Drug Medical Information

SEX-ROLE STEREOTYPING: DIFFERENCES BETWEEN MALE AND FEMALE READERS

Educators also argue that females are adversely affected by standardized tests and the consequences associated with them. For example, females score lower on the Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) than do males. In 1988, females scored 56 points lower: 13 points lower on the verbal section and 43 points lower on the math section. Since colleges use SAT scores to make admissions decisions, females have less chance of gaining admittance to the college of their choice than do males. And yet, when women and men compete for grades in college, women do at least as well as men. The perversity of this situation was demonstrated in 1971 when women began closing the gap with men. The result was that the SAT was revised, adding questions referring to science, business, and "practical affairs" (traditional strong points for males) and eliminating questions on human relations, the arts, and the humanities (traditional strong points for females).
In case male readers feel insulated from the effects of sex-role stereotyping, read on. The male role is stereotypically defined as one severely limited in its variety. Men must be strong, independent, active, competent, and analytical. It is quite stressful for men to live up to this stereotype. The result is that men who cannot admit their vulnerabilities, who cannot show their emotions, and who cannot be outwardly loving, develop heart disease in greater numbers and at an earlier age than do women, their "successful" suicide rates are higher, they have more problems with alcohol and other drugs, and they are more likely to be hospitalized for a psychiatric disorder.
The bottom line is that sex-role stereotyping is unhealthy for all of us. Recognizing this to be the case, it behooves us to refrain from contributing to this behavior and attitude. To do otherwise threatens the levels of health and wellness we can achieve.
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