Sex Roles (2011) 64:3242 DOI 10.

1007/s11199-010-9855-6

ORIGINAL ARTICLE

Child Sexual Abuse History and Feminine Gender-Role Identity

Elizabeth D. Krause & Susan Roth

Published online: 1 October 2010 # Springer Science+Business Media, LLC 2010

Abstract The association between child sexual abuse (CSA) and feminine gender-role identity was examined among 75 women with and 107 without a history of CSA. Undergraduates and hospital employees from a university in the Southern United States completed questionnaires on the internet. Three aspects of feminine identity were assessed, including how much participants identified with feminine versus masculine traits, endorsed stereotypes about women, and viewed themselves as meeting feminine self-standards. Participants with a history of CSA reported greater feminine self-discrepancy and endorsed more derogatory stereotypes about women than the comparison group. CSA was also linked to identifying with more feminine than masculine traits, but only among hospital employees. Results suggest that feminine identity is a meaningful construct to consider in the adjustment of CSA survivors. Keywords Child sexual abuse . Gender stereotypes . Gendered traits . Femininity . Self-discrepancy

Introduction Sexual abuse in childhood often challenges individuals core beliefs about themselves, others, and their relationE. D. Krause (*) Department of Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, 3720 Walnut Street, Solomon Lab Bldg., Philadelphia, PA 19104-6241, USA e-mail: krauseed@psych.upenn.edu S. Roth Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Duke University, Durham, NC, USA

ships. The impact of abuse may overwhelm routine coping processes and lead survivors to experience emotions and impulses that contradict their previous way of relating in the world. Many abused women experience a destabilization of meaning structures and self-concept or identity (Lebowitz and Roth 1994). This destabilization can manifest in disrupted or distorted social roles, extreme beliefs about oneself and others (e.g., Ornduff 2000), and problems with self-integrity and self-regulation (e.g., van der Kolk 2007). One of the most central forces influencing the roles we assume and the way we view and judge ourselves and others is our gender socialization. In Western culture, gender often forms one foundation of an individual's identity. Childhood and adolescence represent periods in which ones gender identity is constantly being shaped and in turn, shapes ones experiences (Martin and Ruble 2009). Thus, sexual abuse during these periods is likely to impact ones gender identity development, and likewise, ones gender identity may influence the processing of traumatic events (Krause et al. 2002). The current study examines the relationship between abuse history and feminine gender identity in a United States (US) sample of adult women with and without a reported history of childhood sexual abuse (CSA). Three aspects of feminine gender identity were examined: 1) feminine personality style; 2) stereotyping about women; and 3) feminine self-discrepancy. Abuse and Feminine Personality Style One way researchers have tried to capture gender-role identity is by focusing on positive personality traits that have been stereotypically associated with femininity or communality (e.g., warmth, caring and empathy) and masculinity or instrumentality (e.g., confidence, decisive-

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ness, and strength). While masculine and feminine personality styles tend to be uncorrelated, extremes of either one by definition are expected to be associated with a deficit in the other (Helgeson 1994). An extreme feminine personality style (high femininity coupled with low masculinity) may be a risk factor for maladjustment. Research among US samples has shown that masculine traits are important in protecting both men and women from psychological distress (e.g., Cheng 2005; Kreiger and Dumka 2006; Whitley 1985). Although a feminine personality style may have positive outcomes in terms of relationship functioning (e.g., Lam and McBride-Chang 2007), focusing on and caring for others without the ability to stand up for oneself has been associated with poor mental health in the US (Helgeson 1994). It has been hypothesized that personality style may be distorted by interpersonal violence, especially developmentally inappropriate relationships between an older adult and a child (e.g., Aiosa-Karpas et al. 1991). Early experiences with a perpetrator who imposes his or her will on a helpless child has the potential to mitigate the development of stereotypical masculine or instrumental traits (i.e., assertiveness, confidence), while encouraging the development of hyperfeminine ones, such as self-silencing, dependence, and a preoccupation with caring for others at the expense of oneself (e.g., Whiffen et al. 2000). Indeed, in a series of qualitative studies, Roth and colleagues (Roth and Batson 1997; Roth and Lebowitz 1988; Roth and Newman 1995) found women with a history of sexual abuse to report difficulty with reciprocity in their relationships, that is, with the ability both to give and receive support and love. For example, participants frequently expressed the belief that they were not worthy of equality within relationships and tended to care compulsively for others while denying their own needs. The socializing context that gives rise to child abuse within the home may also be a contributing factor to the development of a more pronounced gender role or personality style. Studies in the US have noted that the childhood homes of abuse survivors tend to be characterized by extremely patriarchal power dynamics (e.g., Harter et al. 1988; Alexander and Schaeffer 1994) and by a traditional sexual division of labor (Okin 1996). For example, mothers are frequently overworked, primary caretakers who depend on an authoritarian male figure for their livelihood. Such parental power dynamics and the actual experience of sexual abuse represent some of the ways by which girls may be socialized into a feminine style of passivity, helplessness, and self-sacrifice. Despite these observations, only a few quantitative studies have examined the association between abuse history and gender personality style (McMullin et al. 2007; Rosen and Martin 1998; Whiffen et al. 2000). These

