Benevolent Sexism and Support of Romantic Partner’s Goals Undermining Women’s Competence While Fulfilling Men’s Intimacy Needs

The current research demonstrates how benevolent sexism functions to undermine women’s competence while facilitating men’s access to heterosexual intimacy by prompting different support behaviors by men and women. Objective coders rated the support provision exhibited during heterosexual couples’ (N...

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Published inPersonality & social psychology bulletin Vol. 41; no. 9; pp. 1180 - 1194
Main Authors Hammond, Matthew D., Overall, Nickola C.
Format Journal Article
LanguageEnglish
Published Los Angeles, CA SAGE Publications 01.09.2015
SAGE PUBLICATIONS, INC
Subjects
Adult
Beneficence
Couples
Female
Goals
Humans
Interpersonal Relations
Male
Men
Objectives
Sexism
Sexual Partners - psychology
Social support
Women
Young Adult
competence
close relationships
support provision
benevolent sexism
ambivalent sexism
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Summary:The current research demonstrates how benevolent sexism functions to undermine women’s competence while facilitating men’s access to heterosexual intimacy by prompting different support behaviors by men and women. Objective coders rated the support provision exhibited during heterosexual couples’ (N = 100) video-recorded discussions of each other’s personal goals. Men who endorsed benevolent sexism provided more dependency-oriented support, including directly providing plans and solutions and neglecting the recipient’s own abilities, which led to their female partners feeling less competent and less positively regarded. In contrast, women who endorsed benevolent sexism provided greater relationship-oriented support, characterized by affection and emphasizing the positive relationship outcomes associated with their partner’s goals, which led their male partners to perceive greater regard and intimacy in their relationship. This study is the first to investigate how benevolent sexism prompts naturalistic support behaviors that can impede women’s capacity for independent success while supporting the fulfillment of men’s intimacy needs.
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ISSN:0146-1672
1552-7433
DOI:10.1177/0146167215593492