Arguments to Eliminate Gender Discrimination and to Achieve Equality in Sexuality

Double standards regarding the behavior of women and men still remain active in modern culture, despite significant social and cultural changes in the position of women in society, as well as freedom of expression. Therefore, stigmatization and shame around female sexuality are deeply rooted in culture and to this day creates prerequisites for labeling female sexuality. While various types of male sexual behavior are welcomed, women face condemnation and repression of the same sexual manifestation by society (Baumeister & Twenge, 2012). The problem of double standards around female sexuality is rooted in both a public and cultural context, reflecting the influence of evolutionary, cultural, and social attitudes on gender roles and female sexuality. Considering the problem of stigmatization of female sexuality, one can talk about traditional gender socialization, which dictates the very different demands on the sexual behavior of men and women (Wesche, Espinosa-Hernández, & Lefkowitz, 2016). In this regard, the question of what specific social, cultural, or evolutionary trends and concepts determine the difference that still exists in relation to male and female sexuality and what determines the stable position of double standards around sexuality in modern society. Thus, stigmatization of female sexuality is a phenomenon characteristic of both the past and modern society, revealing the multi-level interweaving of causes hidden in evolutionary, social, and cultural theories, and the search for a solution to this problem remains relevant.

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To assess the situation around female sexuality and come closer to understanding the causes of existing sexual double standards and stigmatization of female sexuality, it is necessary to turn to various views that can provide an explanation for this phenomenon from different points of view. Hence, established double sexual standards and gender differences create stable conditions in which active sexual behavior of men is acceptable and even necessary, while society expects a more passive manifestation of sexual behavior on the part of women (Wesche et al., 2016). Despite the fact that modern society, in which progress, the transformation of social constructs and feminist thinking spread, views on female and male sexuality continue to differ significantly, restricting and suppressing the behavior of women. Baumeister and Twenge (2012) argue that double sexual standard is a discrimination on the basis of female sex, which may be the result of a man’s desire to suppress a woman’s sexual activity in order to prevent her connection with another sexual partner and, as a result, the appearance of offspring from him in the context of prospects. This view makes it possible to understand that stigmatization of a woman’s sexual behavior may be rooted in antiquity and reflect the biological characteristics of humanity.

Nevertheless, in the modern world, when society is based on the principles of more complex than basic evolutionary processes that ensure reproduction and survival, the continuing suppression of the manifestation of female sexuality causes confusion and requires a deeper understanding of the causes of ongoing discrimination. In this regard, Baumeister and Twenge (2012) turn to another theory based on the theory of control, which explains the suppression of female sexuality by women themselves in order to maintain the value of sex with them and to maintain an advantageous position in society. One may notice that the first hypothesis, based on ancient human instincts and evolutionary processes, points to the male role in shaping the maintenance of double standards around the sexuality of women. However, the second hypothesis reverses the present-day feud of women, because it reflects the possibility of social exchange due to the suppression of the active sexual behavior of women, which indicates the responsibility of women themselves for the stable stereotypes and social constructs that inhibit the implementation of sexuality. Nevertheless, other theories and arguments about the reasons for the ongoing double sexual standard make it clear that the problem of suppressing female sexuality lies not in one reason, but in a number of complex factors originating at different times in human development and pursuing different motives. Therefore, Rudman, Fetterolf, and Sanchez (2012) indicate that modern men are more likely to support double sexual standards and control female sexuality than women, which allows them to support patriarchy and prevent sexual equality while retaining power over women. Proceeding from this, it can be assumed that the existence of different views on the reasons for maintaining the suppression of female sexuality does not exclude each other, but suggests a many-sided understanding of the complex and heterogeneous phenomenon of social and cultural stigmatization of active sexual manifestation from the side of women.

