In the development of the Bem Sex Role Inventory (BSRI) the phrase "more desirable in American society" was used in the final item selection. To clarify whether subjects tended to interpret this phrase normatively or prescriptively, a sample of 432 college men and women used the items of the BSRI to describe either a typical (normative), desirable (as in the Bem), or ideal (the prescriptive should) man or woman. The results indicate that the items selected by Bem seem to represent what subjects believe should characterize a woman or man in our society rather than what typically describes them. Recommendations are made for using the masculine and feminine components of the androgyny score in addition to the androgyny score itself. (Author)