Interactive Influences of Gender Identity and Gender Typing on Early Adolescents’ Well-Being

We examined whether protective forms of gender identity (typicality, contentedness) ameliorate the negative influences of self-perceived cross gender typing (gender differentiated friendship styles) on early adolescents’ well-being. Early adolescents (N = 244, 123 girls, M age 12.77 years) in Surrey, England responded to self-reports of friendship styles (preoccupied, avoidant), gender identity (typicality, contentedness), and well-being (self-esteem, depression). Girls reported higher scores than boys on the preoccupied friendship style, and lower scores than boys on the avoidant friendship style. Children who reported a cross gender style (preoccupied for boys and avoidant for girls) also reported poor well-being, indicating that self-perceived cross gender typing is distressing. However, these influences were buffered for youths who reported high levels of gender typicality and gender contentedness. Results suggest that gender identity plays a self-regulatory role in discounting self-perceived gender-atypical attributes that interfere with early adolescents’ sense of well-being.