studies all used the Extended Personal Attributes Questionnaire (EPAQ; Spence et al. 1973), but resulted in inconsistent findings. Whiffen et al. (2000) compared individuals (both men and women) with and without a history of CSA, but found no differences in terms of endorsement of feminine and masculine traits. Among female US Army soldiers, Rosen and Martin (1998) found sexual abuse associated with more feminine traits. However, a more recent study found US college women with childhood or adolescent experiences of sexual abuse to report possessing fewer feminine traits than non-victims over time (McMullin et al. 2007). Perhaps sample characteristics such as demographics or employment history may explain these inconsistencies. The current investigation extends previous research by examining the relationship between CSA and gender personality style using the Bem Sex Role Inventory (BSRI; Bem 1974) among a broad sample of female participants, including US college students and working women. It was hypothesized that compared to women without an abuse history, women reporting CSA would possess a more feminine personality style characterized by more BSRI communal traits and fewer BSRI instrumental traits. Abuse and Stereotyping About Women Another way researchers have tried to capture gender-role identity is by assessing how much individuals endorse stereotypes about gender. Gender stereotypes represent culturally-defined beliefs about men and women that become internalized through socialization. Research has suggested that cognitive schemas, including stereotyped beliefs about men and women, may be activated and most influential following stressful life events. For instance, Belk and Snell (1989) examined the extent to which gender stereotypes as measured by the Beliefs About Women Scale (BAWS; Belk and Snell 1986) were associated with mental health following recent stressful life experiences, such as divorce or loss of a job. The BAWS is a self-report questionnaire designed to measure how much an individual agrees or disagrees with stereotypes about women and their differences from men. Belk and Snell (1986) found that when exposed to stressful life events over the past year, women reported distress if they also endorsed stereotypes that women are debilitated by menstruation and that they are less career oriented, intelligent, decisive, and sexual than men. These findings suggest that traditional beliefs about women, especially ones that imply that women are inherently vulnerable, manipulative, and less capable than men, may intensify the impact of stressful life events. However, no study has yet examined quantitatively whether women who are exposed to traumatic life events, such as CSA, are more likely to endorse these gender stereotypes than non-exposed women.

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Gender stereotypes may represent cognitive heuristics on which survivors come to rely following the destabilizing experience of a traumatic event such as CSA (Krause et al. 2002; Lebowitz and Roth 1994). In the face of trauma, when core beliefs about oneself, others, and the social world are severely challenged, individuals may turn to external social messages, as well as internalized gender stereotypes, for how to make sense of their abuse. For instance, the abuse may activate internalized gender stereotypes about womens vulnerability, helplessness, and sexuality. These stereotypes may be especially detrimental if survivors overaccommodate, or alter their beliefs, in an extreme or maladaptive way to make sense of their abuse (Resick and Schnicke 1992) (e.g., Because of the abuse, I realized that men have all the power and women have none!). Case studies and qualitative investigations have indicated that an abuse history may be associated with the development of rigid constructs of gender among female abuse survivors, including polarized views of men versus women and good women versus bad women (e.g., Cosentino et al. 1993). In one study, Lebowitz and Roth (1994) found that rape survivors frequently incorporated Western stereotypes about gender and sexuality into descriptions of their abuse experiences. For example, survivors described struggling with traditional beliefs about women's sexuality being defined by the poles of virgin and whore and emphasized women's social and political powerlessness in comparison to men's hegemony. A more recent qualitative comparison of mens and womens responses to childhood abuse similarly found that survivors of both sexes often rely on gender stereotypes to make sense of their abuse and understand their role in the event (Krause et al. 2002). Consistent with social schemas about women being sexual teases, wanting to be raped, and their role as sexual socializers, Krause et al. (2002) found female sexual abuse survivors often express the belief that they did something inappropriate, usually sexual, to initiate their abuse. These studies might suggest that women with a history of CSA endorse more stereotypes about women and their differences from men compared to women without an abuse history. The current study is the first to examine the association between CSA history and endorsement of derogatory beliefs about women as measured by the BAWS. Abuse and Feminine Self-Discrepancy Finally, the current study tries to capture feminine genderrole identity by assessing participants own feminine standards and measuring how much they see themselves as meeting those self-standards. The self may be viewed as a complex system comprised of many differentiated selfconcepts that are linked with specific social roles, including gender (Donahue et al. 1993). Internalized stereotypes or

