Masters Theses

Date of Award

8-2006

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science

Major

Communication

Major Professor

John W. Haas

Committee Members

Kenneth J. Levine, Michelle T. Violanti

Abstract

This study examined the judgments rendered by college students about the term "bitch." While the term was once considered to be hate speech towards women, popular culture has made the term relatively common, often giving it a comical meaning (Lee, 1998). Because much of our popular culture is aimed at the 18-24 age groups, it follows that the term "bitch" is often not considered to be hate speech by this generation. In addition, women are now gaining status in Western cultures, and are entering fields once dominated by men. Women who were once considered to be outcasts and "uppity" for entering the workforce are now the norm, causing a change in the term from being considered an insult (Herbst, 2001; Joreen, 1969; Sutton, 1995). This study investigated if there has been a shift in acceptability with the term "bitch" with college students ages 18-24.

This study consisted of a mixed-methods design that included both free-response and Likert scale survey items and was conducted in two phases during two separate semesters at a large southeastern university. Results revealed that participants could distinguish between conceptualizations of hate speech and offensive speech. In addition, the term "bitch" was considered to be both hate speech and offensive speech, for its meaning was dependent upon context. However, overall, females considered the term "bitch" to be more offensive than men.

Download
Files over 3MB may be slow to open. For best results, right-click and select "save as..."

Included in

Communication Commons

Share

COinS