A new study, which is the largest of its kind, has found that sexism not only perpetuates gender inequality but is also linked to a range of negative outcomes, including reduced economic productivity, anti-democratic views, increased violence, and poorer health globally.
The research, published in the journal Social Psychological and Personality Science, was led by Dr Magdalena Zawisza of Anglia Ruskin University (ARU) and involved data from 29,518 participants across 62 countries.
The study investigated both hostile sexism, defined as antagonism towards women who defy the status quo, for example women in power, and benevolent sexism, characterised by patronising attitudes and the promotion of traditional gender roles.
Participants rated statements such as “women should be cherished and protected by men” (to test for benevolent sexism) and “women seek to gain power by getting control over men” (testing hostile sexism).
The findings reveal that men generally endorsed both forms of sexism more than women. However, at a national level, while women’s average hostile sexism was lower than men’s, indicating resistance, within countries where men scored higher on hostile sexism, women typically endorse benevolent sexism more.
This supports a dynamic within ambivalent sexism theory known as the “protection racket”, where women’s fear of hostility from men leads them to endorse benevolent sexism that falsely promises male protection, idealisation and affection.
National benevolent sexism averages correlated with attitudes accepting intimate violence toward women, measured through the OECD’s Violence Against Women Index, fewer women in paid work and a larger gender gap in domestic labour.
Three UK nations – England, Wales and Northern Ireland – were included in the study, and all three featured among the least sexist nations.
English men had the 19th lowest hostile sexism score and the 14th lowest benevolent sexism score, out of 62 nations. Welsh men were the 16th lowest for hostile sexism and 9th lowest for benevolent sexism, while Northern Irish males ranked 17th lowest for hostile sexism and 10th lowest for benevolent sexism.
The sexism scores were also looked at alongside national indicators affecting both genders, including World Bank GDP figures, OECD employment rates and World Health Organisation life expectancy data.
The results found that national averages of hostile sexism and benevolent sexism were associated with negative social outcomes affecting both genders such as lower economic productivity, more anti-democratic tendencies, greater collective violence, and shorter healthy lifespans.
Lead author Dr Magdalena Zawisza, Associate Professor in Consumer and Gender Psychology at Anglia Ruskin University (ARU), said: “Our study shows that gender equality appears to benefit everyone, regardless of gender.
“Countries with higher levels of sexism experience various social issues including lower economic productivity, greater conflict and less democratic political systems, right through to poorer health outcomes for both women and men.
“Interestingly, these are related not only to overt, hostile expressions of sexism but also to the more subtle, patronising attitudes that supposedly, and falsely, promise idealisation, protection and affection to women.
“Considering our findings, it’s clear that everyone – women, men and national governments – has a vested interest in supporting gender equality for the benefit of all.”
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