Not My Marriage
Third-Person Perception and the Effects of Legalizing Same-Sex Marriage
Abstract
Third-person perception (TPP) refers to the belief that others are more influenced by the media than you yourself are. This theory was extended to people’s perceptions of the effects of legalizing same-sex marriage (SSM). It was predicted that people might believe that legalizing SSM would affect others’ marriages, but not their own. It was also predicted that high right-wing authoritarians (RWAs) would display TPP more than low RWAs. Participants (135 undergraduate heterosexual students) estimated the effect of legalizing SSM on their own as well as other people’s attitudes about marriage and sexuality. Results indicated that participants displayed TPP. The hypothesis about a link between RWA and TPP was supported. Implications of these findings and future research directions are discussed.
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