Do gender stereotypes change? The dynamic of gender stereotypes in Spain

Men and women have historically occupied different roles in society. As societies have developed, the social roles of, and the stereotypes attached to, men and women have also changed. We may, therefore, expect there to be a dynamic component of gender stereotyping that affects the perception of men and women in the past, present, and future. Although this evolution of stereotypes is fairly well developed in the literature, a replication in Spain is still missing and this study sought to address this gap. Two hundred and seventy-seven men and women (aged between 15 and 87 years old) from three regions of Spain (Andalusia, Castile-La Mancha, and Madrid) participated in this study. In line with social role prediction studies, this research shows that gender stereotypes in Spain include dynamic aspects and that the content of these stereotypes is rooted in social roles. In general, people perceived women's roles and stereotypes to be changing more quickly over time than those of men. Women were also perceived as taking on masculine-agency characteristics, in contrast to men, who were not perceived as taking on feminine-communal characteristics. Age was a strong moderator in several interactions.