Does Felt Gender Compatibility Mediate Influences of Self-Perceived Gender Nonconformity on Early Adolescents’ Psychosocial Adjustment?

• Autores: Meenakshi Menon
• Localización: Child development, ISSN 0009-3920, Vol. 82, Nº. 4, 2011, págs. 1152-1162
• Idioma: inglés
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• Resumen

  • This study evaluated the hypothesis that self-perceived gender nonconformity is distressing to children because it undermines a confident sense of gender compatibility. Participants were 357 early adolescents (180 boys, M age = 12.68 years) in England who responded to questionnaires measuring friendship styles (preoccupied, avoidant), gender compatibility (typicality, contentedness), and adjustment (self-esteem, peer social competence, depression, narcissism). Sex differences in friendship styles indicated that preoccupied and avoidant styles were typical for girls and boys, respectively. Gender-atypical friendship styles predicted poor adjustment, and their impact on adjustment was partially mediated by felt gender compatibility. Results suggest that perceiving gender-atypical attributes in the self undermines adjustment partly because it leads children to feel incompatible with their gender collective.