The results of three experiments supported the hypothesis that exposure to
sexist humor increases tolerance of sex discrimination among people high in
hostile sexism. The results of Experiment I revealed that for participants
high in hostile sexism exposure to sexist jokes led to greater tolerance o
f a sexist event in comparison to exposure to neutral jokes or nonhumorous
sexist communications. The results of Experiments 2 and 3 suggest that the
activation of a noncritical mindset presumed to be a natural byproduct of h
umorous communication is critical for sexist humor to increase tolerance of
sex discrimination. When sexist jokes were interpreted in a serious, criti
cal manner; either as a result of explicit instructions (Experiment 2) or c
ontextual cues such as the group membership of the joke teller (Experiment
3), the effects of sexist humor were nullified among participants high in h
ostile sexism.