Sex Differences in Stereotypes of Spectacles¹

Abstract

Sex differences in the stereotype of eyeglasses were investigated via a three‐part questionnaire administered to 217 adults. In the first part, subjects viewed one of five males or five females wearing glasses or not and rated this individual on a number of descriptors as well as guessing his or her three favorite pastimes. In the second part male and female subjects with and without glasses were compared on self‐evaluations of the same descriptors and activities. They also responded to open‐ended questions concerning their reasons for using spectacles and contact lenses and the effects of these visual correctives on their self‐perceptions and the perceptions of others. In the third part subjects evaluated a typical woman and a typical man with glasses on the same descriptors. These three methods of identifying sex differences in stereotypes of eyeglasses produced somewhat conflicting results. Photographs with glasses were judged as less attractive and sexy, but males considered the typical woman with glasses as sexier and more attractive than the typical woman without glasses. Generally, people with glasses were considered to be more intelligent and intense, and the stereotypes of the typical woman and man with glasses were highly positive. Women with glasses were viewed as more feminine and men with glasses as more masculine. Although wearing glasses affected the self‐concept of females more than males, there was little evidence that they experienced a more negative “spectacle image” than males.

A picture is worth a thousand words: a comparison of pupils’ images of intelligence in Finnish and Russian Karelia

“…The intelligent girl is holding a test report with a top mark "5" and a textbook in Russian. The ordinary girl is carrying a foreign magazine In Western culture, eyeglasses are regarded as an archetypal sign of a "bookworm", a person absorbed in mental activity (Harris 1991). As another Russian girl wrote, "Intelligent people read a lot, that's why they have eyeglasses."…”

Parents’ assessments of their children’s abilities

“…What seems to be involved here is the conception of "the prototypical athlete", which is defined as a physical and masculine competence only and contrasted with the academic "bookworm" (cf. Harris, 1991).…”

Do glasses change children’s perceptions? Effects of eyeglasses on peer- and self-perception

“…It is uncertain whether eyeglasses negatively influence children's self-perception and/or stereotypes in peers. Stereotypes described for adult spectacle wearers include negative (unattractiveness) and positive (intelligence) presumptions that mildly affect person categorizations (Harris, 1991;Lundberg & Sheehan, 1994). A review suggests that wearing eyeglasses negatively affects self-perceived physical attractiveness whereas research is still inconclusive about psychological gains in adults (Terry, 1990).…”