Honor-endorsing women and relational aggression: Evidence for the presence of feminine aggression norms in southern U.S. women

Abstract

Research on honor cultures has centered almost exclusively on men and men's use of physical aggression as a means of reputation defense, while tacitly overlooking women's role(s). Across three studies (N = 813), we examined whether honor endorsing women, like men, exhibit aggressive tendencies, albeit in the form of relational aggression. We found that women's honor endorsement predicted greater use of reactive relational aggression (e.g., ignoring and excluding others; Studies 1 and 2), but only among women who felt they were not achieving what it means to be an honorable woman (Study 2). Lastly, we found that women higher in feminine honor endorsement were more supportive of women who relationally aggressed (i.e. spreading rumors, social exclusion) in response to reputation threats (Study 3). Taken together, the present research indicates that honor endorsing women are more active in reputation maintenance and defense than prior work has acknowledged.