The Gender Role Conflict Scale (GRCS) is a psychological measure designed to evaluate the degree of conflict experienced by individuals as a result of their gender roles. The GRCS is composed of four subscales: Restrictive Masculinity Conflict, Restrictive Femininity Conflict, Masculine Discrepancy Stress, and Feminine Discrepancy Stress. The GRCS is used to assess the degree of discomfort or distress experienced by an individual due to the discrepancy between their gender roles and their personal beliefs and values. The Restrictive Masculinity Conflict subscale measures the degree of conflict experienced by men due to the traditional expectations of masculinity. This includes the expectation that men should be strong and independent, and should not express emotion or vulnerability. The Restrictive Femininity Conflict subscale measures the degree of conflict experienced by women due to traditional expectations of femininity. This includes the expectation that women should be passive and submissive, and should not express anger or aggression. The Masculine Discrepancy Stress subscale measures the degree of distress experienced by men due to their inability to meet traditional expectations of masculinity. This includes the feeling of being inadequate or inadequate in comparison to other men. The Feminine Discrepancy Stress subscale measures the degree of distress experienced by women due to their inability to meet traditional expectations of femininity. This includes the feeling of being inadequate or inadequate in comparison to other women. The GRCS is a useful tool for evaluating the degree of gender role conflict experienced by an individual and can be used to inform interventions and treatments for individuals experiencing distress due to gender role conflict.
1. Moving up the career ladder is important to me.
2. I have difficulty telling others I care about them.
3. Verbally expressing my love to another man is difficult for me.
4. I reel torn between my hectic work schedule and caring for my health.
5. Making money is part of my idea of being a successful man.
6. Strong emotions are difficult for me to understand.
7. Affection with other men makes me tense.
8. I sometimes define my personal value by my career success.
9. Expressing feelings makes me feel open to attack by other people.
10. Expressing my emotions to other men is risky.
11. My career‚ job‚ or school affects the quality of my leisure or family life.
12. I evaluate other people’s value by their level of achievement and success.
13. Talking about my feelings during sexual relations is difficult for me.
14. I worry about failing and how it affects my doing well as a man.
15. I have difficulty expressing my emotional needs to my partner.
16. Men who touch other men make me uncomfortable.
17. Finding time to relax is difficult for me.
18. Doing well all the time is important to me.
19. I have difficulty expressing my tender feelings.
20. Hugging other men is difficult for me.
21. I often feel that I need to be in charge of those around me.
22. Telling others of my strong feelings is not part of my sexual behavior.
23. Competing with others is the best way to succeed.
24. Winning is a measure of my value and personal worth.
25. I often have trouble finding words that describe how I am feeling.
26. I am sometimes hesitant to show my affection to men because of how others might perceive me.
27. My needs to work or study keep me from my family or leisure more than would like.
28. I strive to be more successful than others.
29. I do not like to show my emotions to other people.
30. Telling my partner my feelings about him/her during sex is difficult for me.
31. My work or school often disrupts other parts of my life (home‚ family‚ health leisure.
32. I am often concerned about how others evaluate my performance at work or school.
33. Being very personal with other men makes me feel uncomfortable.
34. Being smarter or physically stronger than other men is important to me.
35. Men who are overly friendly to me make me wonder about their sexual preference (men or women).
36. Overwork and stress caused by a need to achieve on the job or in school‚ affects/hurts my life.
37. I like to feel superior to other people.
Gender Role Conflict Scale- Adolescent (GRCS-A)
Bazina et al. 2005
Restricted Affection Between Men (RAM)
1. Verbally expressing my love to another man is hard for me.
2. Affection with other men makes me tense.
3. Expressing my emotions to other men is risky.
4. Hugging other men is difficult for me.
5. I am sometimes hesitant to show my affection to men because of how others might judge me.
6. Being very personal with other men makes me feel anxious.
7. Men who are too friendly to me make me wonder about their sexual preference (men or women).
Restricted Emotionality (RE)
8. I have difficulty telling others I care about them.
9. Strong emotions are difficult for me to understand.
10. Expressing feelings makes me feel open to attack by other people.
11. It’s hard for me to talk about my feelings with others.
12. It’s hard for me to express my emotional needs to others.
13. When I am personally involved with others‚ I do not express my strong feelings.
14. I often have trouble finding words that describe how I am feeling.
15. I do not like to show my emotions to other people.
16. Telling others about my strong feelings is diffi cult to me.
Conflict Between Work‚ School‚ and Family (CWSF)
17. I feel torn between my hectic work or school schedule and caring for my health.
18. My career‚ job‚ or school affects the quality of my leisure or family life.
19. I judge other people’s value by their level of achievement and success.
20. Finding time to relax is difficult for me.
21. My need to work or study keeps me from my family or leisure more than I would like.
22. My work or school often disrupts other parts of my life (home‚ health‚ leisure).
23. Overwork and stress caused by the need to achieve on the job or in school affects or/hurts my life.
Need for Success and Achievement (NSA)
24. Getting to the top of my class is important to me.
25. Making money is part of my idea of being a successful man.
26. Sometimes I define my personal value by my success at school.
27. I worry about failing and how it affects my doing well as a man.
28. Doing well all the time is important to me.
29. I strive to be more successful than others.
Success‚ power‚ and competition (SPC)‚ Restrictive emotionality (RE)‚ Restrictive affectionate behavior between men (RABBM)‚ Conflict between work and family relations (CBWF)
This instrument can be found on pages 58-60 of “Asian American Men’s Gender Role Conflict: An Investigation of Racism-Related Stress”. Available online at: http://www2.uwstout.edu/content/lib/thesis/2009/2009cartierc.pdf
This instrument can be found on pages 47-48 of “An adaption of the gender role conflict scale for adolescents”. Available online at: http://www.springer.com/978-1-4614-6930-8
1= Strongly Disagree‚ 2‚ 3‚ 4‚ 5‚ 6= Strongly Agree
O’Neil‚ J.M.‚ Helms‚ B.J.‚ Gable‚ R.K.‚ David‚ L.‚ & Wrightsman‚ L.S. (1986). Gender Role ConflictScale: College Men’s Fear of Femininity. Journal ofSex Roles‚ 14‚335-350.
Blazina‚ C.‚ Pisecco‚ S.‚ & O’Neil‚ J. M. (2005). An adaption of the gender role conflict scale for adolescents: Psychometric issues and correlates with psychological distress. Psychology of Men & Masculinity‚ 6 (1)‚ 39–45.
Cartier. Chad R.‚ (2009). Asian American Men’s Gender Role Conflict: An Investigation of Racism-Related Stress. University of Wisconsin-Stout. MS. Thesis.