Gender stereotypes across nations relate to the social position of women and men: Evidence from cross-cultural public opinion polls

Gender stereotypes, defined as widely shared beliefs about the typical attributes of women and men, have far-reaching consequences for both stereotyped groups. This preregistered research examined cross-cultural variation in gender stereotypes based on public opinion poll data from 1995 (22 nations with 22,000 respondents) and 2023 (40 nations with 4,800 respondents). Results revealed that men were perceived as more agentic than women and women as more communal than men in all studied nations at both time points. Yet, substantial cross-cultural variation existed in the strength of these stereotypes whereby the communion stereotype in particular related to the distribution of women and men into social roles. The female advantage in communion was stronger the larger women's share in the labor force and the greater the occupational sex segregation, both reflecting women's employment primarily in communal domains. The male advantage in agency likely reflects that women's considerable inroads into leader roles put them in versions of the role entailing lesser status and power and therefore conveying lesser agency. For competence, most respondents believed that women and men are equally competent in 17 of the 23 nations surveyed in 1995 and in all 40 nations surveyed in 2023. These beliefs in competence equality were stronger in nations with greater female educational attainment and labor force participation (in 2023 but not in 1995). By identifying cross-cultural patterns and socioeconomic indicators associated with variation in gender stereotyping, this research advances understanding of how the locations of women and men in nations' social structures inform gender stereotypes.