Authors

Tonychris Nnaka

Document Type

Honors Thesis

Abstract

The purposes of this study are: (1) to identify college student judgments toward others based on description of a model’s heavy drinking, hooking-up and condom use behaviors, (2) to determine whether a double standard exists in the context of alcohol consumption, hooking-up, and level of condom use (i.e., are male and female models who are participating in the same drinking, sexual, and condom use behaviors evaluated differently relative to selected character traits?). We hypothesized that male study participants would show evidence of a sexual double standard, but female participants would not. Participants (N=242) were UTA students, single/under 25, who completed a questionnaires that include one of eight randomly assigned vignettes (four vignette types, male or female model). Data were analyzed using SPSS, with separate analyses conducted for male and female participants. Analyses of female participant data showed significant main effects for vignette type for both positive character and likability. Among male participants there was a significant main effect for vignette type for positive character. Models in the two basic vignettes received most positive judgment from both male and female participants. No significant model x vignette interaction effects were observed for any of the three outcome variables for either male or female participants. Neither male nor female participants evaluated the male model differently from the female model; thus there was no evidence of a sexual double-standard. Drinking and hooking-up vignettes were evaluated less favorably than the basic vignette, indicating that the normative standards of the study participants were not supportive of these behaviors.

Publication Date

5-1-2015

Language

English

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