standards about ones gender are frequently used as models against which individuals judge themselves. Selfdiscrepancy theory (Higgins 1987) provides a useful way of conceptualizing and measuring gender self-discrepancy. This model proposes that individuals hold different but simultaneous representations of the self. For instance, most individuals maintain an actual self that consists of attributes the person believes he or she possesses now, an ought self that represents attributes the person believes he or she should possess, and an ideal self that consists of attributes the person believes he or she ideally aspires to possess. Ought and ideal selves represent standards (or self-guides) against which the actual self is compared and evaluated. A measure of actual-ought and actual-ideal self-discrepancy can be calculated by comparing the actual self to the ought or ideal self-standards. Research has found abuse history related to actual-ought (Brewin and Vallance 1997) and actual-ideal (Freshwater et al. 2001) self-discrepancies. However, no study has examined directly the link between CSA and particular aspects of the self, such as gender or feminine identity. Child abuse has repeatedly been associated with the development of low-self esteem and malignant selfrepresentations (see van der Kolk 2007 for a review). Given the above review, we propose that female CSA survivors self-evaluations are likely informed by rigid standards about women, including polarizing stereotypes about good women versus bad women. These standards are likely to result in women with CSA histories experiencing discrepancies between their actual (posttraumatic) self and their notions of what a woman ought to be like or ideally would be like. For example, in their review of womens abuse narratives, Krause et al. (2002) found that childhood rape survivors who had internalized traditional beliefs about the value of a womens virginity perceived their current self as permanently damaged or dirty, and thus, painfully discrepant from ideal notions of femininity. Other gender-role discrepancies may be salient for female survivors of CSA. Difficulty trusting others and a sense of alienation are common responses to abuse and often prevent survivors from expressing affiliative emotions and developing intimate relationships (e.g., Davis et al. 2001; Roth and Newman 1993). Whiffen et al. (2000) also found that CSA survivors report not being submissive enough in relationships. The emphasis placed on communality and expressivity by feminine gender-role socialization may lead survivors who are experiencing interpersonal difficulties to report discrepancies with their feminine self-standards. Thus, compared to women without a CSA history, it was proposed that women with a CSA history would report greater feminine self-discrepancy (i.e., greater difference between a womans perceived self and her notions of the woman she ought to be or ideally would be).

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Summary of Hypotheses and Tests The current study examines the link between a history of CSA and each of the feminine identity variables reviewed. Three specific hypotheses were evaluated. First, women with a CSA history would report a more feminine personality style characterized by more BSRI feminine traits and less BSRI masculine traits, compared to women without a CSA history (Hypothesis 1). This was evaluated by comparing women with and without an abuse history on BSRI femininity, BSRI masculinity, and the differences score (BSRI femininity minus BSRI masculinity). Secondly, it was predicted that women with a CSA history would endorse more derogatory stereotypes about women on the BAWS than women without an abuse history (Hypothesis 2). Finally, we hypothesized that women with a CSA history would demonstrate greater feminine self-discrepancy than women without a history of CSA (Hypotheses 3).

and 6% by a stranger. An average age of abuse onset of 10.08 (SD =4.61) years was reported. Procedures Participants were recruited through email advertisements for a study entitled the Women's Stressful Life Events Study. The announcement described the study as a computerized Web-based questionnaire aimed at understanding the ways in which prior stressful life experiences may contribute to psychological distress. To recruit undergraduates, two batches of 300 randomly selected female students were emailed each week until the entire sample was exhausted (n =2305). Initially, women with and without a history of child abuse were encouraged to participate. After enough participants without an abuse history were accrued, the introductory email was altered to recruit only women with a history of abuse. The same recruitment procedure was implemented with a large sample of hospital employees who were randomly selected from email addresses available on the World Wide Web (n =2978). Interested individuals were directed to a Web page that began with a standard informed consent, followed by a computerized questionnaire. The questionnaire took approximately 1 hr to complete, and participants were compensated $10. The study was conducted in compliance with the universitys institutional review board. Measures Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (CTQ; Bernstein and Fink 1998) This is a 28-item retrospective self-report instrument that assesses different types of childhood trauma. Only the Sexual Abuse (5-item) subscale was used for the current study. The CTQ includes a series of statements about childhood experiences and asks participants to respond to each item on a 5-point Likert scale ranging from Never True to Very often True. Sexual abuse severity was calculated by summing across sexual abuse items. This measure has been found to have good psychometric properties (Bernstein and Fink 1998). Further, the CTQ has demonstrated convergent validity with both clinicianrated interviews and therapists ratings of childhood abuse (Bernstein et al. 1997). For the current study, Cronbachs alpha was .94 for the Sexual Abuse subscale. Cut scores have been derived for identifying likely cases of abuse and neglect with very good to excellent sensitivity and specificity (Bernstein and Fink 1998). In the current study, participants who scored at or above the cut score of 8 on the Sexual Abuse subscale were identified as likely cases of childhood sexual abuse. Sixty-nine abuse survivors

