Masculinity Perceptions and Hostile Sexism Shape Evaluations of Plant-Based Meat Alternatives

Plant-based meat alternatives could play an important role in reducing global meat consumption. We argue, however, that psychological obstacles related to masculinity perceptions and sexist beliefs may hinder the acceptance of meat alternatives. Across two experiments (Experiment 1, N = 216 U.K. students; Experiment 2, N = 1,182 U.S. residents), omnivores rated identical images of dishes more negatively when labeled as plant-based rather than as regular meat. Furthermore, plant-based labels led to lower perceived masculinity of the dishes and evoked psychological avoidance reactions, which, in turn, were associated with more negative evaluations. Importantly, these effects were especially pronounced among individuals higher (vs. lower) in hostile sexist beliefs. The findings indicate that symbolic associations (meat-masculinity link) and sexist beliefs contribute to resistance toward plant-based meat alternatives. We discuss our findings in the wider field of sexism research and raise implications for marketing strategies aiming at increasing the appeal of meat substitutes.