Threat to Gender Representation: Identity and Identification

Cramer, Phebe

doi:10.1111/1467-6494.00015

Cited by 54 publications

(50 citation statements)

References 29 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…However, Cramer (2000) argues it is critical to study defences in relation to how individuals deal with stress. Defence mechanisms have been utilised within social and developmental psychology areas such as attachment responses among children (Cassidy & Kobak, 1988;Sroufre & Waters, 1977) and mothers (Eagle, 1995;Fonagy, Steele, & Steele, 1991) and identify formation (Cramer, 1991(Cramer, , 1998. More recent studies explore defence mechanisms with highly vulnerable population groups.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Defence against trauma: women’s use of defence mechanisms following childbirth-related trauma

Fenech

Thomson

2015

Journal of Reproductive and Infant Psychology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Objective: To explore and identify women's use of defence mechanisms in the aftermath of a traumatic birth. Background: Following childbirth-related trauma, women adopt a range of unconsciously mediated functional and dysfunctional responses in their attempts to 'cope' with their complex emotions. Methods: A secondary analysis was undertaken on existing qualitative research (n = 13) that considered women's psychosocial responses following a traumatic birth, using Valliant's (1992) framework of Freudian defence mechanisms as a conceptual lens. Extracted findings from the studies were mapped against the framework until saturation and consensual validation occurred. Results: Ten defence mechanisms were identified to resonate with women's trauma-related responses. Women tried to 'repress' and 'supress' their memories of childbirth and used 'avoidance' to protect themselves from reminders. 'Sublimation' and 'undoing' were adopted in attempts to convert their negative emotions into more constructive responses and to present themselves as good mothers. However, the pervasive impact of a traumatic birth was evident through 'displacement', 'somatisation', 'reaction formation', 'turning against the self' and 'regression', with women expressing anger and hostility towards themselves, their infants, partners and others. Conclusion: Training and context-related screening processes to identify defence-related responses are needed. Raising awareness of defence mechanisms could provide reassurance of the 'normality' of women's psychological responses in the short term. Recognition of how long-term adoption is indicative of undesirable and unhealthy behaviours may also promote and encourage access to suitable psychological support.

show abstract

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Defence against trauma: women’s use of defence mechanisms following childbirth-related trauma

Fenech

Thomson

2015

Journal of Reproductive and Infant Psychology

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…To illustrate, Bosson et al (2009) found that men who received gender-threatening feedback were more likely to hit a punching bag harder than men who did not receive this threat. Because we anticipated harassment would cause defensive gender-role identification as well (Cramer 1998), it follows that a second chance at a task that provided an opportunity to affirm "maleness" would evidence defensive behaviours or psychological compensation, as well. Thus, when given another chance to prove their strength (or masculinity), results suggest that men in the gender-role harassment condition had more motivation to do so.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In accordance with a social identity perspective, we anticipated that after experiencing gender-role harassment, participants would be motivated to restore the injured aspect of the self and engage in identification processes (Branscombe et al 1999;Cramer 1998;Ellemers et al 2002). Thus, we predicted that harassed participants would express greater identification with being male than non-harassed participants.…”

Section: Overview Of Researchmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…As such, any information that attacks a man's status as a prototypical member of his gender group is likely to cause distress and a desire to restore the injured social identity, especially for men to whom gender is a key defining aspect of self identification (Branscombe et al 1999;Ellemers et al 2002). In support, Cramer (1998) found that men given mock gender-contrary feedback (from the Bem Sex Role Inventory Scale; Bem 1981), were significantly more likely to engage in defensive identification, or the affirmation and expression of characteristics associated with their gender group, than men who were given gender-consistent feedback.…”

Section: Gender-role Harassment and Masculinity Threatmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

“You’re Such a Girl!” The Psychological Drain of the Gender-Role Harassment of Men

Funk

Werhun

2011

Sex Roles

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Men experience gender-role harassment when they are ridiculed or ostracized for being "not man enough" (Berdahl 2007). Although men's emotional (e.g. shame and anxiety) and behavioural reactions (e.g. aggression) to gender-threatening feedback have been documented (Vandello et al. 2008), potential cognitive and selfregulatory consequences of this form of harassment have yet to be investigated. In the present experiment, 84 Introductory Psychology men at a Canadian university (Winnipeg, Manitoba) either experienced or did not experience gender-role harassment (i.e. told they squeezed a handgrip 'like a girl') before completing a set of tests (an anagram test, a stroop color-naming task, and a subsequent handgrip task). To ensure our experimental manipulation invoked a threat to participant's sense of manliness, we also included an open-ended measure of self-identification. In accordance with Social Identity research (Ellemers, Spears, & Doosje, 2002), we anticipated that harassed men would affirm male self-aspects significantly more so than nonharassed men. Overall, results demonstrated that, as predicted, gender-role harassment significantly threatened participant's sense of manhood, compromised cognitive ability, and weakened attentional self-control compared to the no harassment control condition. However, contrary to predictions, harassment did not weaken self-regulatory physical strength: men in the harassment condition exhibited increased handgrip strength compared to men in the no harassment condition, suggesting potential compensatory reactions occurred, as well. Implications of gender-role harassment for men's psychological well-being, intellect, and impulse control are discussed and areas for future research are outlined.

show abstract

“…Validity has also been demonstrated in empirical investigations in which an experimental manipulation produced predicted changes in defense mechanism use (Cramer, 1991b(Cramer, , 1998aCramer & Gaul, 1988;Luciano, 1999).…”

Section: Identificationmentioning

confidence: 94%

Defense Mechanisms, Behavior, and Affect in Young Adulthood

Cramer

2002

Journal of Personality

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The relationship between defense mechanism use, observed behavior, and affect was investigated in a sample of 91 young adults. Defense mechanisms were assessed using Cramer's (1991a) Defense Mechanism Manual for TAT stories; behavior was based on observer Q-sort ratings (Block, 1978). The findings show that men and women who rely on the immature defense of denial at age 23 show multiple signs of behavioral immaturity, as well as anxiety. In contrast, extensive use of projection was related to a suspicious, hyperalert personality style, including anxiety and depression, in men, but to a sociable, nonwary, nondepressed style in women. The use of the mature defense of identification, by women, was related to behavior characterized by maturity, social competence, and the absence of depressive symptoms.

show abstract

Threat to Gender Representation: Identity and Identification

Cited by 54 publications

References 29 publications

Defence against trauma: women’s use of defence mechanisms following childbirth-related trauma

Defence against trauma: women’s use of defence mechanisms following childbirth-related trauma

“You’re Such a Girl!” The Psychological Drain of the Gender-Role Harassment of Men

Defense Mechanisms, Behavior, and Affect in Young Adulthood

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About