Though many critics of the genre claim rap causes sexism, study authors Michael Cobb and Bill Boettcher of the North Carolina State University, say the connection between the two is unlikely to be cause and effect.
According to the study published in the Journal Of Applied Social Psychology, college students who were asked to listen to rap had significantly higher levels of reported sexism.
In the study, males who listened to any rap music were more sexist than those in the control group even though sometimes the rap lyrics did not include sexist language. Females in the study also reported higher levels of sexism when rap music was not sexist in its language, but their endorsement of sexist beliefs was the lowest after listening to rap with overtly sexist language.
"It's like hearing the word 'chocolate' and suddenly having a craving for a candy bar," says Cobb.
"Sexism is embedded in the culture we live in, and hearing rap music can spontaneously activate pre-existing awareness of sexist beliefs," Cobb continued.
"We feel it's unlikely that hearing lyrics in a song creates attitudes that did not previously exist. Instead, rap music, fairly or unfairly, has become associated with misogyny, and even minimal exposure to it can automatically activate these mental associations and increase their application, at least temporarily."
To measure the association between rap and sexism, students were recruited to take part in a study and were randomly assigned to one of three experimental conditions.
In the control group, students' levels of sexism were measured, but they did not listen to any music.
In other news…
A second condition required students to listen to non-sexist rap music, while a third required them to listen to a rap song with explicitly sexist language. In these two conditions, students' levels of sexism were measured after listening to the music, but they were unaware of the true purpose of the study.
Participants in the group assigned to listen to rap with sexist lyrics heard the song Kill You by Eminem.
The group listening to rap with non-sexist lyrics heard Sabotage by the Beastie Boys, a song that has a similar rhythm to Kill You, but is devoid of overt sexist lyrics
Males were deemed to be more sexist across all three conditions--even those without any sexist lyrics involved.
"At worst, we could conclude that rap music might exacerbate pre-existing tendencies, but so too can other genres of music and varied forms of entertainment. There is not much evidence in our study to support an argument in favor of censorship," said Cobb.
COMMENTS
FUCK THIS SHIT
EVERYTHING IN OUR SOCIETY TRIGGERS SEXISM
Everyone's Gettin Too Fuckin Sensitive, Sexism Can Only Rise... Fuck YOur Study
they alwasy putting stupid money into bullshit studies, wasting our tax dollars, its a conspiracy by the government people
read it again, this study is good for hip hop, it proves that hip hop is no the cause of sexism, which is what many people outside of our culture beleive.
Scoop it aint Tax Dollars they are spending it fuckin School Money
North Carolina State University
naw but i was referring to studies in general. im sure they got money from the gov also duuuh
Y THE FUC DID I JUSS READ THE WORD SEXIST LIKE 50 FUCCIN TIMES....i mean there study was like sayin...we did a study on tobacco and it causes Cancer..WHAT DA FUCC you dont like cigaretes dont smoke you, you dont like Rap Dont listen..god damn....that university sure bread a group of Albert Einsteins
Co-sign^
If you have a good role models in your life you can hear kill, bitch, nigger, etc and still be a regular person. The media is always trying to make rap out for being the evil in society but it's ok to see someones head shot off in a movie. If you're going to attack something attack everything. Don't single out rap music, rappers or black music period.
This must be a study put together by Bill 0'Rilley and friends.
And sexism is triggered by society as a whole. America is so fucked up cause we try and limit everything a person does here but in the other countries where its ok to be sexy and you can legally carry a gun all the major crimes are lower. Wonder why is that??? It's cause the people who we elect to office have shitted on us for the last century or so. Obama won't even be able to change that because he aint exactly listening to 50 or Diddy on his iPod.
how do u know hez not?? i doubt it but he could...
and 4 the article...shit 'the music dont make u, u make the music' as in u take in what u hear...
clint eastwood james bond, arnold ,movies trigger sexism goverment dont like to see people inpowered and hip hop makes people feel inpowered, its inspiring and motivating and babylon cant have that!
Rest of the world >>>> America.
first racism, random acts of war, misguiding history books, the idolization of irrelevant 'celebrities,' then sexism.
i smell the one child policy....
people NEED to place blame on something...too bad its the thing we like
well shit r music does talk bout alot of sexism shit. i guess dats y i listin to ppl like nas ect..
aint no fuckin rap song influence my morals and beliefs i dnt know bout yall niggas but my mama,granny and the streets raised me ya dig! not no fuckin jay-z song!
4sho damn/
What a brilliant response. When did you drop out of school?
