It's Not Just a Joke

Bemiller, Michelle; Schneider, Rachel Zimmer

doi:10.1080/02732171003641040

Cited by 47 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 21 publications

(20 reference statements)

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“…A man supervisor joked to his colleagues about a Bwoman's touch,^which elicited laughter from other supervisors (Kahn 1989). Incidents like theseplayful, demeaning, group-based comments cloaked in humor-are among the most common ways that women experience sexism in the workplace and other settings (Pryor 1995).Sexist humor has been defined as humor that denigrates, demeans, stereotypes, oppresses, or objectifies women (Bemiller and Schneider 2010;Greenwood and Isbell 2002;LaFrance and Woodzicka 1998). How should women respond to such playful, often funny, but nonetheless belittling instances of sexist humor?…”

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confidence: 99%

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What Did He Mean by that? Humor Decreases Attributions of Sexism and Confrontation of Sexist Jokes

2016

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Sexist humor may be more difficult to confront than serious expressions of sexism because humor disguises the biased nature of the remark. The present research investigated whether delivering a sexist remark as a joke, compared to a serious statement, tempered perceptions that the speaker was sexist which, in turn, made women less likely to confront. Using a computer-mediated instant messaging paradigm, women were randomly assigned to receive the same sexist remark phrased either in a serious manner or as a joke. We recorded how women actually responded to the sexist remark and coded for confrontation. In Experiments 1 (195 women) and 2 (134 women) we found that humor decreased perceptions that the speaker was sexist. Furthermore, as perceptions that the perpetrator was sexist decreased, women's confronting also decreased. Experiment 2 demonstrated an additional consequence of reducing the perceived sexism of the perpetrator-it increased tolerance of sexist behavior perpetrated against an individual woman and sexual harassment more generally. Interestingly, the indirect effects only appeared when women at least moderately endorsed hostile sexism. For hostile sexists, failure to identify sexism reduced confrontation and increased tolerance for sexual harassment and sexist behavior. Contrary to popular belief, humor can actually make sexist messages more dangerous and difficult to confront than serious remarks.A woman bank teller accidentally short-circuited a computer system that monitored the bank's transactions. After this incident, many employees told jokes about women's alleged inferiority with technology. At a subsequent meeting, a woman secretary accidentally unplugged a slide projector with her foot as she walked by. A man supervisor joked to his colleagues about a Bwoman's touch,^which elicited laughter from other supervisors (Kahn 1989). Incidents like theseplayful, demeaning, group-based comments cloaked in humor-are among the most common ways that women experience sexism in the workplace and other settings (Pryor 1995).Sexist humor has been defined as humor that denigrates, demeans, stereotypes, oppresses, or objectifies women (Bemiller and Schneider 2010;Greenwood and Isbell 2002;LaFrance and Woodzicka 1998). How should women respond to such playful, often funny, but nonetheless belittling instances of sexist humor? In the present research we contend that sexist humor presents a unique challenge for people who may wish to engage in confrontation because the meaning of humorous sexist remarks, and the intentions of their owners, are often unclear. Accordingly, we investigated the degree to which delivering a sexist remark as a joke, compared to a serious statement, affected women's perception that the perpetrator was sexist, the likelihood that they would confront the sexist remark, and their tolerance of a subsequently encountered incident of sexist behavior, as well as their tolerance of sexual harassment, a more general, normative pattern of gender discrimination against women (Equal Employment

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confidence: 99%

“…Sexist humor has been defined as humor that denigrates, demeans, stereotypes, oppresses, or objectifies women (Bemiller and Schneider 2010;Greenwood and Isbell 2002;LaFrance and Woodzicka 1998). How should women respond to such playful, often funny, but nonetheless belittling instances of sexist humor?…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

What Did He Mean by that? Humor Decreases Attributions of Sexism and Confrontation of Sexist Jokes

2016

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“…Sexist 'jokes' are thus far from 'harmless', but instead increase tolerance of sexism, reinforcing and normalising gender inequality. 8 What has changed over the past few decades, however, is that many women-and their male supporters-now refuse to endorse the sexism and misogyny driving these various forms of behaviour. As a result, 'sexual harassment' is now widely accepted as a concept, even if it has not always led to more respectful treatment of women.…”

Section: Sexual Harassment As a 'Problem' In Politicsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Westminster Too: On Sexual Harassment in British Politics

Krook¹

2018

Political Quarterly

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At the end of 2017, millions of women used the #MeToo hashtag to draw attention to widespread sexual harassment and assault around the world. In British politics, female politicians, staff members, and journalists opened up about their own experiences, provoking the resignation and party suspension of a number of male Cabinet ministers and Members of Parliament. This article explores how this issue got on the political agenda, what features of politics might foster harassment and discourage reporting, and what solutions might be pursued to tackle this problem. It argues that sexual harassment should be understood as a systemic, cultural problem, rather than a question of problematic individuals. Ignoring the issue of sexual harassment in politics, the article concludes, has serious consequences for gender equality-as well as for democracy itself, reducing policy effectiveness, distorting the political pipeline, and diminishing political transparency and accountability.

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“…However, some of these languages also reflect a hegemonic masculine culture that dominates in the computing field. Seemingly innocuous jokes actually reflect a male‐centric position and may lead to invisible sexism (Bemiller & Schneider, ; Shifman & Lemish, , ).…”

Section: Gendered Language and Its Hidden Meaningmentioning

confidence: 99%