Suit or Skirt? The Context Effect of Clothing Gender Stereotype

Subjects: Psychology >> Social Psychology submitted time 2019-12-30

温芳芳 马书瀚 何赛飞 张丽思 佐斌

Abstract： " Gender stereotype is the classic research topic in social psychology. Previous research focused on the “people” as the gender stereotypes’ research targets and achieved fruitful results. As the important obvious cues of gender, clothing reflects gender stereotypes and impacts impression formation subtly. Through three experiments, this study explored the context effect of clothing gender stereotype in view of perceivers and actors perspectively. The results showed that participants rated men in counter-gender stereotypical clothes as lower in both of warmth and competence. However, there was no significant difference between ratings in warmth of women in gender (counter-)stereotypical clothes and women in gender counter-stereotypical clothes were rated as higher in competence. From the view of perceivers, participants gave better evaluation to male targets who were consistent with gender stereotype no matter in warmth or competence needed condition. For female targets, participants rated those who were in gender stereotypical clothes as higher in warmth while those who were in gender counter-stereotypical clothes as higher in competence. Form the view of actors, male participants showed tendency to be in gender stereotypical clothes no matter in warmth or competence needed condition. Female participants were more likely to choose gender counter-stereotypical clothes in competence needed condition. What’s more, in competence needed condition, female participants who chose gender counter-stereotypical clothes rated themselves as higher in competence than warmth. In warmth needed condition, male participants who chose gender counter-stereotypical clothes rated themselves as higher in warmth than competence. Those results extended the traditional research whose targets were human into the area of clothing which as related with human. On one hand, this study contributes to the gendercounter- stereotypical behavior function model. On the other hand, it also has important implications for management of impression in area of interpersonal communication through choosing different for various conditions.

Peer Review Status:Awaiting Review

 Hits 7072  Downloads 2734  Comment 0