To Shake or not to Shake: The Role of Religiosity and Sexist Attitudes in the Decision to Shake Hands with Members of the Opposite Sex

One religious behavioral practice that sets some members of certain religious minorities apart from the majority of people in a Western multicultural context pertains to cross-gender handshaking. Although the handshake is a normative practice in the Western world, certain followers of Islam and Judaism do not engage in certain forms of cross-gender touch with non-family members. The current study (N = 231) examined attitudes toward cross-gender handshaking among young Muslim Canadians (N = 291). Specifically, we examined how religiosity (religious fundamentalism, religious identity, and behavioral practices), family norms, and acculturation to mainstream Canadian culture related to one’s general attitude toward cross-gender handshaking, as well as handshaking practices in different domains (e.g., at a job interview). We also explored whether views on cross-gender handshaking would be related to beliefs about gender roles (i.e., hostile and benevolent sexism). Participants completed an online survey including measures to assess the above-mentioned constructs. Overall, we found support for our predicted associations. Specifically, higher religious fundamentalism and stronger family norms of cross-gender handshaking abstinence was associated with less favorable views on cross-gender handshaking, whereas acculturation to Canadian culture was positively related to cross-gender handshaking. Importantly, we did not find any significant relationships between our measures of hostile or benevolent sexism with views regarding cross-gender handshaking, thus suggesting an independence of religiosity and sexism (contrary to stereotypical relating Islamic practices to sexism). The findings highlight the role of religion, mainstream culture, and family norms on cross-gender handshaking among young Muslim Canadians.