Sarah Murnen | Kenyon College (original) (raw)

Papers by Sarah Murnen

Psychology of Men and Masculinity, Apr 6, 2023

$Research paper thumbnail of Men\u27s and Women\u27s Responses to Idealized Body Types$

Psychology of Men & Masculinity, 2015

Studies of the association between masculinity and sexual aggression have found that men who poss... more Studies of the association between masculinity and sexual aggression have found that men who possess hostile masculine or hypermasculine attitudes are more likely to self-report sexual aggression against women. There is limited predictability of behavior using such attitudinal scales because they do not measure how masculinity functions, and recent research emphasizes the social construction of masculinity by measuring social role norms indicative of hegemonic masculinity, gender role stress and threat, and consequent responses. A social constructivist approach allows for a greater understanding of how variables at the individual, situational, and societal levels can combine to predict SA. This approach also leads to suggestions that prevention efforts should focus on changing situational and societal variables in addition to trying to promote attitude change.

The combination of gender differences and evidence of sociocultural origin in body image problems... more The combination of gender differences and evidence of sociocultural origin in body image problems, weight and shape control, eating disorders, and steroid abuse demand a close examination of how gender contributes to these problems. Analyses of gender roles as measured by traditional sex role inventories are likely to be insufficient given the conceptual limitations of such measures. Instead, we need theories that examine the "lived experiences" of women and men to understand how body comes to have such different meaning for each gender. Feminist theory provides a framework for such analysis. In this chapter, we focus on women and their lived experiences, though we sometimes use men's experiences as a counterpoint, because we are focusing on eating disorders, which are more common in women than in men. Additionally, considerably more data are available on girls and women than on boys and men. At present, it is not self-evident that theories and findings concerning wome...

Self-objectification in women: Causes, consequences, and counteractions., 2011

Sex Roles, 2007

The distinctive features of Leadbeater and Way’s (2007) book on the development of urban girls in... more The distinctive features of Leadbeater and Way’s (2007) book on the development of urban girls include its emphasis on the strength and resilience of girls, its interdisciplinary focus, and the fact that the studies described use a variety of methodological approaches. The first edition of this book was well-received, and this new edition published ten years later provides an interesting collection of 16 chapters contributed by a total of 43 authors. The book is organized into six different parts including a section introducing a positive model of development, a section discussing the influence of “safe spaces” on development, one concerning cultural influences, one on resistance, one on sexuality, and one concerning resilience in the face of extreme adversity. There was something interesting to learn in each section. In the first section of the book we are introduced to the “positive youth development” (PYD) perspective which stresses the resilience and resources associated with the development of urban girls. This approach is consistent with recent trends in positive psychology, and helps combat the stereotype that urban youth are doomed to live unhappy, unhealthy lives. Two developmental studies that employ the PYD approach are described in the first two chapters (the 4H Study of Positive Youth Development, Lerner et al. 2005; and Project Competence, Masten and Powell 2003), and data presented provide some support for the model. There might be insufficient detail about the studies and their findings presented in the chapters themselves to satisfy curiosity, but additional references are provided for seeking more information concerning these large data sets. In any case, it was interesting to learn about the PYD model that can certainly be tested in other populations. The chapters in the next section address the issue of creating “safe spaces” for girls that will allow them to develop critical consciousness to deal with various cultural pressures. I found Banister and Leadbeater’s chapter particularly compelling. They argue that traditional models of youth development are not applicable to urban girls. For example, urban girls cannot pursue autonomy as Erikson theorized because of the cultural challenges they face which include sexism, and classism, among other sources of discrimination. They discuss the importance of helping girls develop collectivist strategies for dealing with these issues, and examine how the school environment could be structured to create opportunities for cultural critique. Some of the interesting ideas that are discussed in these chapters include creating “homespaces” in schools and/or “community living rooms” as safe places for girls to question their experiences. One chapter discussed the role of “other mothers” in the schools; women who are available to help discuss important issues. Mentoring in general was discussed, and a study is presented about the use of mentoring to help girls develop healthy dating relationships. Some of the data presented questioned the issue of assigning mentors versus having relationships occur naturally. These authors concluded that girls should be taught techniques to recruit their own mentors for soliciting support. Finally, some researchers have created feminist focus groups for girls in the schools, and others have Sex Roles (2008) 58:290–292 DOI 10.1007/s11199-007-9331-0

