Have you no shame? Infrahumanization of promiscuous sexual assault victims as moderated by dispositional and situational Just World orientation

Abstract

Among the many consequences stigmatized individuals face, infrahumanization (e.g., a subtle form of dehumanization) may be another novel consequence. We used experimental and quasi-experimental methods to examine whether victims of sexual assault (a stigmatized group) are infrahumanized, with the prediction that victims perceived as being sexually promiscuous will be infrahumanized more than sexually conservative ones. We predicted that, given prior work on the topic, individuals with a strong belief in a just world orientation would be most likely to show this effect. In three studies we show that promiscuous victims are infrahumanized relative to conservative victims (Study 1), this is moderated by dispositional belief in a just world orientation (Study 2), and the same effect occurs when we experimentally manipulate belief in a just world orientation (Study 3). We discuss these findings in terms of the relationship between stigma, dehumanization, and system justifying ideologies; that individuals who have a tendency to have a strong belief in a just world orientation or can be made to have such an orientation judge promiscuous victims as more to blame for their actions than is of particular importance for understanding not only the legal system but for the field of psychology more generally.