Despite the existence of various theories around understanding the reasons for the existence of double sexual standards in the modern world, it should be noted that all parties confirm the relevance of the phenomenon of stigmatization of female sexuality, indicating the complexity of this social construct. Hence, it becomes quite obvious that social norms restrict women in active sexual behavior, giving rise to persistent double standards of sexual morality and realizing large-scale suppression of women’s sexual pleasure (Baumeister & Twenge, 2012; Kreager et al., 2016; Wesche et al., 2016). Despite the different approaches in the search for the reasons for such an attitude to gender discrimination in relation to sexual life, all authors acknowledge the existence of this problem, as well as indicate the negative impact of double sexual standards on women and modern society as a whole. In this regard, despite the fact that the sexual revolution significantly changed the background of the standards of sexual behavior in general, it did not achieve sexual equality, because by shifting the focus from condemning the manifestation of female sexuality to marriage to condemnation of open and diverse sex life of women (Kreager et al., 2016). Moreover, the existence of gender discrimination in sex has many grounds, ranging from evolutionary theory to complementing economically and socially beneficial positions. Thereby, another prerequisite for suppressing female sexuality lies in rooted cultural values, especially religious ones, reflecting the male influence on the evaluation of female behavior, since religion is characterized by male dominance (Baumeister & Twenge, 2012). Based on this, the current situation around the views on male and female sexuality is unequal social views, emphasizing the unrelenting force of stigmatization of female sexual behavior.

Nevertheless, despite the universal recognition of the ongoing suppression of women in the manifestation of sexual desires and actions, various studies differ in understanding the underlying causes and prerequisites for the emergence of this stigma and for its modern implementation, which underlines the ambiguous and complex nature of the stigmatization of female sexuality as well as the relevance of this phenomenon. Thereby, Baumeister and Twenge (2012) study, which addresses two hypotheses, among which an evolutionary approach points to masculine influence on existing double sexual standards, as well as female control, seeking to preserve the value of sex with women, tends to believe that it is women are the supporters of this stigmatization today. This position also reflects the cultural background of stigma, emphasizing the restriction of women’s sexual behavior compared to men based not on reproductive pressure, but on social norms that control women.

However, other researchers do not share this confidence, opening up alternative views on the control of female sexuality. Thus, other studies show that the same active sexual behavior of men causes their characterization as strong players, while the same behavior on the part of women leads to their evaluation as “sluts” (Kreager et al., 2016). These observations do not exclude the fact that women are the main party supporting and promoting double sex standard for the sake of maintaining respect for them and the opportunity to have an advantageous social and economic position. However, this may also indicate a significant role of the patriarchal tendencies discussed earlier, supporting the oppression of female sexual behavior. Appealing to the concept of compulsory heterosexuality can also support the view of the influence of patriarchy on the formation of a negating attitude towards the active manifestation of female sexuality. Accordingly, compulsory heterosexuality limits a woman to alternative sexuality, making the intimate relationship between a woman and a woman an attractive phenomenon for the male gaze, depriving the woman of her independence in a similar experience (Boyer & Galupo, 2015). Based on this, it can be said that the stigmatization of the sexual behavior of women today extends not only to their relationships with men but also with the same gender, emphasizing the transformation of established cultural and social norms. Speaking about the most effective theory around the prerequisites for the suppression of female sexuality, it is difficult to clearly identify one, since the myths created by both men and women become the basis for double sexual standards (Rudman et al., 2012). Thereupon, the problem of oppression of female sexuality is rooted far into evolutionary, cultural, and social contexts, representing an ambiguous and still acute phenomenon that requires a deeper understanding for the elimination of gender discrimination and the achievement of equality in sexuality.

Conclusion

Therefore, considering the positions of women and men in matters of sexual behavior, it cannot be denied that the social requirements for the two genders differ significantly, maintaining the oppression of female secularism and establishing sexual passivity as the norm for women. Various studies shed light on this phenomenon, offering a multifaceted explanation of the stigmatization of female sexuality, both past, and present. While one position considers the evolutionary theory as an explanation of the need to suppress female sexuality by men for the sake of offspring, other parties point out the significant influence of patriarchal attitudes that form social and cultural norms that condemn active female sexuality. One way or another, it becomes clear that the suppression of female sexuality remains relevant today, emphasizing gender inequality and the power of double sexual standards in modern society. Nevertheless, the question of which trends continue to support the oppression of female sexuality today, when the results of the sexual and feminist revolution have achieved significant results, remains to be found. It is likely that a deeper study of contemporary research around the suppression of female sexuality, as well as an appeal to feminist theories, may shed light on this question.