Psychology of Women Quarterly, 1999

Murnen and Byrne (1991) have defined hyperfemininity as an exaggerated adherence to a feminine ge... more Murnen and Byrne (1991) have defined hyperfemininity as an exaggerated adherence to a feminine gender role as it relates to heterosexual relationships. Hyperfeminine women believe their success is determined by maintaining a romantic relationship with a man, and that their sexuality can be used to maintain this relationship. Extrapolating from theory concerning gender and status, including expectation states theory, it was hypothesized that a woman's expression of hyperfeminine attitudes would lead male college student participants to agree with her in response to a persuasive speech because it would indicate her compliance with women's subordinate status. It was found that men (but not women) who listened to a very hyperfeminine (high) speaker agreed with her more than did men who heard a mildly hyperfeminine (low) speaker, despite the fact that the high hyperfeminine speaker was judged less competent and knowledgeable. Implications of the results, including the idea that t...

Psychology of Men & Masculinity, 2005

Journal of Psychology & Human Sexuality, 1997

Heterosexual college students (N = 164) responded to seven scales assessing authoritarianism, gen... more Heterosexual college students (N = 164) responded to seven scales assessing authoritarianism, general and specific sexual attitudes, and attitudes toward and fears about male and female homosexuals. On these dispositional variables, men, compared to women, expressed more erotophilic attitudes, less sex guilt, less positive attitudes about gays, and more homophobia; gender differences were not found for authoritarianism or for attitudes about lesbians or masturbation. Afterward, these research participants viewed a videotape depicting either a heterosexual, lesbian, or gay couple engaging in explicit sexual acts. Dependent measures consisted of an affective checklist and a series of evaluative judgments about the couple. In responding to the three types of erotic movie, men and women were generally similar in that the most positive affective and evaluative responses were elicited when the film content was heterosexual, and the most negative responses were expressed when a gay couple was depicted. Men were, however, more positive than women in responding to the lesbian film. The dispositional variables were consistently predictive of affective and evaluative responses to the films

Sex Roles, 2000

The purpose of this study was to investigate elementary school children's interpretation of ... more The purpose of this study was to investigate elementary school children's interpretation of sexual harassment incidents and the relationship of those interpretations to self-esteem and body esteem. Eleven scenarios were read to 73 third- to fifth-grade children. Eight scenarios exemplified peer harassment. The children were asked how they thought the victim felt, what the victim should do, why the perpetrator

Handbook of Gender Research in Psychology, 2009

It seems appropriate and desirable that women should investigate these matters experimentally, no... more It seems appropriate and desirable that women should investigate these matters experimentally, now that the opportunity for training and research is open to them. Thus, in time, may be written a psychology of woman based on truth, not on opinion; on precise, not on anecdotal evidence; on accurate data rather than on remnants of magic (Hollingworth, 1914). Leta Hollingworth applied

All in-text references underlined in blue are linked to publications on ResearchGate, letting you... more All in-text references underlined in blue are linked to publications on ResearchGate, letting you access and read them immediately.

Self-sexualization refers to intentionally engaging in activities expressly to appear more sexual... more Self-sexualization refers to intentionally engaging in activities expressly to appear more sexually appealing. The purpose of our studies was to examine gender similarities and differences in how women and men conceptualize self-sexualization as well as introduce measures appropriate for large-scale data collection. In a qualitative study, we first established the existence of self-sexualization among women, although we were unable to document a similar construct among men. The Self-Sexualization Behavior Questionnaire for Women (SSBQ–W), developed over the course of three studies using samples from two small liberal arts colleges, demonstrated adequate internal consistency, stability, and construct validity. Discriminant validity for the SSBQ–W was demonstrated with the Surveillance subscale of the Objectified Body Consciousness Scale, the Sexualizing Behavior Scale, and the Enjoyment of Sexualization Scale. The SSBQ–W may especially be useful in addressing debates about the relati...