Abstract
This study examined 104 undergraduate college students (mean age = 19) from the Western United States regarding gender differences in their experiences of gender prejudice. Women (N = 81) and men (N = 22) responded to an online diary for 14 days, resulting in 1008 descriptions of events. Women reported significantly higher levels of negative affect than men during the experiences. Qualitative content analysis was used to analyze event descriptions and three main themes emerged including target of the event, perpetrator and setting. Significant differences were found for target and perpetrator based upon the gender of the participant. There were also significant differences in the distribution of the type of event (gender role stereotypes, sexual objectification or demeaning events) based on the setting and target.
References
Alexander, S. M. (2003). Stylish hard bodies: branded masculinity in men’s health magazine. Sociological Perspectives, 46, 535–554.
Aubrey, J. S. (2007). The impact of sexually objectifying media exposure on negative body emotions and sexual self-perceptions: Investigating the mediating role of body self-consciousness. Mass Communication & Society, 10, 1–23.
Barickman, R., Paludi, M., & Rabinowitz, V. C. (1992). Sexual harassment of students: Victims of the college experience. In E. Viano (Ed.), Critical issues in victimology: International perspectives (pp. 153–165). New York: Springer.
Baron, R. S., Burgess, M. L., & Kao, C. F. (1991). Detecting and labeling prejudice: Do female perpetrators go undetected? Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 17, 115–123.
Bretl, D.J., & Cantor, J. (1988). The portrayal of men and women in U.S. television commercials: A recent content analysis and trends over 15 years. Sex Roles, 18, 595–609.
Brinkman, B. G., & Rickard, K. M. (2009). Factors related to college women's responses to gender prejudice. responses considered and reasons given for not responding: Manuscript submitted for publication.
Broverman, I. K., Vogel, S. R., Broverman, D. M., Clarkson, F. E., & Rosenkrantz, P. S. (1972). Sex role stereotypes: A current appraisal. The Journal of Social Issues, 28, 59–78.
Calogero, R. (2004). A test of objectification theory: The effect of male gaze on appearance concerns in college women. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 28, 16–21.
Carr, P. L., Ash, A. S., Friedman, R. H., Szalacha, L., Barnett, R. C., Palepu, A., et al. (2000). Faculty perceptions of gender discrimination and sexual harassment in academic medicine. Annals of Internal Medicine, 132, 889–896.
Cleary, J. S., Schmieler, C. R., Parascenzo, I. C., & Ambrosio, N. (1994). Sexual harassment of college students: Implications for campus health promotion. Journal of American College Health, 43, 3–10.
Chekroun, P., & Brauer, M. (2002). The bystander effect and social control behavior: The effect of the presence of others on people’s reactions to norm violations. European Journal of Social Psychology, 32, 853–867.
Cortina, L., Swan, R. J., Fitzgerald, L., & Waldo, C. (1998). Sexual harassment and assault: Chilling the climate for women in academia. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 22, 419–441.
Cournoyer, R. J., & Mahalik, J. R. (1995). Cross-sectional study of gender role conflict examining college-aged and middle-aged men. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 42, 11–19.
Crosby, F. (1984). The denial of personal discrimination. The American Behavioral Scientist, 27, 371–386.
Dansky, B., & Kilpatrick, D. (1997). Effects of sexual harassment. In W. O’Donohue (Ed.), Sexual harassment: Theory, research and treatment (pp. 152–174). Needham Heights, MA: Allyn & Bacon.
Deaux, K., & Lewis, L. L. (1984). Structure of gender stereotypes: Interrelationships among components and gender label. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 46, 991–1004.
De Souza, E., & Solberg, J. (2004). Women's and men's reactions to man-to-man sexual harassment: Does the sexual orientation of the victim matter? Sex Roles, 50, 623–639.
Dietz-Uhler, B., & Murrell, A. (1992). College students’ perceptions of sexual harassment: Are gender differences decreasing? Journal of College Student Development, 33, 540–546.
