A Crisis of Competence: Benevolent Sexism Affects Evaluations of Women’s Competence

Sex Roles - People higher in benevolent sexism often outwardly endorse gender equality, but support men over women for challenging positions and experiences. Reflecting shifting standards (a...     

Embodied Discrimination: The Relation of Sexism and Distress to Women’s Drinking and Smoking Behaviors

Discrimination has been conceptualized as a stressor that may be more negative than generic stress because it is tied to valued and unchangeable social identities. As with other stressful events, the experience of sexism has been related to poorer mental health and some physical health outcomes. This study of 179 female college students (79% of whom were White) showed that the relation between perceived sexism and binge drinking and smoking was mediated by psychological distress. In addition, there was a direct relation between sexism and smoking for weight control. Given the large toll that tobacco and excessive alcohol use exact on the U.S. population, we suggest that policy makers aim to reduce discrimination as one method to improve overall health.     

The Effect of Simultaneous Exercise and Exposure to Thin-Ideal Music Videos on Women’s State Self-Objectification, Mood and Body Satisfaction

The present study examined the simultaneous impact of thin-ideal music videos and exercise on state self-objectification, mood and body satisfaction, in order to assess whether exercise can ameliorate the usually found negative effects of appearance-focused media. One-hundred and eighty-four South Australian undergraduate women viewed appearance-focused or neutral music videos, with half in each condition simultaneously participating in a bout of exercise or in quiet rest. Participants completed pre- and post- state measures of mood, body satisfaction and self-objectification. As expected, exposure to appearance-focused music videos produced increased state self-objectification in comparison to neutral images. For body satisfaction, an interaction emerged for the dimension of physical attractiveness, whereby women who exercised and watched appearance-focused video clips felt more attractive than women watching the same clips who did not exercise, and felt no less attractive than women who watched neutral clips. The findings demonstrate that thin-ideal music videos serve to increase state self-objectification, but that exercise can ameliorate the negative effects of idealized media images on women’s feelings of physical attractiveness.     

Allies Against Sexism: The Impact of Men’s Egalitarian Versus Paternalistic Confrontation on Women’s Empowerment and Well-Being

Sex Roles - Men as advantaged group members can be involved in actions against inequality. But how do women experience men’s confrontation of sexism? We examine how women perceive men’s...     

Social Perception of Rape Victims in Dating and Married Relationships: The Role of Perpetrator’s Benevolent Sexism

Two hypothetical scenario studies examined how situational, perpetrator, and observer factors affect blame towards rape victims. In Study 1, Spanish high school students (N?=?206) read about a rape committed by a boyfriend or husband who was described as benevolently sexist or not. Study 2 (N?=?201 British college students) replicated and extended Study 1 by adding a condition in which the rapist was described as a hostile sexist. In both studies, participants’ benevolent sexism scores predicted more victim blame when the rapist was described as a husband (but not a boyfriend) who held benevolently sexist attitudes. Study 2 showed that participants’ hostile sexism scores predicted more victim blame when the rapist was described as a hostile sexist.     

Cheers to Equality! Both Hostile and Benevolent Sexism Predict Increases in College Women’s Alcohol Consumption

Sex Roles - Based on research suggesting that alcohol consumption can be used as a means of coping with negative affect (Cooper et al. 1995), the current study examines sexism as a factor in...     

Your Sexism Predicts My Sexism: Perceptions of Men’s (but not Women’s) Sexism Affects One’s Own Sexism Over Time

The effects of perceived normative (societal) levels of benevolent (BS) and hostile sexism (HS) on one’s own sexist attitudes were examined over a four-month period in an undergraduate New Zealand sample (76 women, 26 men). Perceptions of normative levels of men’s BS produced longitudinal change in one’s own BS, and this effect was invariant across gender. However, contrary to previous research suggesting that women endorse BS when men are high in HS for its protective benefits, women instead expressed subjectively positive paternalistic attitudes toward their gender to the extent that they perceived BS as normative in men. The transmission of patriarchical-defined ideologies is tempered by the degree to which such ideologies espouse benevolent versus more overtly hostile attitudes toward women.     

Bystander Sexism in the Intergroup Context: The Impact of Cat-calls on Women’s Reactions Towards Men

Despite the fact that sexism is an inherently intergroup phenomenon, women’s group-level responses to sexism have received relatively little empirical attention. We examine the intergroup reactions experienced by 114 female students at a U.S. university in New England who imagined being a bystander to a sexist cat-call remark or control greeting. Results indicate that women experienced greater negative intergroup emotions and motivations towards the outgroup of men after overhearing the cat-call remark. Further, the experience of group-based anger mediated the relationship between the effect of study condition on the motivation to move against, or oppose, men. Results indicate that bystanders can be affected by sexism and highlights how the collective groups of men and women can be implicated in individual instances of sexism.     

