Abstract
The present article is a review of 26 studies on the sexual double standard. This phenomenon consists of different rules and standards of sexual behavior for men and women. Only scientific articles reporting empirical research published between 2001 and 2010 and available online in full were included. Our review was focused on the evidence of the existence of the sexual double standard and on the methods that have been used in the studies in this field. Most studies used quantitative methods based on scales or vignette tasks with a target to be evaluated by respondents. There was greater variability of results among the 6 studies using qualitative methods. These studies employed different interview techniques, focus groups and participant observation. There were also 2 studies reporting the use of mixed methods. The results of the studies showed that the sexual double standard still can be identified nowadays, although it seems that sexual behaviors and situations influenced by this phenomenon are changing. Today, premarital sex and sexual intercourse outside of committed relationships are more accepted for both genders. However, evaluations of other facets of sexuality continue to be based on different criteria for men and women.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
References marked with an asterisk indicate studies included in the review
* Aubrey, J. S. (2004). Sex and punishment: An examination of sexual consequences and the sexual double standard in teen programming. Sex Roles, 50, 505–514.
* Bay-Cheng, L. Y., & Zucker, A. N. (2007). Feminism between the sheets: Sexual attitudes among feminists, non-feminists, and egalitarians. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 31, 157–163.
* Boone, T. L., & Lefkovitz, E. F. (2004). Safer sex and health belief model: Considering the contributions of peer norms and socialization factors. Journal of Psychology & Human Sexuality, 16(1), 51–68.
Bordini, G. S., & Sperb, T. M. (2012). Concepções de gênero nas narrativas interacionais de adolescentes [Gender conceptions in adolescents’ narratives in interaction]. Psicologia: Reflexão e Crítica, 25(4).
Caron, S. L., Davis, C. M., Halteman, W. A., & Stickle, M. (1993). Predictors of condom-related behaviors among first-year college students. The Journal of Sex Research, 30, 252–259.
Crawford, M., & Popp, D. (2003). Sexual double standards: A review and methodological critique of two decades of research. Journal of Sex Research, 40, 13–26.
de Ferreira, N. S. A. (2002). As pesquisas denominadas ‘estado da arte’ [Research called “state of the art”]. Educação & Sociedade, 79, 257–272.
* Devries, K. M., & Free, C. (2010). ‘I told him not to use condoms’: Masculinities, femininities and sexual health of Aboriginal Canadian young people. Sociology of Health & Illness, 32(6), 827–842.
* Fasula, A. M., Miller, K. S., & Wiener, J. (2007). The sexual double standard in African American adolescent women’s sexual risk reduction socialization. Women and Health, 46(2–3), 3–21.
* Greene, K., & Faulkner, S. (2005). Gender, belief in the sexual double standard, and sexual talk in heterosexual dating relationships. Sex Roles, 53(3–4), 239–251.
* Haavio-Mannila, E., & Kontula, O. (2003). Single and double sexual standards in Finland, Estonia, and St. Petersburg. The Journal of Sex Research, 40, 36–49.
* Hartley, H., & Drew, T. (2001). Gendered messages in sex ed films: Trends and implications for female sexual problems. Women and Therapy, 24(1–2), 133–146.
* Jackson, S. M., & Cram, F. (2003). Disrupting the sexual double standard: Young women’s talk about heterosexuality. British Journal of Social Psychology, 42, 113–127.
* Jonason, P. K., & Marks, M. J. (2009). Common vs. uncommon sexual acts: Evidence for the sexual double standard. Sex Roles, 60, 357–365.
Jones, D. (2010). Sexualidades adolescentes. Amor, placer y control en la Argentina contemporánea [Adolescent sexualities. Love, pleasure and control in contemporary Argentine]. Buenos Aires, Argentine: CICCUS/CLACSO.
King, K., Balswick, J. O., & Robinson, I. E. (1977). The continuing premarital sexual revolution among college females. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 39, 455–459.
* Kreager, D. A., & Staff, J. (2009). The sexual double standard and adolescent peer acceptance. Social Psychology Quarterly, 72(2), 143–164.
* Kulkarni, S. (2007). Romance narrative, feminine ideals, and developmental detours for young mothers. Affilia: Journal of Women, 22(1), 9–22.
* Lee, J., Kim, J., & Lim, H. (2010). Rape myth acceptance among Korean college students: The roles of gender, attitudes toward women, and sexual double standard. Journal of Interpersonal Violence, 25(7), 1200–1223.
* Marks, M. J. (2008). Evaluations of sexually active men and women under divided attention: A social cognitive approach to the sexual double standard. Basic and Applied Social Psychology, 30, 84–91.
