Investigate the relationship between ambivalent sexist attitude and male dating preferences in Hong Kong: An analysis of “Kong girl” stereotype

This study aims to investigate “Kong girl” stereotype by probing the relationship between ambivalent sexist attitude and male dating preferences in two studies. In Study 1, 40 male participants nominated three qualities that could represent “Kong girls”. The most frequently listed qualities were all negative qualities included “materialistic”, “money-oriented”, “always expect others to comply”, “selfish” and “arrogant”. These qualities were used as materials for Study 2. Girl A (Kong girl) and Girl B (non-Kong girl) were presented in Study 2 to examine the male dating preferences. 89 participants aged from 20-30 were recruited randomly to participate in this research. To create a more realistic scenario, the listed qualities of Study 1 were embedded in an extracted dialogue between the girls and a speed dating agent. Participants were then asked to rate their extent of preferences and favorability towards the traits of the girls. Glick and Fiske’s (1996) ambivalent sexism inventory was also used to measure the ambivalent sexist attitude (constituted by hostile and benevolent sexist attitude). As predicted, the results indicated that hostile sexist attitude had a positive correlation with preferences for dating “Kong girl”. The results were discussed in terms of evolutionary theory and similar-attraction hypothesis. Further implications can be related to media and parental influences in terms of the “unique” cultural context of Hong Kong. All rights reserved.