How Sexist Men Profit

The researchers divided the participants into "traditional" and "egalitarian" groups, based on how strongly they believed these statements: (a) a woman's place is in the home, not the office or shop; (b) a wife with a family has no time for outside employment; (c) employment of wives leads to more juvenile delinquency; (d) it is much better if the man is the achiever outside the home and the woman takes care of the home and family; and (e) women are much happier if they stay home and take care of children.

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Many factors determine those attitudes, the researchers say. Men and women with more education tend toward egalitarian. Older people tend more toward traditional, and that's particularly true in the southern states. African Americans tend to be more egalitarian. And the attitude among men has moved more toward egalitarian than it has for women, perhaps because men had further to go, the researchers suggest.

But why should it make so much difference on payday?

Women with traditional attitudes may feel less comfortable in the workforce, and thus, tend toward fields that are dominated by women, generally with lower incomes, the study says. Men with traditional values are more likely to move into fields dominated by men, and thus, better paying. It's the old wage gap at work again, which narrowed for a while, but now appears to be widening again, the study notes.

The researchers suggest that gender attitudes run deep in our society.

"A traditional gender role orientation reinforces the social norm that a woman's place is in the home," the study says. "Thus, working women with traditional gender role orientations are likely to believe their true devotion should not be to their work, but to home."

Even if "traditional" women do work, their income is often regarded as "peripheral," because it's the husband's job that is considered more important. Thus, they are content to work for less in female-dominated fields, bringing down the income for "egalitarian" women in the same field, according to the study.