Ambivalent Sexism Inventory
Also known as: ASI
The Ambivalent Sexism Inventory (ASI) is a 22-item self-report measure developed by Peter Glick and Susan T. Fiske in 1996 to assess both hostile and benevolent sexism toward women. The scale captures the dual nature of sexism: overtly antagonistic attitudes and paternalistic but ultimately restrictive attitudes that present themselves as protective. It has become widely used in gender studies and organizational research.
Key highlights
- Distinguishes hostile from benevolent sexism, revealing how protective attitudes can reinforce inequality
- Excellent reliability and validity across cultures and decades of research
- Relatively brief (22 items) for capturing a multidimensional construct
- Extensively validated across international samples, making cross-cultural research feasible
Intuition
This section is available to Pro members. Upgrade to Pro
How it works
This section is available to Pro members. Upgrade to Pro
When to use it
Use the ASI in research on gender attitudes, workplace discrimination, intimate relationships, and organizational culture. Suitable for college student samples, general adult populations, and employees. The scale is particularly useful when examining how both overt and subtle sexism affect policy support, hiring decisions, and intergroup relations.
Strengths & limitations
- Distinguishes hostile from benevolent sexism, revealing how protective attitudes can reinforce inequality
- Excellent reliability and validity across cultures and decades of research
- Relatively brief (22 items) for capturing a multidimensional construct
- Extensively validated across international samples, making cross-cultural research feasible
- The 6-point Likert scale may limit sensitivity at the lower end for low-sexism respondents
- Items may be somewhat transparent, inviting social desirability bias
- Benevolent sexism may not translate uniformly across cultures with different gender norms
Common pitfalls
This section is available to Pro members. Upgrade to Pro
Applications
This section is available to Pro members. Upgrade to Pro
Frequently asked
Can men and women score differently on the ASI?
Yes, research typically shows that men score higher on both hostile and benevolent sexism. However, women can and do endorse both forms, though often at lower levels. The scale is designed to measure attitudes regardless of respondent gender.
What is the practical difference between hostile and benevolent sexism?
Hostile sexism reflects overt antagonism—resentment of women's success or power. Benevolent sexism reflects a protective, paternalistic stance—seeing women as needing care and idealization but unsuited for leadership. Benevolent sexism may feel positive but maintains unequal power dynamics.
How has the ASI been adapted for use with other groups?
The ambivalent prejudice framework has been extended to create parallel instruments measuring attitudes toward other groups, including gay men and lesbians, the elderly, and people with disabilities, each with hostile and benevolent dimensions.
Can I use subscale scores separately or should I combine them?
The subscales are designed to be used separately to distinguish hostile from benevolent sexism. However, some research uses a combined score to measure overall ambivalent sexism. Always specify which approach you used in your reporting.
Sources
- 1.Glick, P., & Fiske, S. T. (1996). The Ambivalent Sexism Inventory: Differentiating hostile and benevolent sexism. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 70(3), 491–512.
You have read it. What now?
Cite this page
ScholarGate. (2026, June 3). Ambivalent Sexism Inventory. ScholarGate. https://scholargate.app/social-psychology/ambivalent-sexism-inventory