Gender Role Violations and the Sexual Double Standard

Abstract

The sexual double standard (SDS) suggests that women are evaluated negatively and men positively for engaging in similar sexual behaviors. According to social role theory, the SDS exists due to gender role structures. Consequently, perceived violations of women's sexual behavior are associated with the SDS. In addition to gender role violations of sexual behavior, two additional violations of gender roles exist: heterosexual sexual orientation norms and gender role characteristics. The current study aims to investigate whether the SDS persists for sexual orientation-violating and gender role characteristic-violating targets, and to examine which of the three gender role violations influence evaluations of others' sexual behavior. A U.S. sample of 483 participants evaluated target individuals who were either female or male, heterosexual/gay man or lesbian, feminine or masculine, and had 1 or 12 sexual partners. Results indicate that SDS persists for gender role-violating targets but is exhibited differently for targets violating heterosexual sexual orientation norms and gender role characteristics.

Evolved health psychology

“…This finding is in line with work showing that promiscuous people are perceived as potentially sexually unfaithful (Bailey, Kirk, Zhu, Dunne, & Martin, 2000), and as less desirable partners or close friends (Bleske & Schackelford, 2001). While a large body of evidence suggests that negativity towards promiscuity may be qualified by a sexual 'double standard ' (e.g., Sagebin Bordini & Sperb, 2013;Zaikman, Marks, Young, & Zeiber, 2016), we did not find such moderating effects of target gender in our sample and on the current measures.…”

He is a Stud, She is a Slut! A Meta-Analysis on the Continued Existence of Sexual Double Standards

“…Therefore, based on evolutionary theory we expect SDS to be most prevalent for these specific behaviors and less for other sexual behaviors, such as premarital sex in committed relationships, or sexual coercion. It is important to realize that sexual behaviors are not limited to the context of reproduction, because use of condoms and contraceptives can prevent actual impregnation, but rather evolutionary processes can be viewed as general tendencies underlying sexual behavior (Zaikman & Marks, 2017).…”

“…The present analysis focuses on (hetero)sexual double standards (SDS), in which different sexual behaviors are expected of, and valued for, men and women (Emmerink, Vanwesenbeeck, et al, 2016;Zaikman & Marks, 2017). Traditionally, men/boys are expected to be sexually active, dominant, and the initiator of (hetero)sexual activity, whereas women/girls are expected to be sexually reactive, submissive, and passive.…”

“…However, research is inconsistent about the continued existence and extent of SDS (for narrative reviews, see Bordini & Sperb, 2013;Crawford & Popp, 2003;Zaikman & Marks, 2017), which might be due to, among other reasons, differences between the studies in the conceptualization and measurement of SDS. Because of the negative implications of SDS for men and women, it is important to illuminate whether SDS still exist.…”

Thinking as the others do: persistence and conformity of sexual double standard among young Italians

“…Similar conclusions are reached by Lefkowitz et al (2014): US undergraduate students who exhibit conventional stereotyped beliefs about gender roles endorse a stronger DS regarding the use of condoms by women and for multipartner relations than students with a more egalitarian vision of gender roles. In the same vein, Zaikman et al (2016) interview 483 US adults, proposing examples of gender role violations regarding sexual behaviours; their results show the emergence of a stronger DS when traditional roles are violated than when they are observed. All these studies relate the existence and the strength of a sexual DS surrounding the individual image of gender roles; thus, in a sense, the same individual is observed from two different perspectives.…”