The Bem Sex-Role Inventory (BSRI) is a measure of masculinity and femininity, and is used to research gender roles.
Sandra Bem's goal of the BSRI was to examine psychological androgyny and provide empirical evidence to show the advantage of a shared masculine and feminine personality versus a sex-typed categorization.
[2] The test is formatted with 60 different personality traits which participants rate themselves based on a 7-point Likert scale.
[3] "In the field of psychology, much research is conducted involving individuals' perceptions of gender roles, and behavioral as well as attitudinal correlates.
[3] Backtracking, however, the actual first scale that led to the creation of the Bem Sex Role Inventory was by Terman and Miles in 1936.
Likewise, women were only thought to be capable of possessing feminine traits and personalities, but couldn’t have any masculine ones.
[3] The Bem Sex-Role Inventory offers four different possible resulting categorizations: masculine, feminine, androgynous and undifferentiated.
The fourth type of score, undifferentiated, was seen as the result of extremely low masculine and feminine traits.
[3][independent source needed] However, since this is a self-report inventory, how reliable the assessment is depends on how accurately participants report their behaviors and attitudes.
For example, results may differ if the test was administered to a group of marines versus students at a private girls high school.
While endorsing what appears to be a suggestion to conduct studies within the framework of trait-treatment interactions, one cannot help wondering: Where has androgyny gone?
Specifically, the short form removed some feminine traits that could be seen as less socially desirable such as "gullible" and "childlike".