The Psychological Impact of Misogynistic Music Lyrics on Women Exercisers

Music can have a powerful influence on exercise experiences, but lyrics—particularly misogynistic lyrics—may shape emotional and motivational responses in ways that are not yet fully understood. Misogynistic lyrics in music include derogatory statements and implications about women that could result in an adverse exercise experience. The purpose of the study was to examine the effect of misogynistic lyrics in rap music on self-reported negative affect, attentional focus, and intrinsic motivation during an exercise bout. In a counterbalanced order, active women (N = 30, Mage = 27.6 years) completed two separate exercise bouts while listening to music, one with misogynistic lyrics and another with non-misogynistic lyrics. Post-exercise questionnaires measuring affect, attentional focus, and intrinsic motivation were completed. Attitudes about violent and misogynistic content in rap music were also measured and used to divide participants into two groups (positive and negative violent misogynistic attitudes). A series of 2 (group) x 2 (condition) mixed factorial ANOVAs were used for the statistical analyses. There was a significant main effect of lyric condition for negative affect, with both groups reporting more negative affect in the misogynistic lyrics condition. In addition, there was a significant interaction effect for the intrinsic motivation components of interest/enjoyment and effort. Participants with a negative, violent, misogynistic attitude experienced less interest/enjoyment while exercising to music with misogynistic lyrics, and those with a positive, violent, misogynistic attitude reported more effort in the misogynistic lyrics condition. Findings highlight how important it is for exercisers and fitness professionals to consider the effects misogynistic lyrics in music can have on women and make informed decisions about music selections during exercise.