Gender Differences: Examination of the 12-Item Bem Sex Role Inventory (BSRI-12) in an Older Brazilian Population

Abstract

ObjectivesAlthough gender is often acknowledged as a determinant of health, measuring its components, other than biological sex, is uncommon. The Bem Sex Role Inventory (BSRI) quantifies self-attribution of traits, indicative of gender roles. The BSRI has been used with participants across cultures and countries, but rarely in an older population in Brazil, as we have done in this study. Our primary objective was to determine whether the BSRI-12 can be used to explore gender in an older Brazilian population.MethodsThe BSRI was completed by volunteer participants, all community dwelling adults aged 65+ living in Natal, Brazil. Exploratory factor analysis was performed, followed by a varimax rotation (orthogonal solution) for iteration to examine the underlying gender roles of feminine, masculine, androgynous and undifferentiated, and to validate the BSRI in older adults in Brazil.ResultsThe 278 participants, (80 men, 198 women) were 65–99 years old (average 73.6 for men, 74.7 for women). Age difference between sexes was not significant (p = 0.22). A 12 item version of the BSRI (BSRI-12) previously validated among Spanish seniors was used and showed validity with 5 BSRI-12 items (Cronbach=0.66) loading as feminine, 6 items (Cronbach=0.51) loading onto masculine roles and neither overlapping with the category of biological sex of respondent.ConclusionsAlthough the BSRI-12 appears to be a valid indicator of gender among elderly Brazilians, the gender role status identified with the BSRI-12 was not correlated with being male or female.

Sex differences in entrepreneurs’ business growth intentions: an identity approach

“…Fourth, as previously stated, we acknowledge that gender schemas have been through a significant shift since BSRI was put into use in the 1970s which presents challenges with respect to measuring gender identity in a valid way. However, recent studies provide evidence that the BSRI has been proven to be valid instrument (Carver et al, 2013;Vafaei et al, 2014). These limitations represent, in any case, opportunities to advance in our efforts to better understand business growth.…”

“…The short BSRI contains six items for each masculine and feminine dimension. These items have been validated in previous research (Carver et al, 2013;Vafaei et al, 2014). Entrepreneurs rated the extent to which six masculine items (with leadership abilities, possessing strong personality, dominant, act like a leader, make decision easily, and defend own beliefs) and six feminine items (warm, gentle, affectionate, sympathetic, sensitive to others' needs, and tender) described themselves on a 7-point scale (1 = not at all like me, 7 = very much like me).…”

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“…Better understanding of these issues will require addressing some limitations of the present study. First, though the BSRI continues to be widely used, it may not reflect the sociological transformation of gender roles since its inception in the mid-70s [3,13,25,28]. In particular, some authors have suggested a shift away from dichotomous male/female gender role characterization [3,16].…”

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“…Using the BSRI situates this research within the large body of gender research that has used this inventory over the years (Carver et al, 2013;Hoffman and Borders, 2001).…”