^^^ lmfao
i aint drop out asshole go give ya birth certificate back and kill yaself
Cosign Birdman. There have been sexist views since Jesus walked the earth. Drugs was bein sold way before rap was even thought of. Muthafuckas blamin everything on rap, but what about all the violence and sexist shows that be comin on primetime television? Bad parenting is whats to blame
I hope your closer to 17 than 30...b/c then I'll know you're not completely an idiot. If you think that hip hop, the prevailing genre of popular music today, which gets played a lot more on the radio, tv, and the Internet than Scarface or other violent movies that you cite has no causative impact on attitudes of the youth today, then you obviously don't understand social pscychology or marketing. There's a reason that McDonald's markets primarily to kids, because their the most impressionable and can be influenced to think a certain way and like certain things, more so than adults who have already formed their attitudes and viewpoints through life experiences. You need to stop defending the undefendable, just because your favorite rapper has no concept of social responsibility or the impact of his or her work, does not mean that you have to buy into it. No rap is not the sole cause of sexism, but if it has no effect, then why do chose to debate me in unintelligeable ghetto slang if you're a grown man?
^^^ paralyzed individuals denominate the perpendicular refractionization of the smatchification. With automechanical manifestation of circulatory literature inside of a personalization proclaimation circumcision of the long division. Perhaps the lubrication coincides with the ejaculation of the population. For those individuals who procrastinate the situation before the masturbation of the plantation - vacation along the haitian space walk of the medula oblong gatta from the terminal asiatic propalactic african illmatic.
Birdman has said many times that his fav rapper is Nas.
Easily THE MOST AWARE rapper of social responsibility.
"why do chose to debate me in unintelligeable ghetto slang"
Your own unintelligeable ass needs to utilize spellcheck.
I would never speak up for the next nigga. I had to make an exception for you because you sound like a fucking wanna-be professor of enlightenment.
I cannot stand when niggas try to talk down on the next dude because he ghetto. Who the fuck is you nigga? If you understand guerilla marketing and social awareness so much than why you on the same website as us? Tryin to sound all smart and shit. Fuckin square. You the one makin hip-hop heads look bad! What the fuck you really know nigga?
EXACTLY this nigga dnt even know me but he quick to put a stereotype on me huh??? lol it aint that im defendin the images some songs portray but u cant put all the blame on rap prossefor ogilvie ass nigga
WTF!!
How can Nas be Easily THE MOST AWARE rapper of social responsibility
Do u know how many rhymes Nas got about pushin weight and killin people???
He actually wrote a rhyme about fartin in a bitches mouth and gettin honey licked outta his ass crack!
How can he easily be more socially responsible than a Talib Kweli or a Mos def??
Nas is far from bein' the most socially conscious!!!
^^^ you dont know shit dude.
Nas been around twice as long as kweli and been making songs like black girl lost and I know I can since the early 90s. He kicks a murder rap every now and then and I aint sayin thats right but what he does for black culture is immeasurable. Before you stick your foot in your mouth by disagreeing with me for the sake of disagreement, do your homework lil nigga. Nas has been at the threshold of black empowerment for a minute now.
Once again gethip you dance around the actual topic!
I know about black girl lost(its also a Donald Goines novel) and a few songs after that a song called shootouts comes on. Nas aint never even been in no shoot out!
You tell me how a nigga who as u say kicks a few murder raps evry now and then is Easily THE MOST AWARE rapper of social responsibility? He's not. U wrong. learn to admit it when u wrong.
You'll have a much happier life!
Hey I thought chu wasnt talkin to me no more?
Aint nobody just tryna disagree witchu nigga!
I always give u props when u say somethin dat makes sense!
But callin a nigga who names himself after one of the most ruthless and violent drug kingpins in history the most socially aware is a dumb thing to say!
Its not personal nigga! U said somethin dumb!
Just like when I called Pimp C chad miller instead of chad butler and yall niggas checked me!
I didnt try not to look wrong somehow! I admitted dat I made a mistake and dat I said somethin dumb.
Dats what grown men do....U should try it
THANKS ALOT RAP MUSIC NOW IM SEXISM
sexist*
Rap music also made me dumb :(
LMFAO!
Thisi article is gay where the bitches with the big booties at lol
Fuck that shit blaming everything on rap music. Like Jay Z said scarface the movie did more than scarface the rapper to me. Once you put on the T.V. you can see all type of sexiest things on. You do not have to even turn to cable, your regular channel 2,4,5,7,9 and 11 shows, show it all and say it all. You can't even let your little kids watch regular T.V. So stop blaming rap for the problems with the world.
And by the way Hard Core Rock Music makes the young white kids shoot up the schools and hurt innocent kids but you do not hear congress trying to ban that SHIT !
