Date of Award

1-1-2009

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Ph.D.

Organizational Unit

Graduate School of Social Work

First Advisor

Jeffrey M. Jenson, Ph.D.

Second Advisor

Julie A. Laser

Third Advisor

William Dieterich

Keywords

Adolescent girls, Aggression, Bullying, Feminine ideals

Abstract

This study examined the relationship between gender socialization, assessed by the gender ideologies of inauthenticity in relationships and body objectification (Tolman & Porche, 2000), and overt and relational aggression and peer victimization among 212 girls in five Denver, Colorado public middle schools. A feminist developmental perspective was used to 1) examine whether internalized norms of femininity were related to overt and relational aggression and peer victimization; 2) evaluate whether girls used certain types of aggressive behavior to adhere to, or reject, norms of femininity; and 3) assess whether girls who were victimized were more likely than other girls to internalize such norms. Findings from structural equation modeling analyses revealed little empirical support for the hypothesized relationships between norms of femininity and girls' aggressive behavior. A significant relationship, however, was found between inauthentic self in relationships with others and peer victimization. This finding indicated that girls who were more likely to be inauthentic in their relationships with others had higher rates of peer victimization than other girls. Implications of these findings for developmental theory, research, and social work practice are delineated.

Publication Statement

Copyright is held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.

Rights Holder

Anne Powell

Provenance

Received from ProQuest

File Format

application/pdf

Language

en

File Size

155 p.

Discipline

Social work

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