Affiliation:
1. Baylor University, Waco, TX, USA
Abstract
Social mattering refers to an individual’s perceived sense of significance in the world and is a key aspect of overall mental health. Using data from a representative survey of adult Americans, we test the extent to which societal-level status, community engagement, group memberships, and interpersonal attachments affect men’s and women’s sense of mattering. We find that women gain social significance to the extent that they feel attached to others interpersonally, in terms of romantic relationships, parenthood, friendships, and closeness to family. Men’s sense of mattering is significantly influenced by broader social factors, like their strength of attachment to the Republican Party, their social media use, and their ability to donate money to the community. These differences suggests that gender norms lead men to also seek significance from the broader community and through group memberships while women rely mainly on their close social ties to feel like they matter.
Subject
Sociology and Political Science
Cited by
11 articles.
订阅此论文施引文献
订阅此论文施引文献,注册后可以免费订阅5篇论文的施引文献,订阅后可以查看论文全部施引文献