Browsing by Author "Burns, Mason D."

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    "Fight Against the Cultural Emasculation of Men": The Effect of Masculine Gender Nostalgia on Men's Attitudes Toward Women
    (2024) Burns, Mason D.; Paz Martin, Sarah
    Across four studies (N = 970), we investigated American men's masculine gender nostalgia, or their sentimental longing for an ostensibly bygone era related to traditional masculinity when "men were men" and "women were women." Prior work has found that group-based nostalgia uniquely predicts extreme forms of bias, including support for group-based violence. We investigated men's masculine gender nostalgia and its effect on bias toward nontraditional women (i.e., working women, childless-by-choice women). In two correlational studies (Studies 1a and 1b), we found that masculine gender nostalgia was strongly associated with misogyny and acceptance of antitrans violence. Critically, masculine gender nostalgia was related to those outcomes above and beyond other measures of sexism (e.g., modern sexism, benevolent sexism) and relevant demographics (e.g., age, political conservatism). Study 2 experimentally manipulated male participants' gender essentialist beliefs and found that increased gender essentialism predicted increased masculine gender nostalgia and, in turn, greater misogyny, bias against nontraditional women, and acceptance of violence against women. Finally, Study 3 manipulated male participants' perceptions of the degree to which traditional masculinity has changed and become more feminine over time. Results indicated that American men who considered masculine decline reported increased masculine gender nostalgia, which in turn predicted greater bias toward nontraditional women, misogyny, and acceptance of violence against women. Discussion surrounds the importance of considering masculine gender nostalgia when investigating men's bias toward women.
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    “When men were men”: the effects of Gender Nostalgia on bias against trans men and women
    (Routledge, 2024) Burns, Mason D.; Hamilton, Alexandria N.; Paz Martin, Sarah
    In recent years, many people have expressed opposition to the increased public representation of trans men and women. This opposition often includes a sentimental longing for a bygone past wherein ‘men were men, and women were women’. Across three studies (N = 860), we investigated the causes and consequences of this longing, herein called Gender Nostalgia. In Study 1, we developed a measure of Gender Nostalgia, and found it to be a uniquely strong predictor of extreme forms of anti-trans bias such as acceptance of anti-trans violence. Critically, Gender Nostalgia predicted acceptance of anti-trans violence above-and-beyond other direct measures of anti-trans bias and relevant demographics. Study 2 replicated Study 1 and investigated predictors of Gender Nostalgia, finding that Gender Nostalgia was strongly predicted by participants’ self-reported gender essentialism (e.g. the belief that men and women are discretely separate social categories). Study 3 experimentally manipulated participants’ perceptions of the degree to which traditional masculinity/femininity has changed over time. Results indicated that among participants high, but not low, in gender essentialism, considering eroding traditional masculinity/femininity increased Gender Nostalgia and acceptance of anti-trans violence. Discussion surrounds the importance of considering Gender Nostalgia when investigating people’s bias against trans men and women.