EVALUATIVE EXPECTATIONS AND THE GENDER SCHEMA - IS FAILED INCONSISTENCY BETTER

Are evaluative assessments a part of the information that constitutes the gender stereotype? Two studies tested this question by presenting participants (50 female and 43 male college students, for whom English was their native language) with information that manipulated both the knowledge of gender roles and the evaluative assessments of performan ce in those roles. Participants tried to learn statements like ''Jane is a good nurse'' or ''John is a bad nurse. '' Memory for these relati onships was then tested. Results indicated that when the person's name and the role were consistent with the gender stereotype, a positive e valuative connection made the statement easier to recall than a negati ve evaluative connection. However, an inconsistent name-role pairing w as easier to recall when the evaluative connection was negative rather than positive. The results are interpreted as support for an evaluati ve bias that is part of the knowledge associated with gender differenc es.