Development of the Feminine Gender Role Stress Scale

Abstract

The cognitive appraisal of threats and challenges to sterotypical feminine gender role coping behavior was defined as feminine gender role stress (FGRS). This article describes the development of a self-report measure of FGRS. Situations perceived as more stressful for women than for men wer categorized by factor analysis, yielding the following constellation of maladaptive stress responses particularly salient for women: (a) fear of unemotional relationships, (b) fear of being unattractive, (c) fear of victimization, (d) fear of behaving assertively, and (e) fear of not being nurturant. Women demonstrated significantly higher FGRS appraisal scores than men, and scores among women showed good 2-week test-retest reliability. The tendency to appraise situations on the FGRS scale as stressful was associated with the tendency to consider daily hassles stressful but was not related to self-perceived femininity in women. It was predicted that women who tend to exhibit the FGRS appraisal style would have more difficulty in coping with stressors related to depression. Supporting this hypothesis, women with higher FGRS scores reported greater depression than those with lower scores. The assessment of FGRS appraisal and coping style in women provides useful information for devising treatment strategies to improve women's health through promotion of adaptive coping.

The Femininity Ideology Scale (FIS): Dimensions and Its Relationship to Anxiety and Feminine Gender Role Stress

“…Each of the five factor scales was significantly correlated with daily hassles. Low correlations between the FGRSS total score and the Femininity Scale from the Personal Attributes Questionnaire (Spence and Helmreich 1978) support the discriminant validity of the FGRSS (Gillespie and Eisler 1992). Gillespie and Eisler The Femininity Ideology Scale 269 (1992) showed that women scored significantly higher on the total FGRSS than men, suggesting that the stressors presented were distinct to women.…”

“…The construct of feminine gender role stress is useful in measuring discrepancy strain (Gillespie and Eisler 1992). Women will experience feminine gender role stress when a situation requires a response that is in direct conflict with her standards for gender-appropriate behavior.…”

“…Gillespie and Eisler (1992), found five factors using common factor analysis: Fear of Unemotional Relationships (e.g., "having others believe that you are emotionally cold," ten items, Cronbach's alpha = 0.85), Fear of Physical Unattractiveness (e.g., "being perceived by others as overweight," eight items, Cronbach's alpha = 0.82), Fear of Victimization (e.g., "feeling that you are being followed by someone," six items, Cronbach's alpha = 0.78), Fear of Behaving Assertively (e.g., "bargaining with a salesperson when buying a car," seven items, Cronbach's alpha = 0.80), and Fear of Not Being Nurturant (e.g., "losing custody of your child after divorce," eight items, Cronbach's alpha = 0.80). Gillespie and Eisler (1992) found that Cronbach's alpha for the total FGRSS score was 0.93. Two-week, test-retest reliability of the total scale scores was 0.82, which indicated a high level of temporal stability.…”

“…Gillespie and Eisler (1992) recommend the FGRSS as a useful assessment tool in cognitive-behavior therapy because the measure helps to identify rigid gendered beliefs, deficiencies in coping skills, and contingencies that reinforce maladaptive gendered appraisals. The FIS and the FGRSS may also be helpful in feminist therapy because it helps the therapist and the client frame gendered expectations and stresses within the context of the presenting problem.…”

Gender role affects experimental pain responses: A systematic review with meta‐analysis

“…3 Thomas and Rose (1991) No gender role instrument was used. 4 Gillespie and Eisler (1992) No experimental pain stimulus was used. 5 Osman et al (1993) No experimental pain stimulus was used.…”