Kachel Sven, Bloch Tibor, Bosson Jennifer K, Lorenz Lea L, Steffens Melanie C
Department of Social, Environmental, and Economic Psychology, University of Kaiserslautern-Landau, Landau, Germany.
Department of Languages, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland.
Front Psychol. 2024 Feb 15;15:1296261. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1296261. eCollection 2024.
Gun violence is a serious problem in the United States and elsewhere and more so among men than women. We conducted an experiment to examine if men whose masculinity was threatened are more attracted to guns than non-threatened men, presumably to compensate for the threat. After completing a gender knowledge test, men ( = 168) randomly received either false masculinity threatening (experimental condition) or masculinity affirming (control condition) feedback. Subsequently, we measured men's attitudes toward guns and their choice of a gun-range voucher. Men whose masculinity was threatened (vs. affirmed) showed more positive attitudes toward guns and were more likely to choose the voucher. Both effects were statistically significant when the whole sample was analyzed and when very strict exclusion criteria were applied. However, when data exclusions were based on a suspicion check, effects were statistically significant only when a covariate was included (i.e., social dominance orientation, patriotism, or experience with guns). We discuss reasons for this mixed evidence, including the possibility that suspicion regarding the masculinity feedback could itself be a compensatory reaction to threat.
枪支暴力在美国及其他地区都是一个严重的问题，在男性中更为突出。我们进行了一项实验，以检验男性气概受到威胁的男性是否比未受威胁的男性更倾向于枪支，推测这是为了应对威胁。在完成一项性别知识测试后，168名男性被随机给予虚假的男性气概威胁（实验条件）或男性气概肯定（对照条件）反馈。随后，我们测量了男性对枪支的态度以及他们对射击场代金券的选择。男性气概受到威胁（而非得到肯定）的男性对枪支表现出更积极的态度，并且更有可能选择代金券。在对整个样本进行分析以及应用非常严格的排除标准时，这两种效应在统计学上均具有显著性。然而，当基于怀疑检查进行数据排除时，只有在纳入协变量（即社会支配取向、爱国主义或枪支使用经验）时，效应才在统计学上具有显著性。我们讨论了这种混合证据的原因，包括对男性气概反馈的怀疑本身可能是对威胁的一种补偿反应的可能性。
