other people. On the other hand, women in our society tend to develop inter-
dependent self-construals . Their self-concepts are highly related to the cognitive
representations they have of others and their relationships with those people.
In particular, these cognitive representations are tied to those with whom
women feel close and personal relations (Gabriel & Gardner, 1999).
Put another way, relationships with friends and loved ones are an impor-
tant part of how women think of themselves. It ’s not just that they enjoy their
relationships more than men, but rather that women are more likely to define
themselves in terms of the relationships they share with others. Returning to
the memory data, perhaps one reason women recall certain kinds of experi-
ences more readily than men is that these events may have involved otherpeople. Because of their interdependent self-construal, information involving
relationships is more accessible for women than for men.
Consistent with this analysis, several studies find women are more likely than
men to define themselves in terms of their relationships (Guimond, Chatard,
ASSESSING YOUR OWN PERSONALITY
Self-Construal
Indicate the extent to which you agree with the following statements.
Use a 7-point scale to indicate your response, with 1 ¼Strongly disagree and
7¼Strongly agree.
1. My close relationships are an important reflection of who I am.
2. When I feel very close to someone, it often feels to me like that
person is an important part of who I am.
3. I usually feel a strong sense of pride when someone close to
me has an important accomplishment.
4. I think one of the most important parts of who I am can be
captured by looking at my close friends and understandingwho they are.
5. When I think of myself, I often think of my close friends or
family also.
6. If a person hurts someone close to me, I feel personally hurt
as well.
7. In general, my close relationships are an important part of my
self-image.
8. Overall, my close relationships have very little to do with how
I feel about myself.
9. My close relationships are unimportant to my sense of what
kind of person I am.
10. My sense of pride comes from knowing who I have as close
friends.
11. When I establish a close friendship with someone, I usually
develop a strong sense of identification with that person.
(continues)Gender, Memory, and Self-Construal 443