Narrowing the 'male-female' gap : sex-role type is a better predictor of trait emotional intelligence than biological sex

Authors

Dankova, Katarina

Issue Date

2006

Degree

BA in Psychology

Publisher

Dublin Business School

Rights

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Abstract

The aim of the present study was to contribute to the research on gender similarities hypotheses. More specifically the focal point of the current research argued that if differences between male and female in emotionality are found there are due to socialization processes rather than due to biological sex differences. The quasi-experiment employed an independent groups design. 45 male and 74 female college students completed the Trait Emotional Intelligence Questionnaire-short form (Petrides and Furnham, 2006) and the Bern Sex Role Inventory (Bern, 174). The first hypotheses stated that there would be no significant differences in emotional intelligence scores between male and female participants. The second hypotheses stated that there would be a significant difference in El scores between the participant's sex-role type (femininity, masculinity, androgyny, and undifferentiated). The significance level was set to p < 0.05. Results were analyzed using an independent t-test and one-way ANOV A. The findings show support for both hypotheses. Implications of these findings are discussed.

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