The sexual double standard and topic avoidance in friendships

Abstract

ABSTRACT Grounded in sexual script theory, this research explored the relationships between casual sexual encounters, personal and perceived social endorsement of the sexual double standard (SDS), and topic avoidance about casual sex (TACS). Participants (N = 327) were recruited from Amazon.com’s Mechanical Turk and responded to a survey including measures assessing the aforementioned variables. A number of gender differences were apparent in the results. For men, personal and perceived social endorsement of the SDS were significantly and positively associated with casual sexual activity, whereas these same associations were not significant for women. For women, both personal and perceived social endorsement were significantly and positively associated with TACS, but for men, personal endorsement of the SDS was significantly inversely associated with TACS. Lastly, for men, the variable most strongly associated with TACS was personal endorsement of the SDS, whereas it was perceived social endorsement of the SDS for women. Explanations for these findings are offered based on the influence of individuals’ cognitions, behaviors, and cultural scripts.