Method Participants Seventy-five women with and 107 women without a sexual abuse history were recruited from among students and employees of a research university and its medical center, respectively, located in the Southern United States. Table 1 summarizes demographic variables by participant source and abuse history. Comparisons of demographics by participant source (i.e., undergraduates versus hospital employees) demonstrated that hospital employees were older, t(94.17)=16.08, p =.00, higher educated, 2 (3, N =181)= 112.90, p =.00, and married, separated or divorced more, 2 (3, N =181)=92.49, p =.00, than undergraduates. In addition, a chi-square test examining race/ethnicity (White versus non-White participants) across sample source was significant, 2 (1, N =181)=17.97, p =.00, indicating that undergraduates had more diversity than hospital employees. Since there was much more variability in age, marital status, and education among hospital employees compared to undergraduates, we also examined whether these demographics differentiated hospital employees with and without a history of CSA. The only demographic factor significantly differentiating employees with and without CSA was marital status, 2 (1, N =84)=8.02, p <.01, with more of the comparison sample (83%) than the abused sample (55%) having ever been married. Data on age of abuse onset and perpetrator identity was missing for 22 survivors due to technical problems with the Web survey or participants opting not to report these items. Of those who did complete them, 40% were abused by a family member, 17% by a peer, 9% by a non-family adult,

36 Table 1 Demographic Variables by Participant Source and Sexual Abuse History Undergraduate Abuse (n =32) Age Education Level Some College or Bachelors Some Graduate or Prof. Degree Marital Status Single Married Separated/Divorced Race Caucasian Black Asian Hispanic Other Group 20.42 (SD=5.61) 30 (93.6%) 2 (6.3%) 30 (93.8%) 0 (0%) 2 (6.3%) 17 (53.1%) 5 (15.6%) 1 (3.1%) 6 (18.8%) 3 (9.4%) Control (n =65) 19.72 (SD=1.02) 64 (98.5%) 1 (1.5%) 65 (100%) 0 (0%) 0 (%) 40 (62.5%) 5 (7.7%) 8 (12.3%) 8 (12.3%) 4 (6.1%) Employee Abuse (n =43) 37.19 (SD=9.61) 13 (30.9%) 29 (69.1%) 19 (45.2%) 18 (42.9) 5 (11.9%) 31 (73.8%) 10 (23.8%) 0 (0%) 0 (0%) 1 (2.4%)

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Control (n =42) 40.96 (SD=10.62) 7 (16.7%) 35 (83.4%) 7 (16.7%) 28 (66.7%) 7 (16.7%) 35 (83.3%) 4 (9.5%) 1 (2.4%) 1 (2.4) 1 (2.4%)

were identified using this criterion. Following the CTQ, participants were asked if they decided to participate in the study because of a history of childhood physical or sexual abuse. An additional six participants were included in the abuse group who did not meet the CTQ cut score, but who self-identified as teenage sexual abuse survivors (abuse between ages 15 and 17). These participants did not differ from those identified by the CTQ on any of the study variables (all ps >.05). Bem Sex Role Inventory - Short Form (BSRI; Bem 1974) This widely-used instrument (see Auster and Ohm 2000 for a review) asks participants to rate the extent to which 30 personality attributes describe themselves. Each item is rated on a 7-point Likert scale from 1 (never or almost never true) to 7 (always or almost always true). The measure includes three 10-item subscales: 1) Masculinity (traits that have been identified as stereotypically masculine), 2) Femininity (traits that have been identified as stereotypically feminine), and 3) Neutral (traits that are not considered either feminine or masculine). Studies have found support for the measures construct validity (e.g., Campbell et al. 1997; Holt and Ellis 1998), convergent validity (e.g., Harris 1994), and internal consistency (alpha coefficients ranging from .78 to .87; Bem 1981). For the current study, Cronbach's alphas were .88 for the Masculinity scale and .89 for the Femininity scale. A BSRI difference score was calculated by subtracting the Masculinity Scale from the Femininity scale to measure level of feminine personality style (high communality coupled with low instrumentality).

Beliefs About Women Scale (BAWS; Belk and Snell 1986) The BAWS is a 75-item instrument that measures endorsement of 15 common stereotypes about women and their differences from men. Each subscale represents one stereotype and consists of 5 items that are rated on a 5point Likert scale from -2 (Strongly disagree) to +2 (Strongly Agree). Subscale scores represent an average of that stereotype's respective items so that positive scores represent agreement and negative scores suggest disagreement. Only the derogatory subscales were of interest in the current study, including women are more passive than men, women are more emotionally vulnerable than men, women are less intelligent than men, menstruation debilitates women, women are sexual teases, and women use manipulative strategies. These subscales were averaged together for an overall measure of stereotyping about women. Scores above zero indicate agreement while scores below zero indicate disagreement. Convergent and discriminant validity of the BAWS have been established (Belk and Snell 1986). In the current study, internal consistency was found to be acceptable for all subscales of interest (Cronbach's alpha range =.65 to .86, M =.75). Feminine Selves Questionnaire (FSQ; adapted from Higgins 1987) This questionnaire was designed to measure participants idiographic perspectives on the traits that they actually possess now, should or ought to possess, and ideally would like to possess as a woman. For this end, the Selves Questionnaire developed by Higgins (1987, 1989) was

