The relationship between androgyny and subjective indicators of emotional well-being.

Abstract

The objective of this study (N = 176) was to evaluate (a) the construct validity of the revised Short Bern Sex-Role Inventory (BSRI) with respect to measures of psychological well-being; (b) the validity of the concept of androgyny conceived as an intrinsically interactive (rather than simply additive) concept, endowed as such with surplus meaning; and (c) the validity of the traditional assumption that it is the masculine male and feminine female who typify subjective wellbeing. The three hypotheses were tested concurrently by employing a hierarchical multiple regression analysis with interaction terms. Results across measures of well-being, stress reaction, and alienation taken from the Differential Personality Questionnaire (DPQ), provided only partial support for Bern's scales as markers of subjective well-being, but no support for androgyny as a concept in its own right with predictive properties distinct from femininity and masculinity. Finally, the results of a factor analysis indicate that the M and F scales of the BSRI occupy quite different locations in the space defined by certain higher-order personality dimensions. Implications for further studies of androgyny and other fulfillment or self-actuali zation concepts are also discussed.