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Gender identity and social competence

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Abstract

The process of gender identity, described as the self-attribution of culturally bound concepts of masculinity and femininity, is traced throughout the period of development and linked to social competence. Three stages in the development of conscious gender identity are described — gender awareness, gender orientation, and gender identity — and the characteristics of each stage are outlined. Finally, the implications of this view of the process of gender identity formation are discussed, especially in relation to Bem's concept of androgyny.

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This article was originally presented as the invited address for the Annual Conference of the Association for Women in Psychology, Pittsburgh, 1978.

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Condry, J.C. Gender identity and social competence. Sex Roles 11, 485–511 (1984). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00287474

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