| The purpose of the present study was to develop and investigate the psychometric properties of a measure (i.e., the Phenomenal Woman Inventory) of the constructs derived from the “phenomenal woman” model, an emic model of gender identity for African American women. The sample consisted of 147 African American women who completed a biodata sheet, the Phenomenal Woman Inventory, the African American and White American Acculturation Inventory (Talleyrand, 1998), and a modified version of the Bem Sex Role Inventory (Bem, 1981).; In the phenomenal woman model, personality characteristics and gender role ideological constructs, derived from what are supposedly emic socialization experiences of African American women, were synthesized. Empirical, emic theoretical, and autobiographical literatures and focus groups were used to identify common personality traits and gender roles used to describe or characterize African American women. Four theoretical themes emerged: (a) strength and tenacity, (b) self-reliance, (c) extended caregiver role, and (d) financial provider role. The Phenomenal Woman Inventory was intended to assess these four themes. Two scales of the Phenomenal Woman Inventory were designed to assess two dimensions of phenomenal womanism: (a) Gender Ideal (i.e., the extent to which African American women believed that the gender roles and personality styles associated with phenomenal womanism are expected of African American women, in accordance with African American culture) and (b) Gender Use (i.e., the degree to which Black women use or practice phenomenal womanism in their own lives).; The results suggested that phenomenal womanism was multidimensional. Partial support was found for the hypotheses that phenomenal womanism was significantly positively related to African American acculturation, but was not found for the hypotheses that White American acculturation was significantly negatively related to phenomenal womanism. Moreover, partial support was found for the hypotheses that androgynous women would report significantly higher levels of phenomenal womanism as a gender ideal than feminine women. The hypotheses that androgynous women would report using higher levels of phenomenal womanism than feminine women were also partially supported. Methodological limitations and implications for research and counseling are discussed. |
