Variation in the application of the "promiscuous female" stereotype and the nature of the application domain: influences on sexual harassment judgments after exposure to the Jerry Springer Show

Sex Roles: A Journal of Research,  April, 2005  by Tara Ferguson,  Jeff Berlin,  Erica Noles,  James Johnson,  William Reed,  C. Vincent Spicer

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Social scientists have devoted an extensive amount of attention to the theoretical and practical consequences of exposure to various types of stereotypical trait information. Mere exposure to a symbol or representative of a social category can be sufficient to activate stereotypic associations, often without awareness or attention (Bargh, 1988). Current theorists, however, emphasize a distinction between stereotype activation and stereotype application. Activation refers to the enhanced accessibility of stereotype-associated information, whereas application refers to the use of this stereotypical information in making dispositional inferences. In this study we assessed whether media-based stereotype activation (through exposure to a few media-based promiscuous women) of the promiscuous female stereotype may lead to the application (i.e., the use of stereotypical traits in making dispositional attributions) of the stereotype to other women.

Although activation of the stereotype tends to occur automatically by exposure to stereotype-associated stimuli (Bargh, Chen, & Burrows, 1996; Devine, 1989; Lepore & Brown, 1997), there is strong evidence that there tends to be variation in stereotype application. For example, Ryan, Judd, and Park (1996) demonstrated that individual variation in group stereotypicality perceptions (i.e., the extent of the belief that a stereotyped group possesses stereotypical traits) is directly related to stereotype application to individual stereotyped group members. In addition, there is evidence that stereotype application can be inhibited when individuals are motivated to be nonprejudiced (Devine & Monteith, 1993; Monteith, 1996) or egalitarian (Macrae, Bodenhausen, & Milne, 1998). Although previous research has documented the tendency for variation in stereotype application, there has not been an assessment of the consequences of such variation for subsequent perceptual and evaluative operations. It is possible that variations in stereotype application may mediate the impact of stereotype activation on subsequent responses. To address this limitation in the stereotyping literature, the major purpose of this study was to investigate directly whether the influence of activation of the promiscuous female stereotype on subsequent judgments of sexual aggression would be mediated by variation in the application of the stereotype to the victim of sexual aggression. In addition, we (a) considered how the mass media, in this case a popular television show, can prime and activate sexual stereotypes of women and (b) further examined how contextual factors, such as the nature of the perceptual domain (i.e., judgments of scenarios that involved sexual harassment), might moderate the impact of stereotype activation.

Promiscuous Female Stereotypes and the Media

Social scientists, media critics, and the general public have expressed considerable concern regarding the negative consequences of exposure to various media images of women. For example, there is evidence that exposure to stereotypical media images can elicit body dissatisfaction in women (Cash, Cash, & Butters, 1983; Fouts & Burggraf, 1999, 2000; Fouts & Vaughan, 2002; Irving, 1990; Lont, 1995; Stice, Schupak-Neuburg, Shaw, & Stein, 1994; Stice & Shaw, 1994) and perpetuate the endorsement of gender stereotypic beliefs in both men and women (Beuf, 1974; Lont, 1995; Meyers, 1999; Seidman, 1992). The area of concern most germane to this study is the consequences of exposure to media depictions that emphasize women's sexuality. Previous investigations have shown that women tend to be portrayed as sex objects in advertisements (Hall & Crum, 1994; Knight & Giuliano, 2001; Rossi & Rossi, 1985; Rudman & Borgida, 1995; Rudman & Hagiwara, 1992) and music videos (Emerson, 2002; Sherman & Dominick, 1986). In addition, Lavine, Sweeney, and Wagner (1999) demonstrated the propensity of the media to portray scantily clad women posing as decorative objects.

The results of a number of empirical investigations seem to indicate that the concerns regarding the media's sexual portrayals of women are warranted. In early research. Zillmann and Bryant (1982) assessed the consequences of large amounts of exposure to pornography that featured sexually submissive women. The findings indicated that, relative to controls, participants exposed to massive amounts of such pornography tended to be more callous toward women and were more likely to trivialize rape. Allen, Emmers, and Gebhardt (1995) extended the research in this area by demonstrating that nonviolent pornography also can also influence subsequent perceptions of sexual aggression. Finally, in an assessment of the consequences of exposure to nonpornographic sexual depictions of women, Johnson, Adams. Ashburn, and Reed (1995) exposed both male and female adolescents to rap videos that featured women in sexually subordinate and promiscuous roles. Their findings indicated that such exposure led to increased acceptance of dating violence against adolescent girls.