androgyny

• measure androgyny by items on NSRI are masculine, feminine or neutral. Masculine items are dominant and competitive. Feminine traits are gentle and affectionate. Neutral traits friendly and unpredictable. BSRI has 20 items for each trait and participants use a 7 point rating scale. There are 4 categories which can be made are masculine (high masculine traits, low feminine traits), feminine (low masculine traits, high feminine traits), androgynous (high masculine and feminine traits), undifferentiated (low masculine and feminine traits)
• One strength is that the BSRI has been found to be valid and reliable. Development of the scale involved 50 males and 50 females judging 200 traits in terms of gender desirability. The top 20 in each case were used. Piloting with 1000 students showed the BSRI reflected their gender identity. A follow up study involving a smaller sample of the same students produced similar scores when the students were tested a month later, suggesting high test-retest reliability. Together this evidence suggests that the BSRI had a degree of both validity and reliability at the time it was developed
• One limitation is people may lack insight into their gender identity. Gender social construct which may be more open to interpretation than sex (which is a biological fact). Furthermore, the questionnaires system is subjective and peoples application of the 7 point scale may differ. This suggests that the BSRI may not be a scientific way of assessing gender identity.
• One strength is that gender identity is measured qualitatively. Bem’s numerical approach is useful when it is necessary to quantify a dependent variable but spence suggests qualitative approach may represent gender identity better. One compromise is to combine different scales. For example the PAQ adds another dimension to Bem’s masculinity-femininity dimension. This suggests that quantitative together with qualitative approaches may be useful for studying different aspects of gender identity
• androgyny is a presence of a balance of masculine and feminine traits, behaviours and attitudes. Bem suggested high androgyny is associated with psychological well being. Balanced individuals are better equipped to adapt to a range of situations