Sandra Tangri, 66; Studied Women’s Entry Into the Work Force

Sandra Schwartz Tangri, 66, a professor of social psychology whose studies of women and their careers helped map changes in the American work force since the 1960s, died June 11 of lung cancer at her home in Bethesda, Md.

Tangri did pioneering research on the entry of college-educated women into jobs traditionally dominated by men. Her studies, including research on women’s motivations for choosing work and the effects of sexual harassment on their advancement, paralleled the growth of the women’s equality movement and continued into the 1990s.

Her book, “Women and Achievement,” dealing with the career paths of college-educated women, is considered one of the best in its field.

Born in St. Louis, Tangri was raised in East Los Angeles in a family that spoke mostly Yiddish at home. She attended Los Angeles City College and Reed College before graduating from UC Berkeley. She earned a master’s degree at Wayne State University and a PhD at the University of Michigan.

Tangri went to Washington, D.C., in the early 1970s to start a research office at the Commission on Civil Rights. She taught at Howard University from the late 1980s until she retired two years ago as emeritus professor.