#1 Sandra Bem

Sandra Bem trading card image

Sandra Bem, an American psychologist, is best known for her controversial work on gender schemas and the Bem Sex-Role Inventory, for which she won many awards. Her work was central in challenging fixed notions of gender roles and differences, and the damaging consequences of gender stereotypes. For Bem the personal was most definitely political, her beliefs reflected in the way she lived her life. She entered into an explicitly ‘egalitarian marriage’, a revolutionary stance at the time, & raised her children to defy traditional gender roles (documented brilliantly in her autobiography An Unconventional Family). She took her own life in 2014, 4 years after being diagnosed with Alzheimer’s.

further reading

Bem, S. L. (1981). Gender schema theory: A cognitive account of sex typing. Psychological review88(4), 354-364.

Bem, S. L. (1998). An unconventional family. Yale: Yale University Press.

additional links

New York Times article on Bem

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About Fiona MacNeill

I have been working in the Educational Technology field within Higher Education for eleven years. A big part of my job is finding new and innovative ways of integrating technology into current teaching and learning methodology. This can include assisting academic staff with Virtual Learning Environments/Learning Management Systems (Blackboard), implementing specific software packages, maximising current technologies and championing new ones. I find this profession both riveting and rewarding. I really enjoy life on the cutting edge, but I also enjoy being able to help staff achieve small and meaningful efficiencies; sometimes that makes all the difference.

2 thoughts on “#1 Sandra Bem

  1. Laura selke

    I am so interested to learn more about Sandra Bem. I was her student twice, once taking “Lenses of Gender” as a freshman at Cornell, and another time taking a senior level class ( about 9 students) examining sex roles with a critical eye. I was having a difficult time at Cornell and she graciously invited me into her home to discuss my difficulty in her class and my recent poor performance on a test. She really cared. I’ll never forget her genuine support and compassion. She was ahead of her time and was a major influence on my world view. Thank you, Dr. Bem!

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