Does it really surprise you that Jay Z would take in my opinion such a ridiculous position? Follow the money...it's in his financial interests to defend his lyrics. Let's not be so simple in our thinking and really analyze the situation.
^COSIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIGN why not blame rock for all these kids shooying up the damn shcools?
There's a ton of sexism in rap music especially the videos. Women are constantly objectified and not uplifted in the video. I'm a fan, but let's keep it real. Kanye's West's "Flashing Lights" video would be a recent example of that. Some listeners attitudes are affected by that, especially the youth. So yes, it's not the sole cause of sexism, but it does heavily influence popular culture which of course influences the youth.
You must not watch rock videos. They are women in swim wear and dancing and acting a fool. Why nobody talks about that. O because that music is focus on white kids, who are the most kind and gentle young adults in the country - YEA RIGHT !
Objectification of women occurs in film, video games, on Television and in other types of music. Rap music videos are not at all exceptional in this case.
Sexist attitudes are spoken through the lyrics of many songs but:
The dialogue in a rap song is a work of art and any reading of that encounters problems; is the rapper acting out a part when he or she speaks? Most famous rappers talk about doing things which are evidently not true; their rapping persona is partially, if not wholly, an act; so when they make sexist comments in songs it is not necessarily they cannot necessarily be said to have meant it as a true statement of their own belief.
If you then claim that their rapping persona should not make a sexist comment you would have to also claim that no actor can portray a murderer, rapist, wife beater, or any other wicked person.
If your response is that many youth listen to rap music and cannot distinguish between the reality of the artist and the persona of the rapper, then it is no argument against rap music; it is simply an admittance that parents are not taking adequate notice of the culture their children consume. If you think rappers should not say anything that might badly influence an idiot or child then you are wrong; that would be a levelling of artistic content to the lowest denominator. I would agree to an age-rating system for music, just as there is with film and video games, but adults should be allowed to listen to whatever they like.
I'd also like to point out that the portrayal of women in rap music is far from unanimously sexist; Pac and Kanye West have both made beautiful songs about their mothers, as well as sympathetic portrayals of other women, and Eminem has done so about his daughter ('Dear Mama', 'Hey Mama', 'Can you get away', 'Mama's just a little girl', 'Keep Ya Head Up', 'Hailie's Song') How come 'Dear Mama', one of the greatest hip hop songs ever imo, is ignored in any discussion of sexism in hip hop?
I'm not even saying that sexism shouldn't be criticised when it appears within hip-hop; I just think that certain artists should be criticised rather than 'hip-hop' as a whole. And of course, some artists may be making sexist comments while not worthy of criticism, while others are. I'll go so far as to point out Dr. Dre as a serious misogynist.
Sorry if this argument is long-winded and badly structured; the comment box doesn't expand as you write so it's easy to lose track. I'd be willing to discuss this issue further with you via e-mail, on the forums or via instant messenger if you are interested.
yo word to machuman
OMG Rap is the fucking reason to everything. I didnt even read the article and I already know what its about.
*yawwwn*.........so metal music that worships the devil is good music? sex,drugs entertainment exist in movies, tv shows,video games,commercials,clothing and so on, and this article is pointless such as saying "ALL! black people live in the projects and are uneducated", it's untrue and biased...get at the kid ~1~
Who doesn't like like alot of half naked chicks in all these videos, the thing is im startin to see it in every video. Shit these rappers might as well start a porno film series like snoop dogg did or either put more ideals than that in their videos.
why is this new??? of course hip-hop triggers sexism, i mean im a fan(i am on this site) but i have to keep it real, hip hop OBVIOUSLY objectifies women at times ....should hip hop be singled out as a genre , of course not, they're many other things that im sure have a similar effect on young people's minds as hip-hop, but hip hop is an easy target. Its very foolish to beleive that the governement is gunning for hip hop because it is empowering people. think about while it is true that many of the perps involved in the school shootings listen to heavy metal, the life loss in those cases doesnt even compare to the amount of people killed anully in the poverty stricken neighborhoods of America, where hip hop is eaisly the music of choice...strong minded individuals enjoy hip hop and can listen to it withou being influenced however they're are very impressionable, and not to mention stupid, people who are influenced by it. Having said that it is more the responsibility of parents to manage what their kids have access to....
put some effort into studies people care about ike curing diseases and shit not rap music and sexism fucking assholes
Bitches ain't shit but hoes and tricks. These bitches need to shut the fuck up and get back into the kitchen. Like damn bitch my dinner aint gonna cook itself. I'm a listen to doggystyle now and think about how superior I am to women. I'd say that I'm afraid some dumb bitch is gonna get mad at this post, but we all know that they can't read. Especially when they're making my dinner...
