Representations of Feminism and Strategies for Defending Male Hegemony in a Patriarchal Context: The Moderating Effect of Sociodemographic and Attitudinal Variables

Abstract

Many African societies apply patriarchy, an oppressive, authoritarian and discriminatory social system in which power rests with men, for regulating gender relations. However, with the socio-structural evolution of these societies, new ideological currents gradually change the mores of the citizens, among which feminism. This ideology aims for more equitable relations between the sexes, which implicitly means questioning the model of patriarchal societies and contesting male domination; hence its potential danger and the defense strategies that men could adopt to mitigate or even annihilate its impact. This research is interested not only in these strategies, but also in the factors which are their catalysts; a question which, to the best of our knowledge, is little explored in the African patriarchal context specifically. In this vein, the hypotheses it tests propose that, in the African patriarchal context, men’s sociodemographic characteristics, their feeling that male hegemony is threatened and their adherence to the patriarchal system interact with representations of feminism to explain the defensive strategies they develop to preserve their hegemony consecrated by patriarchy. To test these hypotheses, a survey was conducted among 554 male participants residing in the towns of Maroua and Dschang (Cameroon). Their ages range from 19 to 67 years (M= 24.61; SD= 7.10). They were administered various measurement scales relating to representations of feminism (α=.75), feeling of threat to male hegemony (α=.70), defense strategies (α=.76) and support to patriarchy (α=.76). The data collected provides empirical support for the hypotheses of the study.