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modified. The original questionnaire asks participants to generate lists of words to describe the type of person they believe they actually are now (actual self), a second list to describe whom they would ideally like to be (ideal self), and a third list to describe whom they believe they ought to be (ought self). For the current study, rather than asking participants to generate attributes about "the type of person" that describes their actual, ideal, and ought selves, respondents were asked to list attributes describing the the type of woman they actually are, ideally would like to be, and ought to be. After generating each attribute, participants were then asked to rate on a 4-point scale the extent to which they actually, ideally, or ought to possess the attribute and the importance of it to them. Scores were computed to quantify the extent of discrepancy between the actual versus ideal (actual-ideal) self and the actual versus ought (actual-ought) self (see Higgins 1987, 1989). Two independent raters compared attributes listed for the actual self with attributes listed for the ideal and ought selves. Relying on Random House Webster's College Thesaurus (1998), pairs were classified as matches if they were synonyms, mismatches if antonyms, and mismatches of degree if synonyms but differed in degree (e.g., listing attractive for the actual self but very attractive for the ideal self). Words that were not antonymous or synonymous with any ideal or ought attributes were classified as nonmatches. Actual-ideal and actual-ought discrepancies were quantified as the sum of matches (weighted as -1), mismatches (weighted as 2) and mismatches of degree (weighted as 1). Nonmatches were not used in discrepancy calculations. For the current study, a composite self-discrepancy score was created by averaging the actual-ideal and actual-ought discrepancy scores. This term will be referred to as feminine self-discrepancy. The greater or more positive the number, the greater the feminine self-discrepancy. Three independent raters (a post-baccalaureate research assistant, a physician, and the first author) were trained by an experienced Selves Questionnaire coder. Each questionnaire was rated by two of the raters who were blind to level of symptomatology. Interrater reliability was good (r across raters and ideal- and ought-discrepancy scales ranged from .78-.89; average r =.83). Rating disagreements were resolved by the first author and one of the other coders.

independent sample t-tests comparing women with and without reported CSA on study variables (see Table 2). In terms of responses to the nomothetic scales of gender, averages were consistent with previous studies of personality styles (BSRI; Bem 1981) and stereotyping about women (BAWS; Belk and Snell 1986) on similar samples. In terms of univariate comparisons across abuse history, Table 2 shows that women in the abuse group reported significantly higher levels of sexual abuse on the CTQ than women in the comparison group. Level of sexual abuse also differed between sample sources, t(71)=2.59, p <.05, indicating that on average, employees with CSA (M =14.83, SD =4.92) reported more severe abuse than undergraduates with CSA (M =11.71, SD =5.33). Further, Table 2 shows that women reporting CSA reported possessing fewer BSRI masculine or instrumental traits, endorsed more derogatory beliefs about women on the BAWS, and evidenced greater feminine self-discrepancy on the FSQ than women in the comparison group. However, these differences do not control for sample source and thus, may change once the various demographic differences across sample source are taken into account. The feminine gender identity outcome variables (BSRI difference score, BAWS, & FSQ) were mostly uncorrelated (all ps>.05), except for the correlation between the BAWS and the FSQ which was weak (r =.15, p <.05). These findings are consistent with previous research suggesting that individual-level gender constructs, such as femininity/ masculinity, sex stereotypes, and gender attitudes, do not correlate strongly (e.g., Spence and Buckman 2000; see Ashmore and Ogilvie 1992 for a review). The conceptual and statistical distinction between the feminine gender identity variables used in the current study suggested that they should be evaluated separately as dependent variables rather than as a composite in a multivariate model (Weinfurt 1995). Thus, separate ANOVAs were run to examine the effect of abuse on each of the feminine gender identity outcome variables. Since participants for the study were recruited from two sources (college undergraduates and hospital employees) that differed demographically on all factors (age, race, education, and marital status), source was treated as an independent variable in subsequent analyses. Power analyses indicated that with our sample size, each ANOVA had a power of at least .88 to detect a medium effect at alpha .05. Abuse and Feminine Gender Identity

Results Descriptive Statistics Data were analyzed using the statistical package SPSS (SPSS Inc. 1996). Before turning to our explanatory models, we present means, standard deviations, and

Hypothesis 1 Abused women would report a more feminine personality style (i.e., higher femininity and lower masculinity) than women without an abuse history.