* Marks, M. J., & Fraley, R. C. (2005). The sexual double standard: Fact or fiction? Sex Roles, 52, 175–186.
* Marks, M. J., & Fraley, R. C. (2006). Confirmation bias and the sexual double standard. Sex Roles, 54, 19–26.
* Marks, M. J., & Fraley, R. C. (2007). The impact of social interaction on the sexual double standard. Social Influence, 2(1), 29–54.
Milhausen, R., & Herold, S. (2001). Reconceptualizing the sexual double standard. Journal of Psychology & Human Sexuality, 13(2), 63–83.
* Milnes, K. (2010). Challenging the sexual double standard: constructing sexual equality narratives as a strategy of resistance. Feminism Psychology, 20(2), 255–259.
Muehlenhard, C. L., & Quackenbush, D. M. (1996). The social meaning of women’s condom use: The sexual double standard and women’s beliefs about the meaning ascribed to condom use. Unpublished manuscript.
Muehlenhard, C. L., & Quackenbush, D. M. (1998). Sexual double standard scale (SDS). In C. M. Davis, W. L. Yarber, R. Bauserman, G. Schreer, & S. L. Davis (Eds.), Handbook of sexuality-related measures (pp. 186–188). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.
* Ramos, V., Carvalho, C., & Leal, I. (2005). Atitudes e comportamentos sexuais de mulheres universitárias: A hipótese do duplo padrão sexual [university women’s sexual attitudes and behaviors: The sexual double standard hypothesis]. Análise Psicológica, 23(2), 173–185.
Reiss, I. L. (1956). The double standard in premarital sexual intercourse: A neglected concept. Social Forces, 34, 224–230.
Reiss, I. L. (1961). Standards of sexual behavior. In A. Ellis & A. Abarbanel (Eds.), Encyclopedia of sexual behavior (pp. 996–1004). New York, NY: Hawthorn Books.
Reiss, I. L. (1964a). Premarital sexual permissiveness among Negroes and Whites. American Sociological Review, 29, 688–698.
Reiss, I. L. (1964b). The scaling of premarital sexual permissiveness. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 26, 188–198.
Reiss, I. L. (1965). Social class and premarital sexual permissiveness: A re-examination. American Sociological Review, 30, 747–756.
Reiss, I. L. (1967). The social context of premarital sexual permissiveness. New York, NY: Holt, Rinehart, and Winston.
* Ronen, S. (2010). Grinding on the dance floor: Gendered scripts and sexualized dancing at college parties. Gender & Society, 24(3), 355–377.
* Sahl, D., & Keene, J. D. (2010). The sexual double standard and gender differences in predictors of perceptions of adult–teen sexual relationships. Sex Roles, 62, 264–277.
* Sierra, J. C., Santos-Iglesias, P., Gutiérrez-Quintanilla, R., Bermúdez, M. P., & Buela-Casal, G. (2010). Factors associated with rape-supportive attitudes: Sociodemographic variables, aggressive personality, and sexist attitudes. The Spanish Journal of Psychology, 13(1), 202–209.
* Smith, D. J. (2010). Promiscuous girls, good wives, and cheating husbands: Gender inequality, transitions to marriage, and infidelity in southeastern Nigeria. Anthropological Quarterly, 83(1), 123–152.
* Smith, G., Mysak, K., & Michael, S. (2008). Sexual double standards and sexually transmitted illnesses: Social rejection and stigmatization of women. Sex Roles, 58, 391–401.
Ward, L. M., & Rivadeneyra, R. (1999). Contributions of entertainment television to adolescents’ sexual attitudes and expectations: The role of viewing amount versus viewer involvement. The Journal of Sex Research, 36, 237–249.
* Zhang, Y., Miller, L. E., & Harrison, K. (2008). The relationship between exposure to sexual music videos and young adults’ sexual attitudes. Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media. Retrieved from http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m6836/is_3_52/ai_n28574981/.
* Zurbriggen, E. I., & Morgan, E. M. (2006). Who wants to marry a millionaire? Reality dating television programs, attitudes toward sex, and sexual behaviors. Sex Roles, 54(1–2), 1–17.
Acknowledgments
The authors gratefully acknowledge the financial support provided by the National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq) and the Coordination for the Improvement of Higher Level Personnel (CAPES) from Brazil.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Sagebin Bordini, G., Sperb, T.M. Sexual Double Standard: A Review of the Literature Between 2001 and 2010. Sexuality & Culture 17, 686–704 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12119-012-9163-0
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12119-012-9163-0