Effects of benevolent sexism (BS) were investigated on math motivation
in 8th and 9th grade girls in Japan. They (N=100) read one of two
scenarios where math teacher praised them for high performance on a math
exam, by saying, “Good job!” In the BS condition, the teacher added an
extra remark, “Despite being a girl.” After reading the scenarios, girls
reported their emotions, math motivations, their own BS attitudes, and
self-esteem. Girls in the BS condition (vs. control condition) showed
lower math motivation, lower positive emotions and more negative
emotions. Emotions mediated the effect of the BS remark on math
motivation. While girls’ BS attitudes did not have a significant effect,
those with low self-esteem were severely, negatively affected by the BS
remark.