Menstrual Distress and Sex-Role Attributes

Abstract

The relationship between severity of menstrual distress, measured by the Moos Menstrual Distress Questionnaire, and sex-role attributes, measured by the Bem Sex-Role Inventory, was examined for a group of 103 undergraduate women. Data were compared for women using and not using oral contraceptives and for women from different religious groups. Because trait anxiety, as measured by a 28-item short form adapted from the Taylor Manifest Anxiety Scale, was significantly correlated with menstrual distress, first-order correlations between distress and sex-role attributes partialled out anxiety scores. Although none of the sex-role attributes was significantly related to distress for the entire group or for the group of women using the pill, a significant positive relationship between masculinity and menstrual distress was noted for the group of women not using the pill. The pattern of results suggested that although sex role attributes and anxiety are related to reports of menstrual distress for Catholic women, only anxiety is associated with distress for Jewish women, and neither sex-role attributes nor anxiety is correlated with distress for Protestant women.According to psychoanalytic theory, menstrual problems are intimately related to the way in which a woman defines herself vis-a-vis the traditional feminine role. Women who attempt to reject their femininity are said to somaticize this conflict and, as a result, develop menstrual complications (Abraham, 1948;Balint, 1937; Benedek, 1959;Menninger, 1939). In contrast, Paige (1973) has suggested that it is the more feminine woman w h o experiences greater distress at or around the time ot menstruation. She examined three aspects of conventional femi-

Constructions of Femininity and Experiences of Menstrual Distress

“…In addition to the subscale scores, following Good and Smith (1980) and Paige (1973), total distress scores for menstrual and premenstrual phases were obtained by summing the subscores (except the control and arousal items) on the MDQ for each phase. 4 The total distress score rep-resents a useful indictor of distress associated with the approach and occurrence of menses (Good & Smith, 1980). T-scores for femininity were obtained on the BSRI for each participant.…”

The Female Role and Menstrual Distress: An Explanation for Inconsistent Evidence

“…High masculinity was found in women suffering from congestive but not spasmodic menstrual distress (Woods & Launius, 1979). More masculine women, not on the pill, were identified as showing more menstrual distress by Good and Smith (1980). Masculine defenses were more likely in women with menstrual problems (Greenberg & Fisher, 1984).…”

Effect of oral contraceptives and some psychological factors on the menstrual experience

“…The relationship for sex role is not so clear. Good & Smith (1980) found a positive correlation between masculinity and menstrual distress for pill users. On the other hand, positive correlations between femininity and menstrual distress have also been reported (Bloom, Shelton & Michaels, 1978;Chernovetz, Jones & Hansson, 1979;Paige, 1973).…”

“…Other research on the psychological factors affecting menstrual distress has shown that more positive feelings towards menstruation are associated with greater predictability of onset (Chernovetz et al, 1979) and that a woman's religion can affect the severity of her menstrual symptoms (Good & Smith, 1980;Paige, 1973). Also, a woman's perceived control (or locus of control) appears to be an important factor in connection with the duration of menstruation (Scott-Palmer & Skevington, 1981).…”