Sexist?
"So I just, throw up a middle finger and let it linger
longer than the rumor that I was stickin it to Christina
Cause if I ever stuck it to any singer in showbiz
it'd be Jennifer Lopez, and Puffy you know this!
I'm sorry Puff, but I don't give a fuck if this chick was my own mother I still fuck her with no rubber and cum inside her and have a son and a new brother at the same time and just say that it ain't mine, what's my name?"-Eminem
Which by the way at that time we all thought that shit cuz JLO was the flyest out..Eminem only said what we were thinking but put the words together more brilliantly!!!
LMAO Damn i dont remember that verse but that shit is crzy...I MISS EM
The whole damn entertainment industry triggers sexism... Why single out Hip-Hop?
I love rap music and I aint sexist
Nobody has more respect for these Hoes then me
Thats right folks I repsect bitches to the utmost!
You gotdamn right I do!!
Oh Yeah I almost forgot*
Fuck Gethip
YEA I ADMIT THAT MARSHALL MATHERS LP WAS RAW, EMINEM WAS SPITTIN SOME CRAZY,VIOLENT,AND OUT OF CONTROL SHIT........MAYBE THATS WHY ITS ONE OF THE BEST HIPHOP/RAP ALBUMS OF ALL-TIME.
YO DAT MARSHALL MATHERS LP WAS DA SHIT BAK THEN MAN!...IM BOUT TO BUMP DAT SHIT RITE NOW!
Thats My Shit!
"When I was just a little baby boy,
my momma used to tell me these crazy things
She used to tell me my daddy was an evil man,
she used to tell me he hated me
But then I got a little bit older
and I realized, she was the crazy one
But there was nothin I could do or say to try to change it
cause that's just the way she was
They said I can't rap about bein' broke no more
They ain't say I can't rap about coke no more
(AHHH!) Slut, you think I won't choke no whore
'til the vocal cords don't work in her throat no more?!
(AHHH!) These motherfuckers are thinkin, I'm playin
Thinkin I'm sayin this shit cause I'm thinkin it just to be sayin it
(AHHH!) Put your hands down bitch, I ain't gon' shoot you
I'ma pull YOU to this bullet, and put it THROUGH you
(AHHH!) Shut up slut, you're causin' too much chaos
Just bend over and take it like a slut, okay Ma?
"Oh, now he's raping his own mother, abusing a whore,
snorting coke, and we gave him the Rolling Stone cover?"
You god damn right BITCH, and now it's too late
I'm triple platinum and tragedies happened in two states
I invented violence, you vile venomous volatile bitches
vain Vicadin, vrinnn Vrinnn, VRINNN! {*chainsaw revs up*}
Texas Chainsaw, left his brains all
danglin from his neck, while his head barely hangs on
Blood, guts, guns, cuts
Knives, lives, wives, nuns, sluts
Chorus:
Bitch I'm-a kill you! You don't wanna fuck with me!
Girls neither, you ain't nuttin' but a slut to me!
Bitch I'm-a kill you! You ain't got the balls to beef
We ain't gon' never stop beefin' I don't squash the beef
You better kill me! I'm-a be another rapper dead
for poppin off at the mouth with shit I shouldn't-a said
But when they kill me I'm bringin the world with me
Bitches too! You ain't nuttin' but a girl to me
.. I said you don't, wanna fuck with Shady (cause why?)
Cause Shady, will fuckin' kill you (ah-haha)
I said you don't, wanna fuck with Shady (why?)
Cause Shady, will fuckin' kill you..
Bitch I'ma kill you! Like a murder weapon, I'm-a conceal you
in a closet with mildew, sheets, pillows and film you
Fuck with me, I been through hell, shut the hell up!
I'm tryin to develop these pictures of the Devil to sell 'em
I ain't "acid rap," but I rap on acid
Got a new blow-up doll and just had a strap-on added
WHOOPS! Is that a subliminal hint? NO!
Just criminal intent to sodomize women again
Eminem offend? NO! Eminem'll insult
And if you ever give in to him, you give him an impulse
to do it again, THEN, if he does it again
you'll probably end up jumpin' out of somethin' up on the 10th
(Ahhhhhhhh!) Bitch I'm-a kill you, I ain't done this ain't the chorus
I ain't even drug you in the woods yet to paint the forest
A bloodstain is orange after you wash it three or four times
in a tub but that's normal' ain't it Norman?