38 Table 2 Descriptive Statistics for Study Variables as a Function of Sexual Abuse History Abuse (n =75) Variable Sexual abuse severity Gender personality style Femininity Masculinity Femininity - masculinity Negative stereotyping about women Feminine self-discrepancy M 13.52 5.49 4.60 0.89 -0.15 0.37 SD 5.30 0.80 1.14 1.20 0.58 2.13 Control (n =107) M 5.11 5.54 4.91 0.62 -0.34 -0.58 SD 0.40 0.90 0.83 1.11 0.68 2.22

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t 13.52*** n.s. 2.14* n.s. 2.00* 2.83**

df 72.55 179 124.53 179 178 174

n.s. = not significant. Endpoints for variables: Sexual Abuse Severity as measured by the CTQ = 5 to 25; Femininity and Masculinity as measured by the BSRI = 1-7; Negative Stereotyping about Women as measured by the BAWS = -2 to +2. Endpoints for Feminine Self-Discrepancy as measured by the FSQ depends on the number of attributes participant lists; the greater or more positive the number, the greater the feminine selfdiscrepancy. *p <.05, **p <.01, ***p <.001

To assess associations between abuse history and personality style, we first conducted an ANOVA predicting BSRI Femininity minus BSRI Masculinity (difference score) with abuse, source, and their interaction as independent variables. In this model, there were no main effects of source or abuse, but there was a significant source by abuse interaction, F(1,180)=3.99, p <.05. A probe of the interaction revealed that the difference score was larger among abused participants (M =1.11, SD =1.29) than non-abused ones (M =.52, SD =1.29) in the hospital sample, F(1,83)= 4.48, p <.05, but not among undergraduates (p >.05; abuse group M =.58, SD =1.02 versus comparison group M =.68, SD =.99). This result indicated that hospital employees with an abuse history saw themselves as more feminine than masculine, or less androgynous, than their non-abused peers. To explore the difference score finding above in more depth, we proceeded by examining how abuse history was associated with the separate scales of femininity and masculinity, controlling for source. An ANOVA predicting BSRI femininity was conducted with source, abuse, and source by abuse interaction as independent variables. The abuse by source interaction was not significant (p >.05) and thus, was dropped from the model. A main effect was found for participant source, F(1,180)=6.96, p <.01, but not for abuse (p >.05). Hospital employees (M =5.69, SD =.82) endorsed more femininity attributes on average than undergraduates (M =5.38, SD =.82). Next, an ANOVA predicting BSRI masculinity was run, with source, abuse, and their interaction as independent variables. In this model, there was no main effect of source (p >.05), but there was a significant main effect of abuse, F(1,180)=6.49, p <.05, and a source by abuse interaction,

F(1,180)=5.88, p <.05. A probe of the interaction revealed that abuse survivors endorsed fewer masculinity traits ( M = 4.51, SD = 1.27) than non-abused participants (M =5.23, SD =.77) in the hospital sample, F(1,83)=9.63, p <.01, but not among undergraduates (p >.05; abuse group M =4.72, SD =.92 versus non-abused group M =4.74, SD =.77). Thus, consistent with hypotheses, abused women reported more femininity than masculinity (feminine-masculine difference score) compared to non-abused women, but only among the hospital employee sample. Further the link between abuse and the feminine-masculine difference score among hospital employees seems to be attributable to abuse being associated with fewer masculine traits, rather than with more feminine traits. This finding among hospital employees held even when controlling for marital status (single versus ever married) which had been found to differentiate employees in the abused and comparison groups. Hypothesis 2 Abused women would endorse more derogatory stereotypes about women on the BAWS than women in the comparison group. The relationship between abuse history and stereotyping about women was examined using an ANOVA with stereotyping about women as measured by the BAWS as the dependent variable and source, abuse, and their interaction as independent variables. In this model, there was a significant main effect for abuse, F(1,179)=4.64, p <.05, but there was no effect of source nor source by abuse interaction effect found (ps >.05). The abuse effect indicated that women in the comparison group disagreed more with derogatory stereotypes about women (M =-0.34, SD =0.68) than women with an abuse history (M =-0.15, SD =0.58).

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Hypothesis 3 Abused women would report more feminine self-discrepancy on the FSQ than women in the comparison group.

Finally, the link between abuse and feminine selfdiscrepancy was examined using an ANOVA with feminine self-discrepancy as measured by the FSQ as the dependent variable and source, abuse, and their interaction as independent variables. In this model, a main effect was found for abuse, F(1,175)=8.53, p <.01, but not source or their interaction (ps>.05). Abuse participants reported higher feminine self-discrepancy (M =.37, SD =2.13) than non-abused participants (M =-.58, SD =2.22).

