TITLE:
A Gendered Approach to Understanding Self-Control and Impulsivity: Gender Differences, Gender Role Traits, and Gender Role Attitudes
AUTHORS:
Shanhong Luo, Whitney Wall, Saghar Kholghi, Mary Balogun, Sasha Freedland
KEYWORDS:
Gender Roles, Gender, Self-Control, Masculinity, Femininity, Impulsivity
JOURNAL NAME:
Psychology,
Vol.17 No.2,
February
12,
2026
ABSTRACT: Although gender differences in self-control and impulsivity have been well established, limited research has examined how gender roles are related to gender differences in self-control and impulsivity. We conducted two studies to test the hypothesis that gender role traits and attitudes will be able to account for gender differences in self-control, impulsivity, and impulsive behaviors. In Study 1 (n = 491), gender and gender role traits were used to predict self-control, impulsivity, restraint, and snooping in a romantic relationship. In Study 2 (n = 463), we added gender role attitudes to predict self-control, impulsivity, restraint, and drinking on top of gender and gender role traits. Findings across the two studies showed (1) a solid, replicable gender difference in impulsivity and a lesser gender difference in self-control but no significant gender difference in restraint; (2) masculine traits and attitudes but not feminine ones accounted for the gender difference in impulsivity; and (3) trait masculinity fully accounted for the gender differences in snooping and drinking. Additionally, Study 2 showed that gender role attitudes but not gender role traits accounted for the gender difference in self-control. These findings suggest that gender role traits and attitudes all make important but different contributions to the gender differences in self-control, impulsivity, and impulsive behaviors.