Perceived inequity predicts prejudice towards age-gap relationships
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Perceived inequity predicts prejudice towards age-gap relationships Brian Collisson 1
&
Luciana Ponce De Leon 1
# Springer Science+Business Media, LLC, part of Springer Nature 2018
Abstract Age-gap couples often elicit negative stereotypes and prejudice. According to social exchange and equity theories, we predicted that prejudice towards age-gap couples may stem from perceived relational inequity. We hypothesized that age-gap, as compared to age-matched, couples were perceived as less equitable and, as a result, less liked. To test these hypotheses, people evaluated, and inferred the equity of, age-gap and age-matched relationships. We found that age-gap, as compared to age-matched, couples were more disliked and perceived as less equitable. Within age-gap relationships, older men and women were perceived as reaping greater rewards than their younger partners. Importantly, perceived inequity predicted prejudice towards age-gap, but not age-matched, couples. In exploratory analyses, age-gap couples consistently elicited significantly more prejudice than other types of couples. Implications for age-gap relationships and future research are discussed. Keywords Romantic relationship . Age . Prejudice . Age-gap . Cougar . Cradle robber
Within romantic relationships, age is more than a number. Couples who differ in age - commonly referred to as age-gap or May–December relationships - often elicit negative stereotypes and prejudice (Banks and Arnold 2001; Lehmiller and Agnew 2011). For example, people often denigrate those who date someone much younger or older than themselves by calling them Bcougars^ and Bcradle robbers,^ or Bgold-diggers^ and Bsugar daddies/mommas.^ Such negative stereotypes suggest that age-gap relationships are inequitable, with the one partner benefitting more than the younger partner. Indeed, Bcougar^ implies that older women may be reaping greater rewards by predatorily preying upon younger men. Likewise, Bcradle robber^ implies that older men are thieves, benefiting by taking younger, more valuable women to whom they may not have access. Terms, such as Bgold-digger^ and Bsugar daddy/momma^ imply that the younger partner is taking advantage of the older partner’s financial resources. In these instances, the younger or older partner within an age-gap relationship may aggressively pursue an agediscrepant partner because such relationships are unlikely to form otherwise. Research on assortative mating suggests
* Brian Collisson [email protected] 1
Department of Psychology, Azusa Pacific University, 901 E. Alosta Ave, Azusa, CA 91702, USA
similar partners are more likely to form and maintain relationships than dissimilar partners (Berscheid et al. 1971; Bryne and Nelson 1964; Crow and Felsenstein 1968). Certainly, cultural differences exist regarding acceptable age gaps within relationships (United Nations 2000). Nonetheless, within North America, the average age difference among married couples is small (2.30 years; United Nations 2000). Within the United States, 60% of married couples have
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