Abstract:

The accelerated formal incorporation of women into the labor market in Western countries could lead to false optimism about women’s progress in today’s society. However, women, compared to men, experience greater workplace discrimination. One of the key factors contributing to this gender inequality is the ambivalent (hostile and benevolent) sexism. Hostile sexism explicitly expresses antipathy and reflects attitudes of male superiority and dominance over women, while benevolent sexism seems to convey a positive attitude toward women, but, in fact, implies the idealization of women who enact traditional roles, and consequently, supports masculine dominance. Both hostile and benevolent sexism involve a stereotypical conceptualization of women. The aim of this study is to examine the stereotypical gender traits that characterize typical women and its relationship with ambivalently sexist attitudes. A sample of college students (49% men and 51% women) rated the typical woman by completing the Bem Sex Inventory (BSRI), which included feminine and masculine traits, and completed the Ambivalent Sexism Inventory (ASI). Overall, the results showed participant sex differences on the assessment of typical women and ambivalent sexism. Participants presented a low degree of sexist attitudes and both sub-scales correlated positively. In addition, the attribution of more stereotypical feminine traits to women positively correlated with sexist attitudes. These findings reveal the role of gender stereotypes in the configuration of attitudes toward women. The implications of the results for education are discussed and some future research lines are suggested.

Keywords:

Stereotypical gender traits, ambivalent sexism, college students.