Hostile sexism is linked to higher rates of social sabotage and gossip among young adults

A recent study published in the Journal of Social and Personal Relationships provides evidence that young adults who hold hostile sexist beliefs are more likely to engage in behaviors designed to damage the social relationships of their peers. The findings suggest that challenging traditional gender norms among youth might not only reduce prejudiced bias but also improve the way young people treat one another.

Scientists typically study aggressive behavior by looking at predictors linked to small social circles, like family or school environments. This approach tends to overlook how broader societal beliefs, such as expectations about gender and power, influence human interactions. To address this gap, scientists wanted to examine the relationship between sexist attitudes and a specific type of social harm known as relational aggression.

Relational aggression involves actions intended to hurt someone by damaging their friendships, reputation, or sense of social inclusion. These attacks can involve spreading malicious gossip, intentionally leaving someone out of group activities, or giving a peer the silent treatment.

Relational aggression generally takes two distinct forms. Proactive relational aggression is calculated and used to achieve a specific goal, like gaining social status or forcing someone to comply with a demand. Reactive relational aggression happens in the moment as an angry, hostile response to a perceived threat or insult.

Sexism can also be divided into two forms. Hostile sexism is an openly negative attitude that views women as subordinate and seeks to control those who challenge male dominance. Benevolent sexism involves protective and paternalistic attitudes toward women, provided they adhere to traditional, domestic roles.

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The researchers wanted to see if holding sexist beliefs could influence how young adults manipulate their social circles. They hypothesized that individuals invested in maintaining a strict gender divide might use relational aggression to police their peers and protect their own social standing. Relational aggression could serve as a tool to punish those who step outside expected gender norms.

“We wanted to explore the intersection between behavioral research and research on gender-related attitudes, since gender norms affect the way aggressive behaviors are perceived and enacted,” said study author Marion Chatelois, a PhD candidate at the University of Quebec in Montreal.

To explore these connections, the researchers analyzed data from an ongoing long term study in Quebec, Canada, that tracks the social development of youth. The current study included 571 participants between the ages of 17 and 22. A large portion of these participants had a history of childhood behavioral issues, which allowed the researchers to study a group prone to aggressive behaviors.

The sample was almost evenly split between men and women. Individuals identifying as gender minorities were excluded from the final analysis because their numbers were too small for statistical comparison. The majority of the participants identified as White and heterosexual.

Participants completed surveys designed to measure their use of relational aggression and their ambivalent sexist attitudes. Research assistants read the questionnaire items aloud to the participants either in person or over a video call, and they recorded the responses. The participants received an 80 Canadian dollar compensation for their time.

The researchers also accounted for whether the participants had a history of childhood behavioral issues. This statistical control helped them isolate the specific impact of sexism on current behaviors. They then used complex statistical models to look for associations between the survey responses.

The data showed that participants who scored higher in hostile sexism were more likely to use both proactive and reactive relational aggression. This suggests that young adults who hold hostile views about gender roles might use behaviors that allow them to control their relationships with their peers to maintain their dominance. They might spread rumors or exclude peers as a way to defend their own place within a strict gendered hierarchy.

Individuals invested in maintaining a gendered hierarchy might feel threatened by those who do not conform. They appear to use relational aggression as a low risk tool to punish those who break the rules and protect their own status. Because this type of aggression is often viewed as less serious than physical violence, it offers an easy way to assert dominance.

The researchers also found that a person’s gender influenced these behavioral patterns. Specifically, the link between hostile sexism and reactive relational aggression was stronger for men than for women. Men who endorsed hostile sexist beliefs could be especially prone to using social attacks when feeling angered or threatened.

“Young adults who hold more hostile sexist attitudes are more likely to use relational aggression, i.e. to try and harm their peers’ social relationships,” Chatelois told PsyPost. “They may use relational aggression to protect their social status in a gendered hierarchy, to police those who do not conform to sexist norms, and to defend themselves against perceived threats to their gender identity.”

“Therefore, preventing sexist attitudes among youth through challenging traditional gender norms can not only prevent the development of harmful prejudiced biases, but also improve the way young people treat each other.”

Benevolent sexism was not associated with either form of relational aggression. Because benevolent sexism involves a protective attitude, it might not trigger the same hostile or calculating social attacks. This form of sexism views the social system as fair, which might conflict with the need to aggressively manipulate others.

“Benevolent sexism, although not associated with relational aggression in our study, is not a harmless or ‘positive’ form of sexism,” Chatelois noted. “It indirectly justifies violence through victim blaming and failing to recognize violence. Hostile and benevolent sexism are mutually reinforcing attitudes that both support a patriarchal system that reduces people to specific restrictive gendered roles and exerts social control over women.”

The study offers a new perspective on peer aggression, but like all research, it has some limitations to consider. The data collected was from a single point in time, which means the researchers cannot prove that sexist beliefs cause relational aggression. They can only conclude that the two concepts are statistically linked.

Since the study relied on self reported behaviors, future research could benefit from including observations from friends or peers to get a more accurate picture of the participants’ social actions. The researchers also plan to explore how the desire to be popular interacts with gender stereotypes to influence how young adults treat each other.

“Our research team wants to keep working on the influence of hierarchical beliefs and patriarchal gender norms on aggressive behaviors,” Chatelois said. “Notably, Boutin, Martin-Storey and colleagues are working on the joint influence of sexism, gender stereotypes and the desire to be popular on relational aggression use.”

The study, “Is sexism associated with the use of relational aggression by young adults? The moderating effect of gender,” was authored by Marion Chatelois, Stéphanie Boutin, Alexa Martin-Storey, Michèle Déry, and Mélanie Lapalme.