Study Examines Impact of Sexual History on Societal Views of Women and Men

The sexual double standard (SDS) is a historical societal belief that women with multiple sexual partners are viewed less favorably than men with similar sexual history. A new study from researchers at the College of Southern Nevada and The Chicago School suggests SDS is fading from society, finding evidence of a reverse-SDS belief where women with multiple sexual partners are viewed more favorably than men with multiple sexual partners.

For their study, the authors recruited a sample of over 800 participants from the United States aged 18 to 69 and asked them to review information on the sexual history of a fictional person. Each participant’s assignment differed in gender, their number of previous sexual partners, and whether those partners were from casual or committed relationships. Upon reviewing their fictional individual’s history, the participants were asked for their opinions on the individual’s likability and whether they would engage in a platonic or sexual relationship with the individual.

The study revealed participants were most likely to unfavorably view individuals with a history of casual sexual partners and those with multiple previous partners. However, women with this type of historical sexual background were consistently evaluated more favorably than men of similar backgrounds. This finding suggests the historical prevalence of SDS has reversed, indicating a more wide-spread acceptance of women’s sexual history.

The authors believe more research is needed to confirm this societal shift. They caution that results could differ if participants were asked about real people rather than hypothetical examples. Additionally, future research could reveal differences in opinions from participants of different sexual backgrounds and age groups.