Sandra Bem
Encyclopedia
Sandra Ruth Lipsitz Bem to Peter and Lillian Lipsitz. She grew up in a "working class" family, with one younger sister named Beverly. She is married to Daryl Bem
, also a psychology professor.
Educational and Career History
Bem attended Carnegie-Mellon University (1961-1695) and majored in psychology. Afterward, she entered the University of Michigan in 1965 and obtained her Ph.D. in developmental psychology in 1968 . Her early work focused on the behavior of young children and their ability to problem solve, and utilize self-control and instruction. After obtaining her Ph.D. she worked as a professor at Carnegie-Mellon for three years and then moved on to work at Stanford University until 1978. She then took an associate professor position at Cornell University
. and still is a professor emeritus there today.
Influences to the field of psychology
Bem is an American psychologist
known for her works in androgyny
and gender studies
. In her early career, she was heavily involved in women's liberation movement, and she did work on sex-biased job advertising. Her involvement lead to being a contributor to landmark cases concerning recruitment of women in the work force against companies such as AT&T and the Pittsburgh Press
She asserted that masculine and feminine dimensions could be divided into two spheres, rather than one.
It is based on a high-low continuum, i.e., a person with high masculine and low feminine identification would be categorized as "masculine."
A person with high feminine identification and low masculine identification, would be categorized as "feminine."
A person who had high identification with both characteristics would be categorized as "androgynous."
A person who has low identification with both dimensions would be considered "undifferentiated."
One of her main arguments was that traditional gender roles are restrictive for both males and females, and can have negative consequences for individuals as well as society as a whole . She also created the Bem Sex Role Inventory (1971) which assesses masculine and feminine traits and behaviors on a continuum, and also includes a scale for androgyny.
Bem also contributed to developing gender schema theory
which assumes that in some individuals for which gender or sex is a salient characteristic, it can be a category by which these individuals organize objects and actions, and view the world through the lens of their gender This theory also suggests that gender is a byproduct of culture, but that it is not necessarily inevitable. This approach was the first to suggest gender as a possible cognitive processing schema that results from cultural circumstances. Critics of Bem's work generally argued against the political nature of her theories and her objectivity in the material which she studied.
Daryl Bem
Daryl J. Bem is a social psychologist and professor emeritus at Cornell University. He is the originator of the self-perception theory of attitude change, and has carried out research on psi phenomena , group decision making, handwriting analysis, sexual orientation and personality theory and...
, also a psychology professor.
Educational and Career History
Bem attended Carnegie-Mellon University (1961-1695) and majored in psychology. Afterward, she entered the University of Michigan in 1965 and obtained her Ph.D. in developmental psychology in 1968 . Her early work focused on the behavior of young children and their ability to problem solve, and utilize self-control and instruction. After obtaining her Ph.D. she worked as a professor at Carnegie-Mellon for three years and then moved on to work at Stanford University until 1978. She then took an associate professor position at Cornell University
Cornell University
Cornell University is an Ivy League university located in Ithaca, New York, United States. It is a private land-grant university, receiving annual funding from the State of New York for certain educational missions...
. and still is a professor emeritus there today.
Influences to the field of psychology
Bem is an American psychologist
Psychology
Psychology is the study of the mind and behavior. Its immediate goal is to understand individuals and groups by both establishing general principles and researching specific cases. For many, the ultimate goal of psychology is to benefit society...
known for her works in androgyny
Androgyny
Androgyny is a term derived from the Greek words ανήρ, stem ανδρ- and γυνή , referring to the combination of masculine and feminine characteristics...
and gender studies
Gender studies
Gender studies is a field of interdisciplinary study which analyses race, ethnicity, sexuality and location.Gender study has many different forms. One view exposed by the philosopher Simone de Beauvoir said: "One is not born a woman, one becomes one"...
. In her early career, she was heavily involved in women's liberation movement, and she did work on sex-biased job advertising. Her involvement lead to being a contributor to landmark cases concerning recruitment of women in the work force against companies such as AT&T and the Pittsburgh Press
She asserted that masculine and feminine dimensions could be divided into two spheres, rather than one.
It is based on a high-low continuum, i.e., a person with high masculine and low feminine identification would be categorized as "masculine."
A person with high feminine identification and low masculine identification, would be categorized as "feminine."
A person who had high identification with both characteristics would be categorized as "androgynous."
A person who has low identification with both dimensions would be considered "undifferentiated."
One of her main arguments was that traditional gender roles are restrictive for both males and females, and can have negative consequences for individuals as well as society as a whole . She also created the Bem Sex Role Inventory (1971) which assesses masculine and feminine traits and behaviors on a continuum, and also includes a scale for androgyny.