Benevolent Sexism, Perceived Health Risks, and the Inclination to Restrict Pregnant Women��s Freedoms

The present study investigated the role of sexist ideology in perceptions of health risks during pregnancy and willingness to intervene on pregnant women??s behavior. Initially, 160 female psychology undergraduates in the South East of England completed the Ambivalent Sexism Inventory (Glick and Fiske 1996). Two months later, in an apparently unrelated study, they rated the safety of 45 behaviours during pregnancy (e.g., drinking alcohol, exercising, drinking tap water, and oral sex), and indicated their willingness to restrict pregnant women??s choices (e.g., by refusing to serve soft cheese or alcohol). As predicted, benevolent (but not hostile) sexism was related to willingness to restrict pregnant women??s choices. This effect was partially mediated by the perception that various behaviors are unsafe during pregnancy.     

The Impact of Film Manipulation on Men’s and Women’s Attitudes Toward Women and Film Editing

The purpose of this study was to examine the effect of film manipulation on men’s and women’s attitudes toward women and film editing. One hundred and seventy-four participants were randomly assigned to one of four groups. Three groups viewed a particular manipulation of the treatment film (i.e., uncut, mosaic-ed, or edited) The Accused, a movie about gang rape that was based on a true story. The fourth group served as a control. As predicted, men reported significantly higher levels of traditionalism and rape myth acceptance-related attitudes at the onset of the study, whereas women reported higher levels of empathic attitudes. Following the study, and as expected, women experienced significantly more attitude change as a result of viewing the treatment film; men’s rape myth-related attitudes nonetheless continued to exceed those of women. Finally, men’s positive attitudes toward favoring editing decreased as sexual violence increased, whereas women’s pro-editing attitudes increased as sexual violence increased. The theoretical implications of the study, as well as the impact of viewing sexual violence in a more reality-based, versus a more entertaining, forum are discussed.     

The Effect of Patronizing Behavior and Control on Men and Women’s Performance in Stereotypically Masculine Domains

The purpose of the present research was to examine whether contextual cues related to control contribute to gender differences in math performance that emerge from patronizing behavior. Specifically, in two experiments, men and women received patronizing behavior (i.e., praise paired with a devalued position that did not provide an opportunity for monetary rewards) from a male leader in a stereotypically masculine domain. In this context, we manipulated contextual control cues and measured math performance. In Experiment 1, 113 undergraduates (60 women, 53 men) from a Midwestern University in the United States received the patronizing behavior and all position assignments were made either at the outset (no control) or multiple times (ambiguous control) from one patronizing leader. In Experiment 2, 132 undergraduates (53 women, 79 men) from a U.S. Midwestern University received patronizing behavior and position assignments were made by one leader (ambiguous control) or multiple leaders (enhanced control). Consistent with Hypothesis 1, women had lower performance expectations than men, but no reliable gender differences emerged for desire to succeed. Consistent with Hypothesis 2, gender differences in math performance only emerged in the ambiguous control conditions in Experiment 1 and Experiment 2 with men performing better than women. Finally, consistent with Hypothesis 3, women performed better in the enhanced control (vs. ambiguous control), despite receiving patronizing behavior. Implications for research on patronizing behavior, subtle sexism, and stereotype threat, as well as directions for future research are discussed.     

Why Do Women Endorse Hostile and Benevolent Sexism? The Role of Salient Female Subtypes and Internalization of Sexist Contents

The present research aims to explain women’s endorsement of hostile and benevolent sexist beliefs. Based on a convenience sample of N?=?92 women in the general public in Germany, Study 1 demonstrated that women endorse hostile sexist beliefs when they do not think about themselves when completing the hostile sexism scale but about non-traditional female subtypes (feminists or career women). In contrast, women were more likely to agree with benevolent sexist beliefs the more they internalize these beliefs and the more they think about traditional subtypes (housewives) while completing the scale. A follow-up experimental study using a convenience sample of N?=?123 German women further demonstrated that these results depend on women’s identification with the respective subtypes.     

Racism and Sexism as Correlates of African American Women’s Psychological Distress

Historically, researchers have neglected the lives of African American women, and very little research has looked specifically at concurrent examinations of multiple oppressions associated with multiple minority identities as predictors of mental health. The current study aimed to increase our knowledge about African American women by examining the relations between external and internalized racism and sexism and African American women’s psychological distress. One hundred sixty participants were recruited through a number of United States’ organizations via the internet. Results indicated that when external and internalized oppression based on race and gender were examined concomitantly, only sexist events emerged as a positive predictor of distress.     

Do These Norms Make Me Look Fat? The Effect of Exposure to Others’ Body Preferences on Personal Body Ideals

In this study we examined the influence of normative body ideals in the form of perceived peer preferences on personal body ideals and body dissatisfaction Participants (N = 146 female college students) were exposed to the purported preferences of peers representing either relatively thin or heavy body ideals. Along with the normative body ideal manipulation, the gender of the purported peers was manipulated. Participants then selected their ideal for their own body and body dissatisfaction was measured. Women selected a thinner personal body ideal in the thin norm condition than in the heavy norm condition. This effect was seen irrespective of the gender of the purported peers. Body dissatisfaction was not influenced by the manipulation. The malleability of body image and the influence of social factors on ideal body size are discussed.     

