Sex-role traditionalism and assertiveness in puerto rican women living in the united states

Abstract

Historical and clinical descriptions of Puerto Rican women living in the United States suggest that they are more sex-role traditional and less assertive than other American womén, even though working and studying in the United States results in acculturation. These claims have not been examined with reliable measures. The purpose of this study was to determine whether generation (first versus second) and education affect sex-role traditionalism and assertiveness in Puerto Rican women living in the United States. In all, 278 Puerto Rican women (18 to 55 years of age) completed a questionaire containing demographic questions and measures of sex-role traditionalism and assertiveness. Sex-role traditionalism was measured by a scale designed especially for this study, with items derived from the Attitudes Toward Women Scale (Spence, Helmreich, & Stapp, 1973) and the Attitudes Toward Feminism Scale (Smith, Ferree, & Miller, 1975), plus nine items designed specifically for Puerto Rican women. Assertiveness was measured by the Adult Self-Expression Scale (Gay, Hollandsworth, & Galassi, 1975). Bivariate hypotheses were tested to determine whether being second generation and better educated decreases sex-role traditionalism and increases assertiveness. All of the major hypotheses were supported. Two limitations of the study as well as clinical implications of the findings are discussed.