Religious Mysticism and gender orientation

This study of 411 undergraduates utilized the short form of the Bem Sex Role Inventory (BSRI) and a modified version of the Hood Mysticism Scale (M-scale) to examine the relationship of gender orientation with mystical experience. The hypothesis - that participants classified on the BSRI as feminine or androgynous each would score significantly higher on mysticism than persons classified as masculine - was confirmed. The suggestion is made that persons who score high on mysticism are persons who have developed a feminine self-schema cognitive structure through which they process data in a way that emphasizes the unity of and identification with reality. The finding can be interpreted as lending support to theorists who argue for a constructivist understanding of the mystical experience.