Serial killer hidin murder material
in a cereal box on top of your stereo
Here we go again, we're out of our medicine
out of our minds, and we want in yours, let us in
Chorus (first line starts "Or I'ma kill you!")
Eh-heh, know why I say these things?
Cause lady's screams keep creepin' in Shady's dreams
And the way things seem, I shouldn't have to pay these shrinks
this eighty G's a week to say the same things TWEECE!
TWICE? Whatever, I hate these things
Fuck shots! I hope the weed'll outweigh these drinks
Motherfuckers want me to come on their radio shows
just to argue with 'em cause their ratings stink?
FUCK THAT! I'll choke radio announcer to bouncer
from fat bitch to all seventy-thousand pounds of her
from principal to the student body and counselor
from in-school to before school to out of school
I don't even believe in breathin' I'm leavin air in your lungs
just to hear you keep screamin for me to ZIP it
OKAY, I'M READY TO GO PLAY
I GOT THE MACHETE FROM O.J.
I'M READY TO MAKE EVERYONE'S THROATS ACHE
You faggots keep eggin' me on
til I have you at knifepoint, then you beg me to stop?
SHUT UP! Give me your hands and feet
I said SHUT UP when I'm talkin' to you
YOU HEAR ME? ANSWER ME!
Chorus (first line starts "Or I'ma kill you!"
ninth line starts "Bitch I'ma kill you!")
[Eminem]
Hahaha, I'm just playin ladies
You know I love you"
Definitely some of da sickest shit Ive ever heard in my Life!!!!!!!!
Dat whiteboy is a fuckin beast!!!
Not too many niggas on dat level!!!!
I dont think rap causes any more sexism than TV already has
HAAAAAHAAAA!!!! This shits funny. If it walks like one, talks like one, and smells like one, it is one. This is just another bullshit story to give hip hop a black eye. I guess hip hop aint dead, these peoples scared of hip hop.
EVERYTHING in tha world thats wrong is hip hop faults... yall aint kno?
(sarcasm)
'gangsta rap made me do it' - ice cube... says it all
HUH,....It's snowy outside..ITS HIP HOPS FAULT...Global Warming threatens the ozone layer...ITS HIP HOPS FAULT...Why dont people call out country music as being depressing, and probably the cause of 300 redneck suicides each year???
I cant believe that time was wasted by a human being on such a matter.
Will people stop at nothing to point the finger at hip-hop music?
Why dont they do a study on death metal or country music to see what kind of responses it triggers?
This is fucking sad. These people for sure need to get out of the lab next weekend and go hunt down some pussy.
The detroit pistons are going to win a championship this year.
iv been listenin to hip hop since i was like 11 12 and not once did i look down on a bitch even if i heard a whole song bout it, that was until i got fucked over by a bitch, onmore than one occasion. now when that kinda shit triggers in my mind its cuz i know what some these rappers is talkin bout. it aint rap that make u look down on bitches, its bitches that make u look down on bitches. my opinion.
lmfao, not once did u refer to a woman as anythign other then a bitch hahahah
On second thought. Maybe the study was on to something...
Without a doubt it was on to something. There are a few older hip-hop heads on this site that will attest to the change in subject matter over the ages. There was a time when the music was more than just bitches, cars, jewelry, and more bitches.
It is naive to think that hip hop, which is the music of choice for a vast majority of americans (some claim it some don't, but no doubt they listen), doesn't affect the environment/culture of its fans. But I wouldn't place it as the root cause of all the problems. It has contributed but in no way is the sole source.
p.s. not all women is hoes. just the hoes is hoes.
How do you differentiate? The first things young dudes like you think or say to your boy is "i'm a go holla at this bitch" yet you know nothing of her.
lol we got lil kids supermannin hoes
20 yrs old. aint no kid.
bitch woman whateva lol. its an impulse term.
it does do somethin to da younger kids so i dig dis cuz i've seen da kids
This story is nonsense. But why is Em's album cover the banner for this story? I don't get it.
Why didn't they examine all music, as a matter of fact all media genres(movies, video games, etc.)? Again they just try to single out rap and associate it with negativity.
If this keeps up pretty soon rap will be illegal, fuck around catch a case for a Nas CD B,..lol Damn I mean shit sounds mad funny, but in reality it shit ain’t. Niggaz is mad lucky we have freedom of speech in our amendments, if we didn’t, this hip hop shit would have been a wrap right after 1998.
Lets hope Obama changes some of those old farts prospection’s on Rap music, cuz u know Obama’s black ass be bumpin some of it,…hell for all I know he could be droping the N word left right when he’s chilling with his Niggaz.