Threat to gender representation: identity and identification.
To investigate the effect of a threat to gender identity on the use of defense mechanisms, college students were given false feedback regarding their sex-role identity. Male and female students who were given gender-contrary feedback showed a marked increase in the use of the defense of identification, as compared to students who were given gender-consistent feedback. Further, both affect change and the use of identification was a function of the degree of discrepancy between feedback condition and conscious gender identity.
Cramer
P
P
Williams College, MA, USA.
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D003674:Defense Mechanisms; D005246:Feedback; D005260:Female; D005783:Gender Identity; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires