A recent study of men in the U.K. found that those who perceive themselves as either the most attractive or the least attractive tend to show higher levels of hostility towards women compared to men with an average view of their attractiveness. Additionally, men with strong right-wing authoritarian beliefs were also more likely to be hostile towards women. The research was published in the Scandinavian Journal of Psychology.
Misogyny refers to hatred, disdain, or prejudice against women. It manifests through discriminatory attitudes, behaviors, and societal norms that devalue or oppress women. Misogyny can range from subtle actions, like exclusion or belittling, to overt behaviors, such as aggression, verbal abuse, physical and sexual violence, and rape.
A related concept is sexism, which involves the belief that one gender is superior to the other, resulting in unequal treatment based on gender. Both misogyny and sexism perpetuate gender-based inequality, reinforcing harmful stereotypes and limiting opportunities for individuals, particularly women. These attitudes not only harm women but also contribute to rigid gender roles that affect men as well.
Study author Jiewen Zhang and her colleagues wanted to better understand the factors associated with men’s hostility towards women. While it has been well-established that hostility toward women is deeply rooted in certain political ideologies, such as right-wing authoritarianism, the researchers sought to examine whether other factors—such as loneliness, sensitivity to rejection, perceived attractiveness, and romantic relationships—also play a role in shaping these attitudes. Until now, it was unclear how these personal characteristics might influence hostility toward women in a general male population.
The research involved 473 single, heterosexual men living in the United Kingdom, aged between 18 and 35, with an average age of 26. Participants were recruited through Prolific, an online platform that helps researchers gather survey data, and each participant was compensated £8 for completing the survey. The survey included a variety of validated psychological assessments to evaluate factors such as hostile sexism, misogyny, self-perceived attractiveness, sensitivity to rejection, loneliness, gaming habits, gaming addiction symptoms, and right-wing authoritarianism.
For measuring hostile sexism, the researchers used the Hostile Sexism subscale of the Ambivalent Sexism Inventory, while misogyny was assessed using the Misogyny Scale. Sensitivity to rejection was measured using the Adult Rejection Sensitivity Questionnaire, and loneliness was assessed through the Short-Form UCLA Loneliness Scale. The study also examined the participants’ time spent gaming and any potential symptoms of gaming addiction, as well as their levels of right-wing authoritarianism, measured using the Right-Wing Authoritarianism Scale.
Results showed that the strongest link was between right-wing authoritarianism and hostility towards women, both in the form of hostile sexism and misogyny. This suggests that men who hold authoritarian beliefs—characterized by a preference for strict social hierarchies and traditional gender roles—are more likely to express hostility toward women. The study highlights that right-wing authoritarian attitudes contribute significantly to the development of misogynistic views.
Another notable finding was the curvilinear relationship between self-perceived attractiveness and hostility towards women. Men who rated themselves as either very attractive or very unattractive were more likely to show hostility toward women compared to those who perceived their attractiveness as average. This indicates that both extremes of the self-perceived attractiveness spectrum may foster negative attitudes toward women, though the underlying motivations might differ. For instance, men with high self-perceived attractiveness may exhibit narcissistic tendencies, while men who consider themselves unattractive may externalize their frustrations, leading to hostility towards women.
In addition, the study found that men with symptoms of gaming addiction were slightly more likely to express misogynistic attitudes, though general time spent gaming was not a strong predictor of hostility once other factors were accounted for. Sensitivity to rejection was similarly associated with increased hostility towards women, suggesting that men who are more sensitive to perceived rejection may harbor more negative attitudes.
Regarding sexual experience, men with both the lowest and the highest numbers of sexual partners were less hostile towards women compared to men with an average number of sexual partners. This pattern suggests that the relationship between sexual experience and hostility towards women is complex, with those at the extremes of sexual experience showing less hostility than those in the middle range.
“Our findings suggest that high right-wing authoritarianism and low and high self-perceived attractiveness are associated with increased hostility towards women among men reflecting the general population,” the study authors concluded.
The study sheds light on the associations between various personal characteristics of men and hostility towards women. However, the study was conducted on an online sample of U.K. men. Results may not necessarily be applicable to men from different cultural backgrounds, as societal norms and values vary across cultures and could influence attitudes toward women in distinct ways.
The paper, “Predicting hostility towards women: incel-related factors in a general sample of men,” was authored by Jiewen Zhang, Amalie B. Mollandsøy, Cecilie Nornes, Eilin K. Erevik, and Ståle Pallesen.
