGRS scale were investigated. Women scored higher on FGRS than men and scores among women showed good two week testretest reliability. The tendency to appraise situations on the FGRS scale as stressful was moderately associated with the tendency to perceive masculine threats and challenges and daily hassles as stressful as well. Discriminant validity was demonstrated between FGRS appraisal and the expression of hostility and self-perceived femininity.
Master of Science

The development of interactive communication technologies, such as email and the Internet, has stimulated much discussion about their potential to assist in the renewal of democracy. Globalisation, intimately connected with technological advance, has likewise led to considerations of 'governance' that transcend the nation state. This thesis poses the general question: Can the efficiencies and economies which drive commercial applications of interactive technology be applied to democratic policy processes? What conditions will facilitate this? The perspective taken here views policy as a communication process between networks of actors who seek to use resources and decisions to promote their value systems (Considine 1994). Democracy is also seen as a communication process, with a set of criteria which ensure equal access to information and agenda setting among participants (Dahl 1989). These definitions and criteria have been chosen for their generality. They apply at all levels of analysis, and thus may be used for comparison across scales. These are aligned with concepts from complexity theory as applied to human nonlinear systems and organisational dynamics, drawing mostly on Kiel(1994) and Stacey (1996). The inherent unpredictability of these systems and their capacity for complex learning and adaptive self-organisation offers an alternative paradigm to linear, hierarchical management models. A combination of literature analysis and case study evidence leads to three extensions of complexity theory as applied to human systems: Firstly, interactive technology is proposed as a technique for the potential re-pluralisation of democratic processes in complex human systems. The possibility of adding many new non-elite voices, and of making these available to all others, relates to both chaotic forms of self-organisation and the benefits of electronic democracy. Secondly, evidence is presented for the existence of fractal, or self-similar patterns in the ways information technology is applied at different levels of governance. It is shown that instrumental approaches which emphasise efficiency dominate technology use at the global, national and organisational levels, and these are interdependent. Alternative patterns which encourage participation also exist at every level. Thirdly, it is argued that the values of the dominant actors are the main determinants of whether interactive technologies will be structured to favour democratic forms of communication at every level. Three theory chapters in Part I develop these arguments by extensive reviews of relevant literatures. On the global level, convergent media, telecommunications and technology conglomerates underpin a global 'nervous system' which discourages government intervention, promotes a global monoculture, inhibits pluralistic debate by minimising access to alternative forms of information, and emphasises individualism and consumption. Within nations, widespread uniformity of public sector reform is sympathetic and responsive to these globalising pressures. Deregulation, privatisation, retreat from public broadcasting, down-sizing and outsourcing have become standard approaches, and are reflected in Australian information technology policy and programs. Several exceptions demonstrate more participatory approaches. At the organisational level, instrumental approaches to management and computerisation also prevail. In each case, a shift towards globalising values corresponds to applications of information technology which dampen the complex interactivity required for democratic policy processes. Part II supplements this analysis with case study evidence. The organisational data were collected primarily during a two year qualitative study of interactive technology use in the Australian Department of Finance and Administration. The researcher found technology use was inseparable from other change processes, and these were found to have strong elements inhibiting participation in internal policy. An instrumental approach to interactive technology use reinforced hierarchical decision processes. Three minor case studies looked at an internal mailing list in a federal agency, a mostly national list on Internet and telecommunications policy, and an experiment in electronic democracy at the local level. These offered additional insights into the ways interactive technologies can contribute to complex but adaptive policy processes, if normative democratic values guide their design. The researcher proposes a set of communication protocols for the use of interactive technologies in democratic policy processes. These would enable the forms of communication necessary to reinvigorate democracy in an information age. It is also argued that these protocols, if applied at the organisational level, and particularly within the public sector, could become part of a reaffirmation of industrial democracy. This is necessary to ensure the integrity and accountability of the public sector, given the progressive intermingling of these institutions with private enterprise. Additional suggestions are made for research into government uses of information technology as an important focus for policy analysts.

