A new study has found that traditional gender role views are strongly associated with higher earning levels for men. The study (see PDF) suggests that the wage gap is “exacerbated in the presence of traditional gender role orientations” and found that “traditional gender role orientation provides men with strong earnings advantages, even when relevant control variables are taken into account.” The same effect is not seen with women.
Beth A. Livingston, co-author of the study, told the Washington Post that “when we think of the gender wage gap, most of our focus goes to the women side of things…[but] this article says a lot of the difference may be in men’s salaries.” She also noted that “regardless of the jobs people chose, or how long they worked at them, there was still a significant effect of gender role attitudes on income.”
The study was published in the most recent Journal of Applied Psychology.
