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Beyond Sexist Beliefs

Year: 2015

Type: article

Abstract: When people use generic masculine language instead of more gender-inclusive forms, they communicate gender stereotypes and sometimes exclusion of women from certain social roles. Past research related gender-inclusive language use to sexist beliefs and attitudes. Given that this aspect of language use may be transparent to users, it is unclear whether people explicitly act on these beliefs when using gender-exclusive language forms or whether these are more implicit, habitual patterns. In two studies with German-speaking participants, we showed that spontaneous use of gender-inclusive personal nouns is guided by explicitly favorable intentions as well as habitual processes involving past use of such language. Further indicating the joint influence of deliberate and habitual processes, Study 2 revealed that language-use intentions are embedded in explicit sexist ideologies. As anticipated in our decision-making model, the effects of sexist beliefs on language emerged through deliberate mechanisms involving attitudes and intentions.

Source: Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin

DOI: 10.1177/0146167215585727

Authors: Sabine Sczesny, Franziska Moser, Wendy Wood

Institutions: University of Bern, FHNW University of Applied Sciences and Arts Northwestern Switzerland, University of Southern California

Language: English

Topic: Gender Studies in Language

Subfield: Gender Studies

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

SDGs: Gender equality, Reduced inequalities

Open Access status: green

OpenAlex ID: W1689399907

FWCI: 13.22

Cites: 47

Cited by: 117

Related to: 10