Men and women are expected to take more responsibility for their problems, but mainly when the problem is gender-typical
This is the seventh blog in the series The 12 blogs of Christmas based on the Psychreg Journal of Psychology (PJP) special issue on male psychology
Today’s blog explores the question of whether we attribute responsibility differently for men and women. Previous research has, for example, found women are more often seen as victims of crime and men as perpetrators.
In the present study over 400 men and women were presented with short stories depicting a wide variety of scenarios featuring either a male or female character in a problematic situation e.g. having an accident. Participants were asked to rate how responsible each character was for their predicament.
The interesting and unexpected finding was that how responsible the character was judged to be depended on how gender-typical their predicament was for the character. For example, men were judge as more responsible for problems related to work, and in terms of gender norms, work – or the ‘provider role’ is male-typical. In contrast, women were judged as more responsible for making sure their children were safe. Again, these judgments reflect traditional gender norms, with women as caregivers.
These findings suggest that traditional norms remain influential in how people view the world. In the paper, the wider implications of such thinking at the level of social policies are discussed.
Tomorrow’s blog is on a topic with far-reaching implications - sexism against men in global institutions.
In case your holiday season is less than happy, here are some places you can contact for support:
Samaritans lines are open 24/7 (365 days) Tel 116 123 (UK & Ireland)
CALM helpline is open 365 days 5pm - midnight. Tel 0800 58 58 58. Or try the CALM webchat https://www.thecalmzone.net/help/get-help/
If you are a father experiencing a stressful time post-separation, you can call the Families Need Fathers helpline 0300 0330 363 (9am - 10pm Monday to Friday, 10am - 3pm at weekends).
If you are a man experiencing domestic abuse, you can call the Mankind Initiative helpline weekdays 10am to 4pm on 01823 334244
Dr John A. Barry is a Chartered Psychologist and Professional Researcher. He is a leading expert in the areas of male psychology including men’s mental health and the psychological aspects of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). His new book, Perspectives in Male Psychology: An Introduction (ISBN: 978-1-119-68535-7), co-authored with Louise Liddon, is published in the new year and is available to pre-order now.
