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Gender differences in autonomous and social achievement orientations
Author(s) -
Battistich Victor A.,
Thompson Eileen G.,
Mann Irene T.,
Perlmutter Lynn
Publication year - 1982
Publication title -
journal of personality
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.082
H-Index - 144
eISSN - 1467-6494
pISSN - 0022-3506
DOI - 10.1111/j.1467-6494.1982.tb00748.x
Subject(s) - psychology , developmental psychology , need for achievement , achievement orientation , academic achievement , orientation (vector space) , future orientation , social psychology , geometry , mathematics
This research examined gender differences in orientations toward autonomous and social achievement. Three independent samples of subjects (total N = 359 males and 574 females) completed measures of achievement orientation (including Strumpfer's [1975] Autonomous Achievement Values and Social Achievement Values scales) and relevant cognitive, affective, and behavioral variables. Correlational and factor analyses clearly identified distinct autonomous and social achievement factors for both men and women in each of the samples. Examination of the correlates of achievement orientation indicated that whereas an autonomous achievement orientation is similarly expressed in males and females, there are considerable sex differences in the expression of an orientation toward social achievement. In particular, a social achievement orientation was associated with concerns over social approval and responsiveness to social influence among males, but was generally unrelated to these factors among females. Findings are discussed in terms of several recent hypotheses concerning the effects of sex role norms on the development and expression of achievement needs in men and women.