Bem also contributed to developing gender schema theory
Gender schema theory
Gender schema theory was formally introduced by Sandra Bem in 1981 as a cognitive theory to explain how individuals become gendered in society, and how sex-linked characteristics are maintained and transmitted to other members of a culture....
which assumes that in some individuals for which gender or sex is a salient characteristic, it can be a category by which these individuals organize objects and actions, and view the world through the lens of their gender This theory also suggests that gender is a byproduct of culture, but that it is not necessarily inevitable. This approach was the first to suggest gender as a possible cognitive processing schema that results from cultural circumstances. Critics of Bem's work generally argued against the political nature of her theories and her objectivity in the material which she studied.
Works
- Bem, Sandra L. (1974). "The measurement of psychological androgyny". Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology. 42, 155-62.
- Bem, Sandra L. and C. Watson. (1976). "Scoring packet: Bem Sex Role Inventory". Unpublished Manuscript
- Bem, S. L. (1976). "Sex typing and androgyny: Further explorations of the expressive domain". Journal of Personality and Social PsychologyJournal of Personality and Social PsychologyThe Journal of Personality and Social Psychology is a monthly psychology journal of the American Psychological Association. It is considered one of the top journals in the fields of social and personality psychology. Its focus is on empirical research reports; however, specialized theoretical,...
, 34, 1016. - Bem, S. L. (1976). "Sex typing and the avoidance of cross-sex behavior". Journal of Personality and Social PsychologyJournal of Personality and Social PsychologyThe Journal of Personality and Social Psychology is a monthly psychology journal of the American Psychological Association. It is considered one of the top journals in the fields of social and personality psychology. Its focus is on empirical research reports; however, specialized theoretical,...
, 33, 48. - Bem, S. L. (1977). "On the utility of alternative procedures for assessing psychological androgyny". Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 54, 196-205
- Bem, S. L. (1977). The 1977 annual handbook for group facilitators.
- Bem, S. L. (1979). "Theory and measurement of androgyny: A Reply to the Pedhazur- Tetenbaum and Locksley- Colten Critiques." Journal of Personality and Social PsychologyJournal of Personality and Social PsychologyThe Journal of Personality and Social Psychology is a monthly psychology journal of the American Psychological Association. It is considered one of the top journals in the fields of social and personality psychology. Its focus is on empirical research reports; however, specialized theoretical,...
, 37, 1047. - Bem, S. L., & Andersen, S. M. (1981). "Sex typing and androgyny in dyadic interaction: Individual differences in responsiveness to physical attractiveness." Journal of Personality and Social PsychologyJournal of Personality and Social PsychologyThe Journal of Personality and Social Psychology is a monthly psychology journal of the American Psychological Association. It is considered one of the top journals in the fields of social and personality psychology. Its focus is on empirical research reports; however, specialized theoretical,...
, 41, 74. - Bem, S. L. (1981). "Gender schema theory: A cognitive account of sex typing source". Psychological Review, 88, 354.
- Bem, S. L. (1981). "The BSRI and gender schema theory: A reply to Spence and Helmreich". Psychological Review, 88, 369-71.
- Bem, S. L. (1982). "Gender schema theory and self-schema theory compared: A comment on Markus, Crane, Bernstein, and Siladi's "Self-schemas and gender"". Journal of Personality and Social PsychologyJournal of Personality and Social PsychologyThe Journal of Personality and Social Psychology is a monthly psychology journal of the American Psychological Association. It is considered one of the top journals in the fields of social and personality psychology. Its focus is on empirical research reports; however, specialized theoretical,...
, 43,1192 - Bem, S. L. (1989). "Genital knowledge and gender constancy in preschool children". Child Development, 60, 3.
- Bem, S. L. (1993). The lenses of gender: Transforming the debate on sexual inequality. New Haven, CT: Yale University Press.
- Bem, S. L. (1995). "Dismantling gender polarization and compulsory heterosexuality: Should we turn the volume down or up?" Journal of Sex Research, 32, 329-334.
- Bem, S. L., Schellenberg, E. G., & Keil, J. M. (1995). ""Innocent victims" of AIDS: Identifying the subtext". Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 25, 1790-1800.
- Chesler, P., Rothblum, E. D., & Cole, E. ( 1995). Feminist foremothers in women's studies, psychology, and mental health. New York: Haworth Press.
- Frable, D. E. S. and Bem, S. L. (1985). "If you are gender schematic, all members of the opposite sex look alike". Journal of Personality and Social PsychologyJournal of Personality and Social PsychologyThe Journal of Personality and Social Psychology is a monthly psychology journal of the American Psychological Association. It is considered one of the top journals in the fields of social and personality psychology. Its focus is on empirical research reports; however, specialized theoretical,...
, 49, 459.