Abstract

COSTA, Pedro Alexandre et al. Agency and expressiveness in middle and older aged Portuguese men and women. Psic., Saúde & Doenças [online]. 2017, vol.18, n.3, pp.846-858. ISSN 1645-0086.  https://doi.org/10.15309/17psd180317.

Bem's model of gender roles (Bem, 1974, 1981a) proposed that psychological masculinity and femininity are two separate and orthogonal dimensions, and further supported the advantages of a shared masculine and feminine personality in comparison to a gendered personality. The aim of this study was to evaluate the psychometric properties of the Bem Sex-Role Inventory (BSRI) in Portugal, specific to two essential dimensions of gender roles - Agency/Instrumentality and Expressiveness. This study was part of a larger study about perceived health in both middle and older aged men and women. The sample consisted of 630 Portuguese adults (53.3% women), aged between 40 and 86 (M = 51.52, SD = 8.4). To assess construct validity, an Exploratory Factor Analysis was performed, confirming the two-dimensional model of Agency/Instrumentality (9 items) and Expressiveness (9 items), and with a high internal consistency. Afterwards, Confirmatory Factor Analyses were performed, and confirmed the two-dimensional first-order model with 18 items among men and women separately, and in the total sample. Lastly, a Multi-group Confirmatory Factor Analysis was performed, and the invariance between gender groups was confirmed. The current study provided evidence of good psychometric and factorial validity of the 18-item version of BSRI for a middle and older aged Portuguese sample.

Keywords : gender roles; gender; validation; BSRI.

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