Thesis (PhD)--Macquarie University, Graduate School of Management, 1999.
Bibliography: leaves 353-372.
Introduction and thesis overview -- A clarification of how common terms and key concepts within managerial and organisational discourse are interpreted within the thesis -- Theoretical and philosophical concerns: gender and the discourse of management and organisation(s) -- Contextualising the research: an overview of social, political, economic/business organisational conditions in contemporary Australia and review of literature germane to the empirical research studies -- Research methodology, judgement criteria and framework for analysis and representation -- Women managers: day to day managerial work and behaviour: ethnographic/participant observation studies -- Women's perceptions of their experience as managers: the interview studies -- Conclusions and thesis summary.
This thesis investigates the managerial experience of senior women in contemporary Australian public and private sector organisations and explores the implications this investigation has in relation to the discourse of management and organisation(s). -- The thesis proposes that although women have gained a presence in the ranks of senior management in the last twenty years, they continue to remain marginal to the discourse of management and organisation(s). The reason for this, it is argued, is because of the preoccupation this discourse has with conceptions of rationality and masculinity. This proposition is elaborated in the thesis by tracing the philosophical and sociological interpretations of reason and rationality from ancient Greek philosophy to its embodiment in the contemporary discourse of management and organisation(s). -- Whether for biological, social or psychological reasons, it can be argued that men and women are 'different'. A further proposition, therefore, is that they will have a 'different' experience as managers. On the basis of this proposal, the thesis evaluates contemporary theories of gender and sexual difference, but stops short of defining 'difference' specifically with regard to women's experience as managers. Instead, it allows the empirical research to determine what it is that constitutes 'difference' in such a context. -- The empirical component of the thesis seeks to develop an understanding of how senior women managers in contemporary Australian organisations both experience and interpret their experience in management. This is achieved by the use of two different, but complementary studies. Using an ethnographic/participant observation case study approach, the first of these investigates the day to day managerial activities, over time, of two senior women managers, one from the private and one from the public sector. The second component of the empirical research involves as series of in depth interviews with forty senior women managers in Australian public and private sector organisations, together with a small number of interviews with their immediate superiors and subordinates, and observation, by the researcher, of their workplaces. The location of the empirical research in the late 20th century, some twenty years or so after women started to enter the ranks of management in Australia, allows for a reflection on women's progress in management in this country during this period. It also allows for contemporary social and organisational conditions in Australia to be a consideration in evaluating the research participant's managerial experience. The thesis, therefore, links the empirical research findings to Australian literature and research on women and management, current social trends in this country, characteristics of the Australian business culture, Australian managementand the Australian manager.
The research framework utilised in the thesis is informed by critical, feminist and postmodern approaches to organisational analysis. For this reason the Deetz (1994) schema, which defines organisational reserch from the perspective of four differing discursive spaces - dialog, critical, interpretive and normative is utilised to locate the research orientation of the empirical studies. This schema recognises that overlap between the four discursive spaces is possible and thus can accommodate insights from each of the above mentioned approaches, as well as areas of overlap between them. -- The principal research findings suggest, in summary, that women in senior management in Australia largely conform to the traditional (masculine) norms that are deeply embedded in the discourse of management and organisation(s) and in managerial practice, yet at the same time, they consider themselves to be 'different'. A feminist interpretation of Social Contract theory, together with a feminist analysis of Foucault's (1988) notion of an 'ethics' of the self and the link between this notion and non essentialist feminist theory are used in the discussion of the empirical research findings to construct an interpretation of 'difference' as it applies to women's managerial experience. -- The contribution to knowledge in the field of organisational analysis that the thesis seeks to make includes: adding new grounded empirical research whcih uses alternative approaches to organisational understanding; providing a comprehensive analysis of the philosophical and sociological underpinnings of the relationship between management, rationality and masculinity; providing a platform for future policy development and organisational practice, and adding a perspective on contemporary managerial practice and organisation conditions against which to gauge classical studies of managerial work and behaviour. -- Finally, the thesis can also be seen to provide additional insights into recent critiques of essentialist feminsit theory and the 'feminisation of management'/female advantage literature.
Mode of access: World Wide Web.
x, 376, [9] leaves

This thesis seeks to examine the relationship between gender and musical participation by boys. The problem of males' non-participation in certain musical activities has been the subject of research for many years. This thesis considers some of the issues in relation to this phenomenon. The notion of gender is discussed. Historical and contemporary perspectives in stereotyping are investigated to determine the extent of the problem, with a view to enhancing the experience of boys in musical endeavours. There are no studies of this nature in existence in Australia and the existing research from other western cultures, while providing some basis, cannot be directly applied to this setting. Furthermore, existing studies have not brought about significant change in the gender order in music education. This project seeks to address these shortcomings. Masculinity in Australia is examined, with particular emphasis on the effects of hegemonic masculinity on those who do not fit this stereotype. Issues of bullying, depression and suicide are addressed. Empirical and sociological studies are re-examined in the light of more recent thought on the subject, particularly with regard to the possible causes of non-participation in singing and playing of certain instruments. The extent to which stereotyping of musical activities exists in Australian schools is reviewed through a series of studies of participation and literature. A number of subjects are interviewed to discover some of the reasons behind the choice of particular instruments. The thesis concludes with some perspectives arising from recent case studies of schools that have, to some extent, overcome some of the gender issues raised in earlier discussion. Constructs of masculinity and femininity effect musical participation in Australian schools and the extent of this effect is examined in this thesis.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2007.
The entire dissertation/thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file (which also appears in the research.pdf); a non-technical general description, or public abstract, appears in the public.pdf file. Title from title screen of research.pdf file (viewed on February 29, 2008) Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

