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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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The ratings indicated that the promiscuity level was manipulated successfully. The raters believed that the women in the promiscuous behavior condition (M = 5.73) were more promiscuous than those in the nonpromiscuous behavior condition (M = 2.14), t(18) = 7.98, p < .001. In contrast, and as expected, the raters perceived no differences in the attractiveness of the women in the promiscuous (M = 3.5) and nonpromiscuous behavior clips (M = 3.8), t(18) = .99, p > .25. Finally, the rated interest levels for the promiscuous behavior clips (M = 2.93) and the nonpromiscuous behavior clips (M = 3.34) were not significantly different, t(18) = 1.32, p > .25.

Exposure Condition

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Consistent with previous research on sexual harassment (Baker, Terpstra, & Cutler, 1990; Bursik, 1992; Jones, Remland, & Brunner, 1987), our preliminary analysis indicated no significant main effects or interactions associated with participant gender on the dependent variables (i.e., trauma, attribution of responsibility). Consequently, participant gender was not included in the subsequent analysis. The main analysis involved a 2 (exposure condition: promiscuous behavior, nonpromiscuous behavior) X 3 (harassment type: verbal comment, verbal request, physical display) ANOVA.

This group of analyses assessed the impact of activation of the promiscuous female stereotype on subsequent perceptive and evaluative operations. As expected, promiscuity perceptions (M = 7.09) were greater in the promiscuous behavior condition than in the nonpromiscuous behavior condition (M = 2.28), F(1, 137) = 339.07, p < .001. In addition, those in the promiscuous behavior condition (M = 3.22) perceived less victim trauma than did those in the nonpromiscuous behavior condition (M = 4.39), F(1, 133) = 9.20, p <.001. Finally, those in the promiscuous behavior condition (M = 4.92) attributed greater responsibility to the victim than did those in the nonpromiscuous behavior condition (M = 3.51), F(1, 133) = 10.17, p < .01.

Harassment Type

The results indicated that, when compared to those in the physical display (M = 4.60) and verbal request (M = 4.00) conditions, those in the verbal comment condition (M = 2.96) perceived less victim trauma. F(1, 133) = 6.78, p < .01. In addition, when compared to those in the physical display (M = 3.07) and verbal request (M = 4.31) conditions, those in the verbal comment (M = 5.22) condition attributed greater responsibility to the victim. F(1, 133) = 8.73, p < .01.

Exposure Condition X Harassment Type

This group of analyses assessed whether the impact of activation of the promiscuous female stereotype would be moderated by the nature of the perceptual domain. As expected, and as shown in Table I and Figure 1, the interaction between exposure condition and harassment type reached significance for judgments of victim trauma, F(2, 133) = 3.24, p < .05. The results indicated that perceptions of victim trauma did not vary as a function of exposure condition for those in the physical display condition. On the other hand, for those in the verbal comment and verbal request conditions, participants in the promiscuous behavior condition perceived less victim trauma than did those in the nonpromiscuous behavior condition. Planned comparisons indicated that: (a) those in the verbal comment-promiscuous condition perceived less victim trauma than did those in the verbal comment-nonpromiscuous condition, t(136) = 2.59, p < .01; (b) those in the verbal request-promiscuous condition perceived less victim trauma than did those in the verbal request-nonpromiscuous condition, t(136) = 1.72, p < .05; and (c) trauma perceptions of those in the physical display-promiscuous condition and physical display-nonpromiscuous condition were not significantly different, t(135) = .11, p > .05.

Health Care Industry

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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