Eckes, T., & Trautner, H. M. (eds). (2000). The developmental social psychology of gender. Mahwah, NJ: Lawrence Erlbaum Associates.
Fineran, S. (2002). Adolescents at work: Gender issues and sexual harassment. Violence Against Women, 8, 953–967.
Fiske, S. T., & Stevens, L. E. (1993). What's so special about sex? Gender stereotypes and discrimination. In S. Oskamp & M. Costanzo (Eds.), Gender issues in contemporary society. Claremont Symposium on Applied Social Psychology (pp. 173–196). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
Fitzgerald, L., & Swan, S. (1995). Why didn't she just report him? The psychological and legal implications of women's responses to sexual harassment. The Journal of Social Issues, 51, 117–138.
Folkman, S., Lazarus, R., Dunkel-Schetter, C., DeLongis, A., & Gruen, R. J. (1986). Dynamics of a stressful encounter: Cognitive appraisal, coping and encounter outcomes. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 50, 992–1003.
Fredrickson, B. L., & Roberts, T. (1997). Objectification theory: Toward understanding women’s lived experiences and mental health risks. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 21, 173–206.
Glaser, B. G., & Strauss, A. L. (1967). The discovery of grounded theory: strategies for qualitative research. Chicago: Aldine.
Glick, P., Fiske, S. T., Mladinic, A., Saiz, J. L., Abrams, D., Masser, B., et al. (2000). Beyond prejudice as simple antipathy: Hostile and benevolent sexism across cultures. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 79, 763–775.
Groesz, L. M., Levine, M. P., & Murnen, S. K. (2002). The effect of experimental presentation of think media images on body satisfaction: A meta-analytic review. The International Journal of Eating Disorders, 31, 1–16.
Gruber, J. E. (1998). The impact of male work environments and organizational policies on women’s experiences of sexual harassment. Gender & Society, 12, 301–320.
Harper, S. R., Harris, F., & Mmeje, K. C. (2005). A theoretical model to explain the overrepresentation of college men among campus judicial offenders: Implications for campus administrators. NASPA Journal, 42, 565–588.
Harrison, K., & Fredrickson, B.L. (2003). Women’s sports media, self-objectification and mental health in black and white adolescent females. The Journal of Communication, (June), 216–232.
Hebl, M. R., King, E. B., & Lin, J. (2004). The swimsuit becomes us all: Ethnicity, gender and vulnerability to self-objectification. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 30, 1322–1331.
Hyers, L. L. (2007). Resisting prejudice every day: Exploring women’s assertive responses to anti-black racism, anti-semitism, heterosexism, and sexism. Sex Roles, 56, 1–12.
Irving, L. M., & Berel, S. R. (2001). Comparison of media-literacy programs to strengthen college women's resistance to media images. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 25, 103–111.
Kaiser, C. R., & Miller, C. T. (2004). A stress and coping perspective on confronting sexism. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 28, 168–178.
Kalof, L., Eby, K. K., Matheson, J. L., & Kroska, R. J. (2001). The influence of race and gender on student self-reports of sexual harassment by college professors. Gender & Society, 15, 282–302.
Krieger, N., Waterman, C. H., Bates, L. M., Stoddard, A., Quinne, M. M., Sorensen, G., et al. (2006). Social hazards on the job: Workplace abuse, sexual harassment, and racial discrimination- A study of black, latino, and white low-income women and men workers in the United States. International Journal of Health Services, 36, 51–85.
Krueger, J., & Rothbart, M. (1988). Use of categorical and individuating information in making inferences about personality. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 55, 187–195.
Larson, M. S. (2003). Gender, race, and aggression in television commercials that feature children. Sex Roles, 48, 67–75.
Latane´, B., & Darley, J. M. (1968). Group inhibition of bystander intervention in emergencies. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 10, 215–221.
Latane´, B., & Darley, J. M. (1970). The unresponsive bystander: Why doesn’t he help?. New York: Appleton-Century-Crofts.
