Altruism and sex roles

Effects of Gender and Dress on Helping Behavior

The effects of gender and dress on helping behavior were examined. Perceptions and feelings influencing decisions to help were also investigated in an exploratory manner. 128 subjects were asked by a male or female confederate for 37¢ and afterwards completed a questionnaire. The confederates were either well-dressed or sloppily dressed. Analysis indicated that the woman was helped more than the man but that well-dressed and sloppily dressed confederates were helped equally. Subjects who helped generally perceived confederates to be needier than subjects who did not. Further, subjects who did not help reported greater discomfort from the helping request than subjects who helped.

Effects of Uniforms on Perceptions of Pictures of Athletes

Four pairs of pictures of female athletes in or out of uniform were rated on a 7-point scale by 271 female high school students and 26 female high school teachers on the dimensions of professionalism, team spirit, coordination, natural ability, over-all ability and muscular strength. Athletes were rated more favorably when dressed in uniforms by both groups on all dimensions, although several of the comparisons failed to reach statistical significance. The strongest effects were found for the variables of total score, over-all ability, professionalism and team spirit; the weakest effects were for coordination, muscular strength and natural ability.

Attire, Sex-Roles, and Responses to Requests for Directions

As expected responses of 90 middle-aged men to a request for directions were influenced by the female experimenter's attire.

Effects of Location, Appearance, and Monetary Value on Altruistic Behavior

Several studies have suggested that more altruism is found in smaller American communities, when the value of the money is increased and when the victim is neatly dressed. A female confederate, dressed either neatly or casually, dropped either a quarter or a dollar while approaching an unsuspecting subject ( N = 40 men and 40 women, 18 to 65 yr. of age), a student on campus or person on a street. Time for the subject to pick up the money and return it to the dropper was recorded. Location significantly affected altruistic behavior; the money was returned faster on campus than on the city street. A dollar was returned to the owner faster than a quarter.

Another evaluation of touch and helping behavior

Although positive effect of touch on compliance has been widely reported, new evaluation was made with an unusual request. 80 male bus drivers were solicited by a male or a female confederate to take the bus despite having too little money for the fare. Bus drivers were briefly touched by the confederate during solicitation. Analysis showed that bus drivers who were touched accepted the request more favorably but only when made by a female.

THE INFLUENCE OF HAIR COLOR ON ELICITING HELP: DO BLONDES HAVE MORE FUN?

A review of the literature suggests that hair color influences the quality of interpersonal interactions. In a factorially designed study, two male and two female confederates (Cs) encountered 72 male and 72 female street pedestrians (Ss) asking for help. Cs wore brunette wigs for half of their interactions and blonde wigs for the rest. Results showed that while women helped Cs equally regardless of their gender, men helped women more than they helped men. Hair color of Cs was not shown to affect helping behavior. The findings are discussed in the context of other studies and limitations are outlined.

THE EFFECT OF CLOTHING VARIATION ON FIRST IMPRESSIONS OF FEMALE JOB APPLICANTS: WHAT TO WEAR WHEN

Male and female subjects rated a standardized, professionally drawn female in each of 12 outfits as to impressions they would make in job interview situations. The 12 jobs represented combinations of high- and low-status and male-dominated and female-dominated occupations. Formfitting outfits were rated more favorably than loose outfits, and the layered look more favorably than the nonlayered look. High necklines were seen as more appropriate than moderate or low necklines, except when seeking a low-status, male-dominated job. Regardless of outfit, the woman was seen as likely to make a more favorable impression when applying for a female-dominated rather than male-dominated job, and her relative disadvantage in the latter situation was seen as particularly pronounced by male subjects.