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Sexism

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Encyclopedia of Adolescence

Overview

Recent research has left little doubt that most adolescents in the USA experience sexist acts from peers and adults (American Association of University Women [AAUW] 2011; Leaper and Brown 2014). As subsequently described, these experiences can affect their self-concepts, motivation, adjustment, and achievement. This review is organized into the following sections: First, sexism is defined. Second, factors related to increases in sexism during adolescence are summarized. Third, the prevalence and impact of two main forms of sexism – sexual harassment and gender bias – are discussed. Finally, factors associated with adolescents’ awareness of sexism and coping responses are considered.

What Is Sexism?

Sexism is a form of prejudice and discrimination based on a person’s gender (see Bigler and Liben 2007, for a developmental model of prejudice). Prejudice refers to biased attitudes, whereas discrimination refers to biased actions. Thus, a person who holds sexist attitudes may...

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, University of California, 277 Social Sciences 2, 1156 High Street, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064, USA

    Campbell Leaper

  2. University of Nevada at Las Vegas, Las Vegas, NV, USA

    Rachael D. Robnett

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  1. Campbell Leaper
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  2. Rachael D. Robnett
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Correspondence to Campbell Leaper or Rachael D. Robnett .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Indiana University, Bloomington, IN, USA

    Roger J. R. Levesque

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Leaper, C., Robnett, R.D. (2018). Sexism. In: Levesque, R.J.R. (eds) Encyclopedia of Adolescence. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-33228-4_226

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