“It appears that by showing amusement with sexist and anti-gay humor, such men can distance themselves from the traits they want to disconfirm,” O’Connor explained in a statement. Her research suggests that when a straight guy makes a joke about what society thinks constitutes being “gay” - such as liking Coldplay - he’s reaffirming his sense of masculinity, as if to say: Only gay people like Coldplay, and I don’t like Coldplay, so I’m definitely not gay.
Emma O’Connor’s latest study, published in the journal Sex Roles, suggests that the straight men who engage in these sorts of sexist jokes do so to reaffirm their sense of masculinity. If Rogen and Rudd are simply representing what average straight guys look like when they’re out of earshot of anyone remotely woke, then average straight guys everywhere are in dire need of some self-reflection, a psychologist at Western Carolina University argues.
In the scene, Seth Rogen and Paul Rudd one-up one another with “You know how I know you’re gay?” one-liners until Rudd delivers the final blow: “You like Coldplay.” A classic exchange in the film The 40 Year Old Virgin captures the casually sexist humor that continues to pervade pop culture.