This study re-evaluates the Consciousness Scale originally formulated by Pingree et al. in 1976. The element of assumed power was added to the Consciousness Scale, which was then used to evaluate 516 magazine advertisements from 1999 to determine if the Consciousness Scale still accurately evaluates sexism in media. A set of advertisements was culled which had contradictory Consciousness Scale and power ratings. The set was evaluated, revealing common themes, which created difficulty in coding these modern images. The study revealed that while the Consciousness Scale can still provide a valuable tool in evaluating media images, the change in the social dynamic of women as well as minorities and how advertisers portray them must be taken into account. The element of power as well as a more nuanced reading of each level of the Consciousness Scale creates a more modern and complex evaluation of gender images in the media.

Kanyirninpa, or holding, exists as a deeply embedded value amongst desert Aboriginal peoples (Puntu). It is disclosed as authority with nurturance, where older generations assume the responsibility to care for and look after younger people. Kanyirninpa also holds in balance two other key cultural patterns of desert life, autonomy and relatedness. These values are transmitted across generations where they provide desert society with identity, cohesion and strength. While kanyirninpa can be identified in the nurturance provided a child after birth, its presence and power is particularly disclosed at ceremonial time. Here, the meanings of the ancestral tjukurrpa (dreaming) are celebrated and renewed. Desert society is reproduced as the deeper, social and cosmic meanings around ngurra (land), walytja (family) and tjukurrpa are gathered, ritualised and re-enacted. The older generations of men and women enable this holding to occur. When boys (marnti) become men (wati) the manner of kanyirninpa changes. No longer do young men seek to be held by their mothers and female relations. Instead, they seek to be held by older men: brothers, uncles and other males. By holding them older men induct younger men into the social meanings and behaviours of desert, male adulthood. A generative and generational male praxis is disclosed.

碩士
中國文化大學
心理輔導學系
104
The purpose of this study was to develop the role norm scale for the same-sex couples’ partnerships and examine the reliability and validity of it. First, this study generalized six role norm dimensions for the same-sex couples’ partnerships from the past references – partnership operation, domestic work division, financial management, parental role, family relationship, and interpersonal relationship. Moreover, this study invited 14 homosexuals to write down 5 behaviors severally that they consider them should or should not be done by themselves and partners through open-ended questionnaire, and then classified the questionnaire data. The dimensions, which came from references and open-ended questionnaire, generalized six role norm dimensions for the same-sex couples’ partnerships, such as partnership operation, domestic work and financial management, family relationship, autonomic space, self-identity and respect, emotion management and intimate violence, and then edited the scale items. Continually, this study invited 3 experts, who concerned about LGBT issues and marriage partnership, to compile the pretest scale items and form the role norm pretest scale for the same-sex couples’ partnerships, while there were 144 items in the scale preliminarily. As for item analysis, this study invited 102 participants, who identify their sexual orientation as the same sex and have experiences of interacting with the same sex, to fill in the internet questionnaire of the role norm pretest scale for the same-sex couples’ partnerships. After cancelling items by item analysis, this study formed the role norm official scale for the same-sex couples’ partnerships. Finally, there were 60 items in the scale. In the research of reliability and validity, this study invited 589 participants, who identify their sexual orientation as the same sex and have experiences of interacting with the same sex, to fill in the internet questionnaire of the role norm official scale for the same-sex couples’ partnerships. As the reliability, the Cronbach’s α value of each dimension in this scale is between .61 and .77, belonging to passable to good level. Meanwhile, as the validity, this study utilized structural equation modeling (SEM) to do confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), using preliminary fit criteria, overall model fit and fit of internal structure of model to estimate parameters. Except few parameters, most of parameters achieved the model fit, representing the good fit of the model in this scale in construct modeling, and the construct validity was supported. Accordingly, this study formed the role norm scale for the same-sex couples’ partnerships with reliability and validity, and the scale will be adapted for counseling practice.