How Gendered Attitudes Relate to Women’s and Men’s Sexual Behaviors and Beliefs

This study examines associations between endorsement of a sexual double standard, gender role attitudes, and sexual behaviors and beliefs. First year university students in the northeastern United States (N = 434; 52 % female; 33 % Black, 29 % Latino, 39 % White; ages 17–19) participated during their first year of college. Endorsement of a sexual double standard was associated with more conventionally gender-stereotyped sexual behaviors and beliefs, specifically, more sexual partners and fewer perceived barriers to condom use for young men, and more perceived barriers to condom use for young women. Women who were more conventional about men’s roles in society tended to use condoms less, whereas women who were more conventional about women’s roles tended to use condoms more. Men who were more conventional about men’s roles tended to have fewer sexual partners. Findings suggest the importance of examining gender’s role in sexual behaviors and beliefs by assessing multiple gendered attitudes, rather than simply considering biological sex.     

Effect of Body Image on Tunisian Women’s Sexual Functioning

The objective of this study was to identify the perception of body image by Tunisian women and their spouses and to examine its impact on female sexuality. Our study involved 300 Tunisian women who had been married for at least 1 year and consulted in primary care medicine during the months of June and July 2016. Each participant completed a questionnaire covering four areas: women’s perception of their body, the perception of the spouses of the latter as it was reported by the participants, sexual activity, and the impact of body perception on sexual activity. The participants were satisfied with their bodies in 51% of cases. This satisfaction was associated with perceiving the body as physically attractive (p?=?0.007), young (p?=?0.047) and as a source of confidence (p?<?0.001). Compared to women dissatisfied with their bodies, those satisfied declared satisfaction of sexual desire (p?=?0.005), reaching orgasm (p?=?0.001), taking the initiative in sexual activity (p?=?0.003) and preparation for sex (p?=?0.006). Perceived satisfaction of the partner with the female body was related to a more positive sexuality in women, specifically to women’s sexual satisfaction (p?=?0.018), women taking sexual initiative (p?=?0.014) and preparation for sex (p?=?0.001). Our study indicates the important impact of a positive perception of the body image of Tunisian women by themselves and by their spouses on their sexuality. It would be interesting to consider these aspects in the management of female sexual disorders.     

What Looks Like Sexism and Why? The Effect of Comment Type and Perpetrator Type on Women's Perceptions of Sexism

ABSTRACT. Sexist comments are not perceived equally in the eyes of women. We extend previous research by examining the degree to which multiple types of potentially sexist comments made by multiple types of men are perceived as sexist. Further, we examine the degree to which three possible mediators—prototypicality, perceived intent, and interdependence—explained these effects. Female undergraduate students (N = 248) were randomly assigned to read a scenario in which a hostile sexist, benevolent sexist, or objectifying comment was made by one of three types of men: a stranger, their boss, or their boyfriend. Results demonstrate that hostile sexism was perceived as more sexist than benevolent sexism or objectification. Comments made by boyfriends were also rated as less sexist than those made by bosses or strangers. Furthermore, perceptions of prototypicality of the comment or perpetrator and perceived intent to harm mediated the effect of study manipulations on perceptions of sexism.     

Sexism, Vocational Goals, and Motivation as Predictors of Men’s and Women’s Career Choice

In the present study we analyzed the impact of vocational goals, sexist attitudes toward women, and motivation on career choice, in a sample of 448 Spanish college students (65.2% women and 34.1% men). Although we found some similarities between men and women in terms of their motivational orientations (extrinsic vs. intrinsic) and vocational goals, men’s extrinsic motivations appear to differ depending on the college major. We also found differences in sexist attitudes toward women by gender and chosen major: both male and female students enrolled in technical majors reported the most sexist attitudes (both hostile and benevolent). These findings underline the importance of taking sexist attitudes toward women into account in attempts to explain gender differences in career choice, something which has been largely overlooked in the research to date.     

The Effect of Thin Ideal Media Images on Women’s Self-Objectification, Mood, and Body Image

Objectification theory (Fredrickson and Roberts, Psychology of Women Quarterly, 21, 173–206, 1997) contends that experiences of sexual objectification socialize women to engage in self-objectification. The present study used an experimental design to examine the effects of media images on self-objectification. A total of 90 Australian undergraduate women aged 18 to 35 were randomly allocated to view magazine advertisements featuring a thin woman, advertisements featuring a thin woman with at least one attractive man, or advertisements in which no people were featured. Participants who viewed advertisements featuring a thin-idealized woman reported greater state self-objectification, weight-related appearance anxiety, negative mood, and body dissatisfaction than participants who viewed product control advertisements. The results demonstrate that self-objectification can be stimulated in women without explicitly focusing attention on their own bodies.