Lauren, M. M., & Dozier, D. M. (2002). Maintaining the double standard: Portrayals of age and gender in popular films. Sex Roles, 52, 437–446.
Lee, V. E., Croninger, R. G., Linn, R., & Chen, X. (1996). The culture of sexual harassment in secondary schools. American Educational Research Journal, 33, 383–417.
Lott, B. (1995). Distancing from women: interpersonal sexist discrimination. In B. Lott & D. Maluso (Eds.), Combating sexual harassment in higher education (pp. 229–244). Washington, DC: National Education Association.
Magely, V. J., Hulin, C. L., Fitzgerald, L. F., & DeNardo, M. (1999). Outcomes of self-labeling sexual harassment. The Journal of Applied Psychology, 84, 390–402.
Mazer, D. B., & Percival, E. F. (1989). Students' experiences of sexual harassment at a small university. Sex Roles, 20, 1573–2762.
McKinley, N. M. (1998). Gender differences in undergraduates’ body esteem: The mediating effect of objectified body consciousness and actual/ideal weight discrepancy. Sex Roles, 39, 113–123.
Morry, M. M., & Staska, S. L. (2001). Magazine exposure: Internalization, self-objectification, eating attitudes, and body satisfaction in male and female university students. Canadian Journal of Behavioural Science, 33, 269–279.
Noll, S., & Fredrickson, B. (1998). A mediational model linking self-objectification, body shame and disordered eating. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 22, 623–636.
O’Neil, J. M. (1981). Male sex role conflicts, sexism, and masculinity: Psychological implications for men, women, and the counseling psychologist. The Counseling Psychologist, 9, 61–80.
O’Neil, J. M., Good, G., & Holmes, S. (1995). Fifteen years of theory and research on men’s gender role conflict: new paradigms for empirical research. In R. F. Levant & W. S. Pollack (Eds.), A new psychology of men (pp. 164–206). New York, NY: Basic Books.
Paludi, M., & Barickman, R. (1991). Academic and workplace sexual harassment: A resource manual. New York, NY: SUNY.
Pope, H. G., Olivardia, R., Gruber, A., & Borowiecki, J. (1999). Evolving ideals of male body image as seen through action toys. The International Journal of Eating Disorders, 26, 65–72.
Popovich, P. M., Licata, B. J., Nokovich, D., Martelli, T., & Zoloty, S. (1986). Assessing the incidence and perception of sexual harassment behaviors among American undergraduates. The Journal of Psychology, 120, 387–396.
Prentice, D. A., & Carranza, E. (2002). What women and men should be, shouldn’t be, are allowed to be, and don’t have to be: The contents of prescriptive gender stereotypes. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 26, 269–281.
Rajecki, D. W., Dame, J. A., Creek, K. J., Barrickman, P. J., & Reid, C. A. (1993). Gender casting in television toy advertisements: Distributions, message content analysis, and evaluations. Journal of Consumer Psychology, 2, 307–327.
Reilly, M. E., Lott, B., & Gallogly, S. M. (1986). Sexual harassment of university students. Sex Roles, 15, 333–358.
Roberts, T.-A., & Gettman, J. (2004). Mere exposure: Gender differences in the negative effects of priming on a state of self-objectification. Sex Roles, 51, 17–27.
Rodin, M. J., Price, J. M., Bryson, J. B., & Sanchez, F. J. (1990). Asymmetry in prejudice attribution. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 26, 481–504.
Runtz, M. G., & O’Donnell, C. W. (2003). Students’ perceptions of sexual harassment: Is it harassment only if the offender is a man and the victim is a woman? Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 5, 963–982.
Schmitt, M. T., Branscombe, N. R., Kobrynowicz, D., & Owen, S. (2002). Perceiving discrimination against one’s gender group has different implications for well-being in women and men. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 28, 197–210.
Shepela, S. T., & Levesque, L. L. (1998). Poisoned waters: Sexual harassment and the college climate. Sex Roles, 38, 589–611.
Signorielli, N., & Bacue, A. (1999). Recognition and respect: A content analysis of primetime television characters across three decades. Sex Roles, 40, 527–544.
