The argument
People infer traits from what they see others doing. When women are concentrated in caregiving roles and men in higher-status and paid roles, observers come to see women as communal and men as agentic. These expectations become norms, which then encourage people to act in line with them.
Evidence
Meta-analyses of leadership stereotypes show that leadership has often been viewed in masculine terms, which fits the theory's emphasis on roles. Cross-temporal analysis of public opinion polls in the United States found that beliefs about women's competence have shifted as their participation in work and education has grown.
Debate
Evolutionary psychologists argue that some sex differences reflect different selection pressures, while social role theorists treat physical differences and social arrangements as the main causes. The two positions are not always opposed, and much current research asks how biology and social structure interact.
Further reading
- Eagly, A. H. (1987). Sex differences in social behavior: A social-role interpretation. Erlbaum.
- Eagly, A. H., & Wood, W. (1999). The origins of sex differences in human behavior: Evolved dispositions versus social roles. American Psychologist, 54, 408-423.
- Koenig, A. M., Eagly, A. H., Mitchell, A. A., & Ristikari, T. (2011). Are leader stereotypes masculine? A meta-analysis of three research paradigms. Psychological Bulletin, 137, 616-642.