Abstract

Sex role research in Korea has been hindered by the absence of a sex role inventory which is based on the sex role stereotypes of the Korean society. In this study, a Korean Sex Role Inventory (KSRI) was constructed according to the theory and methods of the androgynous perspective. In a preliminary study, 188 judges rated the desirability of 452 personality characteristics for males and females in Korean society. Following Bem's(1974) procedure for item selection, 20 items each were selected for the masculinity, femininity, and social desirability scales. When administered to 140 college students, the inventory showed high reliabilities for all three scales ranging from .75 to .91, and reasonable degree of external validity with self-esteem as the criterion variable. For national norms, it is necessary to collect more data. Compared to the traslated versions of foreign sex role inventories or the masculinity-femininity scales of the traditional personality tests which do not correspond with androgyny theory, KSRI will be a useful instrument for sex role research in Korea.