Discussion On the basis of past qualitative and some quantitative research, it was hypothesized that a history of sexual abuse in childhood would be associated with a more pronounced feminine gender-role identity for women, including possession of greater feminine/communal than masculine/instrumental traits, endorsement of stereotypes about women, and difficulty meeting feminine self-standards. The results of this study provide initial support for these suppositions, although some of the relationships seem to depend on demographic factors. First, a history of CSA was associated with higher femininity than masculinity among hospital employees but not among college undergraduates. That is, abused hospital employees reported possessing significantly fewer masculine traits than nonabused employees but the groups did not differ in terms of level of femininity. No such difference was found among undergraduate women. Interestingly, the overall hospital sample reported possessing more feminine but not masculine traits than undergraduate women. The disparate findings between undergraduates and hospital employees may be due to demographic and abuse characteristics that differentiated the samples. Compared to undergraduates, hospital employees were more often married, older and of child-rearing age, working in an environment focused on caretaking, and permanent residents of the southern United States. All of these factors suggest the presence of family, work, and social roles among employees that tend to emphasize gender roles and demand attributes of femininity or communality (Twenge 1997). Undergraduates on the other hand, are at a stage of life in which gender roles tend to be more flexible, particularly for women (Basow and Rubin 1999). In addition, changes in womens work and political roles over the last several decades have led to important generational

differences in gender role expectations and practice, particularly for women (Diekman and Eagly 2000). This would explain recent research suggesting that female undergraduates tend to fall within the androgynous gender role category more than the feminine one on average whereas male undergraduates continue to abide by sextyped gender roles, i.e., high masculinity and low femininity (Auster and Ohm 2000; Holt and Ellis 1998; Twenge 1997). Considering that undergraduates were drawn from a competitive private university, it is also likely that source selection eliminated women who adopted extremely traditional gender roles. Together, these sample differences might explain why hospital employees endorsed more femininity attributes overall than undergraduates, why there were no differences in level of femininity between abused and nonabused hospital employees, and why abuse history was not associated with masculinity, femininity, or their difference score among undergraduates. Consistent with hypotheses however, hospital employees with an abuse history reported possessing fewer attributes associated with masculinity or instrumentality than nonabused hospital employees. As others have suggested, the abject helplessness inherent in the experience of being sexually violated as a child may interfere with the development of a sense of personal agency and selfefficacy, characteristics central to cultural definitions of masculinity (Lisak 1994; Whiffen et al. 2000). In addition, the destabilizing and often silencing effects of childhood abuse may prevent the development of traits of instrumentality, such as self-confidence, leadership skills, and outspokenness. The current study is the first to report a significant relationship between child abuse history and lack of masculine or instrumental traits among a sample of civilian working women. A similar difference in masculinity levels between abused and nonabused participants may not have emerged among undergraduates because their level of abuse history was less severe than that reported by hospital employees. Our findings might suggest that previous inconsistencies in studies examining the link between abuse history and feminine/masculine personality traits (e.g., McMullin et al. 2007; Rosen and Martin 1998; Whiffen et al. 2000) may have been due to differences in sample or abuse characteristics. It is also important to note that the measure of exaggerated or unmitigated femininity used in the current study did not directly tap extreme and negative communal traits, such as self-subjugation. Relying on the BSRI entailed utilizing positive personality traits of femininity coupled with a lack of positive masculine traits. Future studies should consider using instruments that capture the behaviors rather than traits stereotypically associated with unmitigated femininity. For instance, the sociotropy subscale of the Personal Style Inventory (Robins et al. 1994)

40

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assesses an individuals tendency to be dependent on the approval of others for self-esteem, eager to please, and preoccupied with relationships to the extent of neglecting self-development. This type of scale may better capture the extreme relationship focus proposed by the concept of unmitigated femininity and that seems to be salient for female abuse survivors. The current study also found support for a link between a CSA history and endorsement of derogatory stereotypes about women. That is, women who reported sexual abuse in childhood were more likely than women in the comparison group to endorse beliefs about women being manipulative, sexual teases, debilitated by menstruation, more passive and emotionally vulnerable than men, and less intelligent than men. This finding suggests that sexual abuse experiences in childhood may be associated with a cognitive polarization of the sexes that devalues women in comparison to men and sees them as inherently devious (e.g., manipulative and sexual teases) and physically vulnerable (e.g., debilitated by menstruation). However, it is important to note that neither abused nor nonabused women in our sample agreed with these stereotypes on average; mean scores for both groups on the BAWS fell in the direction of disagreement. Thus, abused women disagreed less with the stereotypes than nonabused women. This finding might suggest that the experience of abuse for girls is associated with difficulty challenging derogatory stereotypes about their gender. One possible reason for this finding is that survivors' socializing environments during childhood may have been more traditional in terms of gender roles, the sexual division of labor, and messages about the value of women compared to men. This may be especially the case if women have been abused within the home or by a family member which was the case for approximately 40% of our sample. As noted by previous researchers and clinicians, many abuse survivors describe their childhood homes as places where women were routinely silenced, taught to be dependent on men, and discouraged from or denied opportunities for achievement and self-actualization (e.g., Alexander and Schaeffer 1994; Lebowitz and Roth 1994). Growing up in an environment in which rigid gender constructions are modeled and reinforced, abused women may be more likely to internalize such beliefs or have trouble challenging them over time compared to nonabused women. The experience of childhood abuse may also increase survivors' awareness of sociocultural messages that devalue women. Lebowitz and Roth (1994) found evidence to suggest that rape makes women sensitive to rape-relevant stimuli that permeates American culture. Rape survivors in their study frequently reported that the assault had acted as an "illuminator" of previously unseen aspects of the culture that degrade women and define them as sexual objects. In

