Abstract
Previous investigators have suggested that women display lower self-confidence than men in almost all achievement settings. The validity of this suggestion is assessed in an experiment testing the impact of comparison to others upon sex differences. Male and female undergraduates, who expected to cooperate in the future with a same-sex partner of high, average, or low ability, selected a difficulty level for an achievement test, completed the test, evaluated their own performance, and estimated their future partner's probable performance. As predicted, only when subjects' future partner was highly competent did women select an easier test than men, perform less well, and compare themselves less favorably to their partner. Also, women's, but not men's, self-evaluations depended upon their partner's ability level. It is concluded that sex differences are moderated by social comparison variables. Cognitive processes that may underlie such differences are discussed.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Brickman, P., & Bulman, R. J. Pleasure and pain in social comparison. In J. M. Suls & R. L. Miller (Eds.), Social comparison processes: Theoretical and empirical perspectives. New York: Wiley, 1977.
Doster, W. C. (Ed.). Barron's how to prepare for the College Level Examination Program. New York: Barron's Educational Series, 1975.
Feather, N. T., & Simon, J. G. Attribution of responsibility and valence of outcome in relation to initial confidence and success and failure of self and other. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 1971, 18, 173–188.
Frieze, I. H., Parsons, J. E., Johnson, P. B., Ruble, D. N., & Zellman, G. L. Women and sex roles: A social psychological perspective. New York: Norton, 1978.
Goethals, G. R., & Darley, J. M. Social comparison theory: An attributional approach. In J. M. Suls & R. L. Miller (Eds.), Social comparison processes: Theoretical and empirical perspectives. New York: Wiley, 1977.
Gruder, C. L. Choice of comparison persons in evaluating oneself. In J. M. Suls & R. L. Miller (Eds.), Social comparison processes: Theoretical and empirical perspectives. New York: Wiley, 1977.
Hoffman, L. W. Early childhood experiences and women's achievement motives. Journal of Social Issues, 1972, 28, 129–155.
Horner, M. S. Toward an understanding of achievement related conflicts in women. Journal of Social Issues, 1972, 28(2), 157–175.
Lenney, E. Women's self-confidence in achievement settings. Psychological Bulletin, 1977, 84, 1–13.
Lenney, E. What's fine for the gander isn't always good for the goose: Sex differences in self-confidence as a function of ability area and comparison with others. Sex Roles, 1981, 7, 905–924.
Lenney, E., & Gold, J. Sex differences in self-confidence: The effects of task completion and of comparison to competent others. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 1982, 8, 74–80.
Maccoby, E. E., & Jacklin, C. N. The psychology of sex differences. Stanford: Stanford University Press, 1974.
Mettee, D. R., & Smith, G. Social comparison and interpersonal attraction. In J. M. Suls & R. L. Miller (Eds.), Social comparison and social evaluation research. Washington, D.C.: Hemisphere, 1976.
Singer, J. E. Social comparison—Progress and issues. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 1966, Suppl. 1, 103–110.
Thornton, D. A., & Arrowood, A. J. Self-evaluation, self-enhancement, and the locus of social comparison. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 1966, Suppl. 1, 40–48.
Wheeler, L. Motivation as a determinant of upward comparison. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 1966, Suppl. 1, 27–31.
Wyer, R. S., Jr., Henninger, M., & Wolfson, M. Informational determinants of females' self-attributions and observers' judgments of them in an achievement situation. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 1975, 32, 556–570.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
The authors wish to express their appreciation to Phoebe Ellsworth for her critical comments on this research, and to Pamela Joy, Tama Jacobson, and Thomas Hallet for serving as experimenters. Portions of this study were reported at the Eastern Psychological Association Convention, 1978.
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Lenney, E., Gold, J. & Browning, C. Sex differences in self-confidence: The influence of comparison to others' ability level. Sex Roles 9, 925–942 (1983). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00290054
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00290054