Lam Wang.
Thesis (M.Phil.)--Chinese University of Hong Kong, 2004.
Includes bibliographical references (leaves 119-126).
Abstracts in English and Chinese.
ABSTRACT (ENGLISH) --- p.i
ABSTRACT (CHINESE) --- p.iv
TABLE OF CONTENTS --- p.v
LIST OF TABLES --- p.vii
LIST OF FIGURES --- p.ix
Chapter CHAPTER ONE --- INTRODUCTION --- p.1
Chapter 1.1 --- Background --- p.1
Chapter 1.2 --- Research Objectives --- p.4
Chapter 1.3 --- Significant --- p.5
Chapter 1.4 --- Outline --- p.6
Chapter CHAPTER TWO --- BACKGROUND AND LITERATURE REVIEW --- p.8
Chapter 2.1 --- Literature from Psychology --- p.8
Chapter 2.1.1 --- The conceptual issues of feminism --- p.8
Chapter 2.1.2 --- The measurement issues of feminism --- p.10
Chapter 2.2 --- Literature from Marketing --- p.15
Chapter 2.3 --- The Changing Roles of Women in China --- p.19
Chapter CHAPTER THREE --- CONCEPTUALIZING FEMALE ROLE ORIENTATTION --- p.23
Chapter 3.1 --- Defining Female Role Orientation --- p.23
Chapter 3.2 --- The Components of the Female Role Orientation --- p.24
Chapter 3.2.1 --- Wifehood orientation --- p.26
Chapter 3.2.2 --- Motherhood orientation --- p.27
Chapter 3.2.3 --- Career orientation --- p.28
Chapter 3.2.4 --- Society orientation --- p.29
Chapter 3.2.5 --- Appearance orientation --- p.29
Chapter 3.2.6 --- Love orientation --- p.31
Chapter CHAPTER FOUR --- RESEARCH METHODOLOGY --- p.33
Chapter 4.1 --- Overview --- p.33
Chapter 4.2 --- Study 1: Item Generation and Refinement --- p.35
Chapter 4.3 --- Study 2: Instrument Pretests --- p.36
Chapter 4.3.1 --- Pretest 1: Item reduction and reliability testing --- p.36
Chapter 4.3.2 --- Pretest 2: Further refinement for scale items --- p.37
Chapter 4.4 --- Study 3: Reliability and Validity Assessment --- p.41
Chapter 4.4.1 --- Sample and data collection --- p.41
Chapter 4.4.2 --- Dimensionality assessment --- p.43
Chapter 4.4.3 --- Item analysis and reliability assessment --- p.51
Chapter 4.4.4 --- Validity assessment --- p.51
Chapter 4.4.4.1 --- Convergent validity --- p.51
Chapter 4.4.4.2 --- Discriminant validity --- p.55
Chapter 4.4.4.3 --- Nomological validity --- p.57
Chapter 4.5 --- Sutdy 4: Assessment of Scale Generalizability --- p.65
Chapter 4.5.1 --- Sample and data collection --- p.65
Chapter 4.5.2 --- Factor structure comparison --- p.70
Chapter 4.5.3 --- Comparison of reliability and validity across samples --- p.77
Chapter 4.5.3.1 --- Scale reliability --- p.77
Chapter 4.5.3.2 --- Convergent validity --- p.78
Chapter 4.5.3.3 --- Discriminant validity --- p.83
Chapter 4.5.3.4 --- Nomological validity --- p.85
Chapter 4.6 --- Additional Analysis --- p.91
Chapter 4.6.1 --- Comparing Arnott's Feminism Scale with FRO in Four Cities of PRC --- p.91
Chapter CHAPTER FIVE --- RESULT AND DISCUSSION --- p.104
Chapter 5.1 --- Discussion of Findings --- p.104
Chapter 5.2 --- Contributions --- p.106
Chapter 5.3 --- Limitations and Directions for Future Research --- p.111
APPENDICES
Chapter APPENDIX I. --- QUESTIONAIRE --- p.113
Chapter APPENDIX II. --- FRO SCALE ITEMS (AFTER REFINEMENT) --- p.117
Chapter APPENDIX III. --- CHINESE VERSION OF ARNOTT'S FEMINISM SCALE --- p.118
REFERRENCES --- p.119

Quantitative researchers often infer the validity of a construct through some quantitative (statistical) manipulation of the numerical responses to scale or questionnaire items. The participants' meaning construction of these items, especially with affective and personality scales, are usually unexplored or assumed equivalent. The current study investigates the defensibility of such a position based on the socio-constructive view on meaning construction. The current study explored how respondents interpreted the items from the Bem Sex Role Inventory (BSRI). The instrument was chosen for its popularity, its empirically based development, and for the culturally significant issue the scale addresses. Bem also proposed a gender schema theory to account for sex related cognitive processing. Forty participants, equally divided into male and female, undergraduate and working adult groups, completed self-ratings on the Masculinity and Femininity items from the BSRI. They performed "think aloud" on half of the items while rating themselves. They also completed a follow-up interview providing more in-depth interpretations of scale items and their conceptualization of masculinity and femininity. The "think aloud" and the interviews were audiotape-recorded, transcribed, and analyzed. The results showed that the respondents constructed various meanings for each item. There were commonly shared meanings, less shared meanings, rare, and unique meanings. There were also misinterpretations. Participants conceptualized "being masculine" and "being feminine" in many dimensions, including physical features and personal appearance. The current study identified sex differences in meaning constructions, including the contexts in which meanings were situated. The current study also found substantial differences between the student and the adult participants' meaning constructions. The limitations of the current study and its implications for test construction are discussed.

