By Any Other Name: Judgments of Men and Women who Identify with Feminists, the Women’s Movement, and Gender Equality

By Any Other Name: Judgments of Men and Women who Identify with Feminists, the Women’s Movement, and Gender Equality

Many individuals (non-labelers) do not identify as feminists due to stigma, but ostensibly support feminist goals. Research supports that stereotypes exist about feminists, especially feminist men. However, little research explores whether nonlabelers are perceived differently from feminists. We investigate the likability of a target described as a feminist, someone who supports the current women’s movement, or someone who supports gender equality. Further, we examine how this varies by target gender and participant feminist identity. We expect that nonfeminist participants will rate targets described as feminists or supporting the women’s movement as less likable than those described as supporting gender equality, especially if the target is a man. We expect the opposite for feminist participants. We will collect data from 400 college students who will read a fictional description of a person, which will vary randomly by gender identity and label (feminist, supporter of the current women’s movement, supporter of gender equality). Participants will then judge the person’s likability. Participants will also indicate whether they self-identify as a feminist. Our results have implications for reducing stigma around feminism.

• Elizabeth Russell, Phsycology, Winona State University
• Gabrielle Dose, Student, Winona State University
• Emma Odiet, Student, Winona State University
• Grace Stanley, Student, Winona State University
• Mary Steiner, Student, Winona State University
• Taylor West, Student, Winona State University
• Andrea, Hinitt, Student, Winona State University