What is Violence? The Role of Sexism and Social Dominance Orientation in Recognizing Violence Against Women

Abstract

Violence against women represents a global public health issue of epidemic proportions, as well as a gross violation of women’s human rights. It can take many forms, such as physical aggression, sexual coercion, psychological abuse, and controlling behaviors. The purpose of the study was to extend past research on recognition of violence against women within the framework of the ambivalent sexism theory and the social dominance orientation (SDO) theory. Specifically, we investigated the following: (a) to what extent different behaviors potentially harming women are recognized as a form of violence, and (b) whether gender, SDO, and sexist attitudes influence such recognition. Participants were 264 University students (43.1% males, M age = 23.09 years). They were asked to rate the extent to which several behaviors constituted violence against women. Participants’ sexism was assessed by the short version of the Ambivalent Sexism (ASI) and Ambivalence toward Men Inventory (AMI) scales and the SDO by the SDO Italian scale. Through a factor analysis, we individuated three different groups of behaviors harming women: Physical violence, unequivocally recognized as a form of violence; Limitation of freedom, containing behaviors restraining women’s action; and emotional abuse, encompassing verbally and emotionally aggressive behaviors. We tested the relations between variables through a structural equation model, finding that SDO and sexism had a direct effect on the recognition of violence, whereas the influence of gender was mediated by SDO and sexist attitudes. Thus, not gender per se, but gender-role attitudes that seem to affect recognition of some behaviors as a form of violence against women. Implications are discussed.

The Role of Ambivalent Sexism, Punitiveness, and Ability to Recognize Violence in the Perception of Sex Offenders: A Gender-Perspective Analysis

“…As seen from the results of descriptive statistics, men were more hostile and benevolent toward women, as well as more benevolent toward men when compared with women. These findings are consistent with previous research [59,66,67] and suggest that the endorsement of sexist attitudes differs according to gender. As sexism relegates women to hierarchically lower positions than those of men, it seems reasonable than men are more prone to sexist attitudes toward women.…”

“…[58] concluded that people who scored higher in benevolent sexism tended to excuse the rapist more often than those who scored lower in benevolent sexism. Along similar lines, since ambivalence toward men reinforces gender hierarchy by characterizing men as inherently powerful and aggressive while admiring their traditional roles [59], it is expected that these beliefs also influence perceptions about sex offenders. To our knowledge, no studies have examined the impact of ambivalent sexism as a moderator of the perceptions toward sex offenders.…”

“…Finally, since a recent study reveals that, in respect to women, men have a greater tendency to accept beliefs that justify the use of violence against women, perceive a narrower range of behaviors as violent, and see violent behaviors against women as less serious, damaging, or inappropriate [59], in the present study we have included two dimensions of the list of behaviors harming women [60] (limitation of freedom and emotional abuse) with the aim to examine the impact of the awareness about subtle forms of violence on the public perceptions about sex offenders.…”

“…Two dimensions of the List of Behaviors Harming Women [59,60]: Limitation of Freedom and Emotional Abuse. Limitation of Freedom includes 6 items investigat-ing participants' ability to recognize specific behaviors as restrictions to women's independence and autonomy (e.g., "Divesting a woman of her own earned money", Cronbach's α = 0.94).…”

Factors Related to Gender Violence and Sex Education in Adolescents: A Cross-Sectional Study

“…Indeed, they may even be present, albeit indirectly, in the health education received [ 20 ]. The assimilation of such ideas is the perfect breeding ground for the development of tolerance towards abuse, thus ensuring that historical levels of gender violence continue to be breached year after year [ 15 , 21 ] and blurring the lines between what adolescents consider to be abuse and that normal behavior [ 22 ].…”