In an attempt to address the dearth of research examining the development and effects of intersectional, multiple marginalized identities, the scale developed in this study quantified the cultural variation in gender role expression of Asian American women. The following describes the development of the Multicultural Gender Role Scale for Asian American women (MGRS-AAW). The scale was conceptualized and largely constructed based on existing research: with specific attention regarding the qualitative themes and findings of Corpus and Miville (2013). A total of 71 items were administered to a sample of 327 participants who identified as Asian/Asian American women. Results were subjected to an Exploratory Factor Analysis and a total of 26 items were retained. Four independent constructs emerged, which closely mirrored and delineated the findings of the qualitative study: 1) Bicultural conflict, 2) Passivity, 3) Asian Values, and 4) Awareness. Further psychometric evaluation of the scale resulted in convergent validity of the subscales with other measures, such as the Attitudes Toward Women Scale (AWS) and the Asian American Racism Related Inventory (AARRSI), and discriminant validity was proven in regard to the lack of correlation among subscales with collected Grade Point Average. Findings were discussed in relation to strengths and weaknesses of the study, implications for the field, and future areas of studies.

The purpose of this study was to develop and evaluate a scale that measures more accurate and flexible gender role representations of Black women regarding themselves and others. Scholars have called for the development of gender role instruments that measure more culturally relevant interpretations of masculinity and femininity (Dade & Sloan, 2000; Miville, 2013). Instruments that incorporate traditional Euro-centric notions of gender roles do not account well for the unique racial-ethnic contexts that likely influence how Black women construct gender as well as perpetuate the misrepresentation of black femininity, the justification of negative stereotypes of Black women (e.g., the Mammy, Jezebel and Sapphire), and the exclusion of Black women from healthy expressions of womanhood (Dade & Sloan, 2000; Harris, 1994). This study referred to the Multicultural Gender Roles Model (MGRM; Miville, Bratini, Corpus, Lau, and Redway, 2013) in an effort to better describe the gendered experiences Black women. The Multicultural Gender Roles Scale - Black Women (MGRS-BW) reflected a 22 Likert-type item scale reflecting a 3-factor structure. Reliability and construct validity was established in several ways: expert ratings, alpha coefficients, and exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses. Implications for future research and clinical applications also were presented.

The purpose of this study is to develop and evaluate a scale that measures gender role construction and the various components associated with this process in men of color (i.e., African American, Latinx, and Asian American men). Existing psychological models for understanding this paradigm have primarily focused on the experiences and worldviews of White, Euro-American men without taking into consideration the various societal influences and socializing agents that uniquely impact this process in men of color. In an attempt to more accurately capture this process in people of color, through qualitative data, Miville, Bratini, Corpus, Lau, and Redway (2013) developed the Multicultural Gender Roles Model, which described eight unique components people of color may experience in their gender roles negotiation. For this study, the Multicultural Gender Roles Model (MGRM) was adapted for the development of the Multicultural Gender Roles Scale – Male Version (MGRS – Male Version). Qualitative research from the MGRM and feedback from experts in gender/gender roles research contributed to the development of 69 items that were analyzed through an exploratory factor analysis resulting in a 41-item measure. Exploratory factor analysis of data from 200 men of color resulted in 5 factors reflecting experiences men of color undergo in the gender role development process: (a) Transforming Self-Perceptions, (b) Negative Psychological Symptomatology, (c) Understanding Impact on Others in Family, Community, and Society, (d) Intersecting Identities, and (e) Navigating Emotions related to Privilege and Oppression.

Bibliography: leaves 369-398.
xiv, 398, [19] leaves : ill., maps, ports ; 30 cm.
Title page, contents and abstract only. The complete thesis in print form is available from the University Library.
A comparative study of a selection of South Australian secondary schools during the period 1880-1919. The ideals of gender and national identity of the various schools are investigated through an analysis of archival records relating to their rhetoric, organisation and curricula.
Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of Adelaide, Dept. of Education, 2000