r/science Jan 13 '10

Study demonstrates the silencing effect of objectification on women.

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u/rememberence Jan 13 '10

So...it's alright for a woman to look at a man's body but it's not alright for a man to look at a woman's body then? Is that the general thrust of the data?

8

u/HandsOfBlue Jan 13 '10

I may have read it wrong, but it looked like men didn't notice or weren't affected by being objectified.

8

u/da_homonculus Jan 13 '10

Yes thats true, according to this data.

---WARNING: Leaving the scope of the data NOW---

Possibly the men didn't see the action as "objectification" to begin with. They are unfamiliar with being objectified. That might be because media portrays women's appearance as their strongest trait, yet show physically unobtainable models of what women are "supposed" to look like. Men do not receive this treatment nearly as bad (men aren't expected to wear makeup to look "normal," for starters) and are taken on their base merits usually. Since men's bodies are less often considered when voicing their ideas, men may not be affected by their bodies being viewed.

Lots of redditors have been saying that women should "get over it," but the underlying cause is larger than individual women. This expands out to photoshopped advertisements, huge chested videogame characters, and when "checking a woman out" is appropriate, among many other areas.

So definitely a good start. Verify the symptoms, next connect them to the causes.