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Abstract
The historical "Jezebel" stereotype labels Black American women as promiscuous and sexually manipulative. This study used vignettes to test whether or not individuals would rate a similar Black or White woman differently on Jezebel characteristics and what factors related to ratings including sexual double standard beliefs, permissive sexual attitudes, social dominance orientation, and implicit prejudice. Results indicated that participants did not overall rate the Black and White women differently on Jezebel characteristics, but individuals higher in implicit prejudice against Blacks did rate the Black woman as possessing more Jezebel stereotype characteristics than the White woman. Sexual double standard beliefs were the strongest predictive factor in ratings for both the Black and White women. Implications for Black women s sexual identity are discussed.
Background
Research supports the idea that Black women are often stereotyped as hypersexual, sexually manipulative, and promiscuous, and this sexual stereotype may negatively impact the perception of Black women as job candidates (Brown, Givens, & Monahan, 2005), may lead to victim-blaming of Black rape victims (Donovan, 2007), and may even be used to justify physical violence against Black women (Gillum, 2002). Thus, understanding the sexual stereotypes applied to Black women, as well as, identifying the factors that may lead some individuals to hold these racist and sexist sexual stereotypes is critically important. This paper evaluates the extent to which stereotypes of hypersexuality and promiscuity are applied differentially to Black versus White women, and it evaluates whether acceptance of these stereotypes is associated with other types of racist and sexist attitudes.
The Sexual Stereotyping of Black Women
The roots of Black women s current sexual image in the United States can be traced to slavery (Hill Collins, 2009). Enslaved women were routinely characterized as sensual, lascivious, and lewd as a justification for their rape at the hands of their owners. They were believed to possess a strong natural libido and to be sexually aggressive and manipulative, presumably allowing slave owners to force sex on their female slaves while claiming that the women wanted and consented to the sex. Whites referred to the prototypical hypersexual Black female slave as the Jezebel (White, 1999). This contrasts with images of White plantation women as virtuous, pious, self-sacrificing mothers, whose sexuality was tied almost entirely to...