their review of qualitative studies of child sexual abuse survivors, Krause et al. (2002) found that female CSA survivors incorporated gender stereotypes into their trauma narratives to make sense of their abuse and understand their role in the event. Thus, consciously or nonconsciously, sexual abuse survivors seem to have knowledge of negative messages about women. Possibly increased awareness of and sensitivity to stereotypes about women for CSA survivors make it harder for them to cognitively challenge such messages. The strongest finding in the current study was that abuse history was associated with greater feminine selfdiscrepancy. This finding is consistent with previous studies that found a link between self-discrepancies in adulthood and a history of CSA (Brewin and Vallance 1997; Freshwater et al. 2001), although these studies did not ask about gendered self-concept. It is also in line with research that has found elevated negative self-representations among abused female children and adolescents (e.g., Calverley et al. 1994). Although Calverley et al. (1994) did not examine feminine self-concept per se, their examples of abused girls' core self attributes (e.g., bad, angry, hostile, fat, mean, ugly, loud) indicated a posttraumatic self-devaluation for not meeting the positive characteristics stereotypically associated with femininity (e.g., good, sweet, thin, caring, pretty, and shy). Large feminine self-discrepancies among CSA survivors may be driven by a devaluation of the posttraumatic self and/or an elevation of feminine ideals to unrealistic standards. For instance, some extreme cases of traits listed in the current study for the actual self included dirty and evil, whereas ideal traits included pure and good. Exaggerated ideals about body-size and virginity coupled with a degraded actual self-image may lead female survivors to experience intense feminine self-discrepancies. Overall, these results provide additional support that selfrepresentations are important in understanding the impact of childhood abuse for women survivors. They also suggest that feminine self-representations in particular may be a meaningful construct to consider in exploring the long-term adjustment of female child abuse survivors. It should be noted that our modification of the Selves Questionnaire to ask specifically about feminine selfconcept was novel. In contrast to other measures of feminine gender identity examined in the current study, this modified measure allowed for the assessment of participants' ideographic beliefs about womanhood. The ideographic nature of the measure, as well as its direct assessment of discrepancy between the self and feminine self-standards, may explain why it was more strongly associated with abuse history. However, it is possible that some participants responded to the questionnaire in terms of the self in general rather than the feminine self in

Sex Roles (2011) 64:3242

41 Acknowledgements We are especially grateful to the women who contributed to this project as participants.

particular. Confidence in the association between abuse history and feminine self-discrepancy would be strengthened by a replication study or a comparison of the selfattributes provided in this study with ones provided in traditional self-discrepancy studies. Although preliminary, the findings of the current study may have important clinical implications for girls who have been sexually abused and adult women seeking treatment for a history of CSA. Both gender stereotyping and selfdiscrepancy have been associated with mental health problems. For instance, self-discrepancy has been linked to depression, anxiety (e.g., Strauman 1989), and traumarelated symptoms (Classen et al. 1998). Gender stereotyping has also been linked to symptoms of psychopathology (Belk and Snell 1989; Kreiger and Dumka 2006; Tennant 2002), and numerous other problems, including nonconsensual adult sexual experiences, blaming women for rape, heightened feelings of social and self-alienation, and interpersonal sensitivity (McKelvie and Gold 1994). Thus, it may be important to identify and intervene early with sexually abused girls who are experiencing feminine selfdiscrepancy and endorsing derogatory stereotypes about women. While standard cognitive-behavioral therapies may be used to identify and challenge extreme views about gender and the self (e.g., Resick and Schnicke 1992), techniques which directly target self-discrepancies (Strauman et al. 2006) are also available. In terms of generalizability, it is important to note that subjects were recruited from a southern US academic institution and its associated medical center through email services. Thus, only women who were either university students or employees and had access to the internet selfselected to participate in the study. Another limitation is that this was an all-female sample. While the majority of perpetrators of CSA have been found to be male, sex of perpetrator was not assessed in the current study. Future studies might compare women abused by male versus female perpetrators in terms of the CSA-gender identity link. In addition, future research might compare male and female survivors of CSA in terms of gender stereotype endorsement and self-discrepancy. Our findings compliment those of Lisak et al. (1996) who found men with a CSA history to report more gender rigidity and emotional constriction than men without such a history, but no study has examined both men and women survivors simultaneously. Finally, this was a cross-sectional study that relied on retrospective reports of childhood abuse. Thus, we cannot infer directionality of the findings. Future research should compare the experience of womanhood among abused and nonabused girls, and follow these girls over time to see if different trajectories emerge in terms of how feminine gender identity develops and impacts long-term adjustment.

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