title: Linking Prenatal Androgens to Gender-Related Attitudes, Identity, and Activities: Evidence From Girls With Congenital Adrenal Hyperplasia.
abstract: Key questions for developmentalists concern the origins of gender attitudes and their implications for behavior. We examined whether prenatal androgen exposure was related to gender attitudes, and whether and how the links between attitudes and gendered activity interest and participation were mediated by gender identity and moderated by hormones. Gender attitudes (i.e., gender-role attitudes and attitudes about being a girl), gender identity, and gender-typed activities were reported by 54 girls aged 10-13 years varying in degree of prenatal androgen exposure, including 40 girls with classical congenital adrenal hyperplasia (C-CAH) exposed to high prenatal androgens and 14 girls with non-classical (NC) CAH exposed to low, female-typical, prenatal androgens. Both girls with C-CAH and NC-CAH reported positive attitudes about being a girl and egalitarian gender attitudes, consistent with their female-typical gender identity. In contrast, girls with C-CAH had more male-typed activity interest and participation than girls with NC-CAH. Gender attitudes were linked to activities in both groups, with gender identity mediating the links. Specifically, gender-role attitudes and positive attitudes about being a girl were associated with feminine gender identity, which in turn was associated with decreased male-typed activity interests and participation, and increased female-typed activity interests. Our results are consistent with schema theories, with attitudes more closely associated with gender identity than with prenatal androgens.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Child and Family Studies, Leiden University, Leiden, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: Joyce J
authors.initials: JJ
authors.lastname: Endendijk
authors.affiliation: Department of Human Development & Family Studies, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA.|Department of Psychology, The Pennsylvania State University, 453 Moore Building, University Park, PA, 16802, USA.
authors.forename: Adriene M
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Beltz
authors.affiliation: Department of Human Development & Family Studies, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA.
authors.forename: Susan M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: McHale
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, The Pennsylvania State University, 453 Moore Building, University Park, PA, 16802, USA.
authors.forename: Kristina
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Bryk
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, The Pennsylvania State University, 453 Moore Building, University Park, PA, 16802, USA. sberenbaum@psu.edu.|Department of Pediatrics, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA. sberenbaum@psu.edu.
authors.forename: Sheri A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Berenbaum
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000312:Adrenal Hyperplasia, Congenital / Q000503:physiopathology*; D000728:Androgens / Q000097:blood* / Q000502:physiology; D001290:Attitude; D002648:Child; D005260:Female; D005783:Gender Identity; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D011247:Pregnancy; D011297:Prenatal Exposure Delayed Effects; D012727:Sex Characteristics
chemical_list: D000728:Androgens
keywords: Congenital adrenal hyperplasia; Gender attitudes; Gender identity; Gender-typed activities; Prenatal androgens