Slater, A., & Tiggeman, M. (2002). A test of objectification theory in adolescent girls. Sex Roles, 46, 343–349.
Spence, J. T., & Buckner, C. E. (2000). Instrumental and expressive traits, trait stereotypes and sexist attitudes. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 24, 44–62.
Stangor, C., Swim, J. K., Sechrist, G. B., Decoster, J., VanAllen, K. L., & Ottenbreit, A. (2003). Ask, answer, and announce: Three stages in perceiving and responding to discrimination. European Review of Social Psychology, 14, 277–311.
Swim, J. K., Cohen, L. L., & Hyers, L. L. (1998). Experiencing everyday prejudice and discrimination. In J. K. Swim & C. Stangor (Eds.), Prejudice: the target’s perspective (pp. 37–60). San Diego, CA: Academic.
Swim, J. K., Hyers, L. L., Cohen, L. L., & Ferguson, M. L. (2001). Everyday sexism: evidence for its incidence, nature, and psychological impact from three daily diary studies. The Journal of Social Issues, 57, 31–53.
Taylor, D. M., Wright, S. C., & Porter, L. E. (1994). Dimensions of perceived discrimination: The personal/group discrimination discrepancy. In M. P. Zanna & J. M. Olson (Eds.), The psychology of prejudice: The Ontario Symposium, 7 (pp. 233–255). Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum.
van Roosmalen, E., & McDaniel, S. A. (1998). Sexual harassment in academia: A hazard to women’s health. Women & Health, 28, 33–54.
Vorauer, J. D., & Kumhyr, S. M. (2001). Is this about you or me? Self-versus other-directed judgments and feelings in response to intergroup interaction. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 27, 706–719.
Watson, D., Clark, L. A., & Tellegen, A. (1988). Development and validation of brief measures of positive and negative affect: The PANAS scales. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 54, 1063–1070.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Appendices
Appendix A
Online diary
Date:Time:
Please indicate the number of times you experienced each incident today. The incident may have happened to you specifically or to another person in your presence. If none, leave blank.
-
1.
___ Heard comments that members of your gender should behave in a certain way or that they should posses particular personality characteristics (women should be “feminine” and men should be “masculine”)
-
2.
___ Experienced unwanted sexual behaviors (pinched, slapped, touched in a sexual way)
-
3.
___ Called a demeaning or degrading label such as slut, bitch, player, etc.
-
4.
___ Heard sexist jokes about members of your gender.
-
5.
___ Were the target of unwanted sexual gestures (masturbation gesturing, etc)
-
6.
___ Heard comments that certain roles or jobs are NOT suitable for members of your gender.
-
7.
___ Ignored in a conversation by members of the opposite sex.
-
8.
___ Heard unwanted sexual comments, whistles, or “catcalls”.
-
9.
___ Heard comments that members of your gender possess lower levels of ability compared to members of the opposite sex.
-
10.
___ Felt like your opinions carried less weight than the opinion of a member of the opposite sex.
-
11.
___ Exposed to media (magazines, TV, music, etc.) that portrayed members of your gender as sexual objects.
-
12.
___ Heard comments that certain jobs or roles are ONLY suitable for members of your gender.
-
13.
___ Heard comments that expressed hostile or negative attitudes toward members of your gender.
-
14.
___ Felt like you were being checked out, ogled, or leered at.
-
15.
___ Exposed to media (magazines, TV, music) that portrayed members of your gender in traditional roles (women as caregivers, men as leaders, etc)
If you indicated that you experienced one of the above, please answer the following questions. If you experienced more than one, please choose the one that you felt was most distressful. If you did not experience any of the above events, please write about a stressful event that you did have today.
1. Describe the event.
Appendix B
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Brinkman, B.G., Rickard, K.M. College Students’ Descriptions of Everyday Gender Prejudice. Sex Roles 61, 461–475 (2009). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-009-9643-3
Received:
Accepted:
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11199-009-9643-3