Exploring the Role of Culture in Sexual Objectification: A Seven Nations Study

Steve Loughnan, Silvia Fernandez, Jeroen Vaes, Gulnaz Anjum, Mudassar Aziz, Chika Harada, Elise Holland, Indramani Singh, Elisa Puvia, Koji Tsuchiya

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

Sexual objectification – seeing or treating a person as a sexual object – has been the topic of considerable investigation. Building from a longstanding recognition of the potential importance of culture in sexual objectification, this paper focuses on the extent to which people in different parts of the world objectify themselves and others. We explore sexual objectification amongst 588 people in seven diverse nations (i.e., Australia, India, Italy, Japan, Pakistan, the UK, and the USA). Participants completed standard measures of self- and other-objectification. The results revealed that culture does effect self- and other-objectification, with objectification emerging more robustly in Australia, Italy, the UK, and the USA than it did in India, Japan, and Pakistan. These findings help support theoretical claims that culture matters for sexual objectification. Future research directions are discussed.
Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)125-152
JournalInternational Review of Social Psychology
Volume28
Publication statusPublished - 2015

Fingerprint

Dive into the research topics of 'Exploring the Role of Culture in Sexual Objectification: A Seven Nations Study'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

Cite this