Exploration of "Good Mother" Stereotypes in the College Environment

    Authors

    K. Mottarella; B. Fritzsche; S. Whitten;D. Bedsole

    Comments

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    Abstract

    This study extends research on the good mother stereotype by examining students' perceptions of other students who return to school after having a child. Undergraduate students attending either community college or a 4-year southeastern university within the United States were asked to review a vignette in which a mother's decision to return to college and her role satisfaction were manipulated. The 205 participants rated the woman who elects to continue her education shortly after the birth of a child as significantly less feminine, more dominant, more arrogant-calculating and cold-hearted, and less warm-agreeable than the mother who discontinued her education. The impact of these results is discussed in the context of Tinto's (Review of Educational Research 45, 89-127, 1975) classic theory of student retention and Eagly and Steffen's (Journal of Personality and Social Psychology 46, 735-754, 1984) theory of gender stereotypes.

    Journal Title

    Sex Roles

    Volume

    60

    Issue/Number

    3-4

    Publication Date

    1-1-2009

    Document Type

    Article

    First Page

    223

    Last Page

    231

    WOS Identifier

    WOS:000263491300007

    ISSN

    0360-0025

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