Browsing by Author "Milden, Randy"

Now showing 1 - 6 of 6
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    Aimlessness and Agency: Interpreting the Lives of Second Wave Feminists
    (1994) Calvo, Naomi; Milden, Randy; Davis, Douglas A., 1943-
    This is an exploratory study of the lives of six women, graduates of Bryn Mawr College, who defined themselves as feminist in the late sixties and early seventies. Because of the exploratory nature of the work the focus has shifted substantially since its inception. Hence an overview of the study's organization is helpful. Since part of the purpose of this study is an exploration of nontraditional methodology, one component of the study traces the changes in the project. Thus Chapter One provides the original conception of the study. It contains an introduction to the initial purpose; an appropriate literature review; and expected methods. Chapter Two details how the study was actually carried out. It contains a description of the actual methods and a reflection on the dilemmas of methodology given the process of the study; a description and analysis of the individual women's lives; a general analysis of themes across the women's lives; and a re-examination of the literature review. The Epilogue concludes by reflecting on the study and its affects on the researcher.
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    Bridging separate spheres: The Life of Julia Wilbur
    (1989) Baron, Erika Lea; Davis, Douglas A., 1943-; Milden, Randy; Stuard, Susan Mosher
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    Depression Across Cultures: An Exploratory Study
    (1993) Cantor, Jeremy; Milden, Randy; Davis, Douglas A., 1943-
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    Early Adolescent Female Gendered Identity Formation Through the Lens of Popularity and "the Perfect Girl"
    (1997) Riofrio, Adrienne Veronica; Milden, Randy; Davis, Douglas A., 1943-
    This study examined the ways that cultural ideals affect girls' views of popularity, ideal girlhood, and how cultural stereotypes inform the development of their identities. Twenty seventh grade girls were asked to fill out three objective measures-- Children's Sex Role Inventory (Boldizar, 1991); the Attitudes Towards Women Scale for Adolescents (Galambos et. al, 1985); and the Perceived Competence Scale for Children (Harter, 1982). Participants also completed a projective measure designed to tap into issues of gendered identity formation. Girls were divided into two groups and participated in a magazine session, reading and discussing either mainstream or resistant magazines (ones that are aimed at questioning gender bias). Measures were then administered again. Results suggest that the objective and projective measures were correlated. Projective results suggest that girls in the resistant magazine condition answered questions in more resistant ways than girls in the mainstream condition. Implications for further research and application of ideas proposed here are explored.
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    "This is a Photograph of Me": Early Adolescent Girls, Peer Acceptance, and the Search for Self
    (1997) Benjamin, Beth Cooper; Davis, Douglas A., 1943-; Milden, Randy
    Girls encounter significant socio-psychological difficulties during adolescence, as they develop identities against a backdrop of conflictual cultural messages about female identity. The present study investigated the relationship between self-concept and peer relations for a group of girls in seventh grade. Specifically, the study looked at the peer group's ideal of "the popular girl" and girls' individual perceptions of and reactions to it. Subjects completed measures of self concept (PCSC), sex role attributes (CSRI), sex role attitudes (AWSA), and a series of projective questions, and then participated in an intervention, in which a control group read from a mainstream teenage girls' fashion magazine, and an experimental group read from Blue Jean, one of a growing genre of girl-centered, advertising-free magazines for teenage girls. The original measures were then adminstered again. It was predicted that subjects in the experimental condition would demonstrate more confidence and resistance to cultural stereotypes about women than they had exhibited earlier, and that subjects in the experimental condition would show little change. While the intervention produced only a handful of significant effects, the results are suggestive of the potential benefits to adolescent girls of programs designed to support their integrity and creative resistance to damaging cultural messages.
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    "Who am I?": The Gender Identity Formation and Peer Group Relations of Early Adolescent Girls
    (1997) Levy, Andrea Gail; Milden, Randy
    Early adolescence is the time when biological, cognitive, and psychosocial pressures multiply, particularly for girls. This research explored gendered identity development and peer group relations among seventh grade girls. Specifically, we examined the idea of "the popular girl" as a symbol of the cultural female stereotype, and how girls identified themselves in relation to that concept. 20 girls participated in this study, completing objective assessments of perceived competence, sex role identification, and sex role attitudes. They also responded to a projective questionnaire designed to measure these same features. Following an initial assessment, girls participated in an intervention where they read either a traditional or progressive girls' magazine, and responded to it in group discussion. It was predicted that girls who read the progressive magazine would become more critical of their social worlds in a post-intervention test, while mainstream girls would not change. Results indicated only partial support of the intervention, but a clinical assessment of the responses demonstrated the need for more educational programs for girls like that performed in the present study.