NCJ Number
80108
Journal
Journal of Police Science and Administration Volume: 9 Issue: 3 Dated: (September 1981) Pages: 346-355
Date Published
1981
Length
10 pages
Annotation
This article discusses the results of a study that compared a sample of policewomen to a sample of nurses concerning their respective scores on a brief personality inventory.
Abstract
Policewomen differed significantly from nurses in that the policewomen scored lower on feminine values and scored higher in the area of modernity than the nurses. Policewomen had more masculine interests than nurses; were slightly more open to new experiences; and, concomitantly, were not as prepared to accept stereotypical male-female role prescriptions. Personality traits commonly attributed to these two personality configurations would suggest that policewomen can often be described as daring, changeable, outspoken, and restless. Nurses can often be described as gentle, mild, modest, and reserved. The policewoman sample seemed to divide itself into two subgroups. The older, higher ranking policewomen were noticeably more conservative, even more masculine in their outlook than the younger policewomen who were relatively more in favor of an expanded woman's role and women's rights. The implications of these findings for the quality of law enforcement remain to be determined. One table, footnotes, and about 30 references are supplied. (Author summary modified)