Does the gender asterisk (“Gendersternchen”) as a special form of gender-fair language impair comprehensibility?

Abstract

Gender-fair language makes women and people of other genders, their interests, and achievements more visible. However, critics argue that gender-fair language impairs the comprehensibility and aesthetic appeal of texts. This study tests these assumptions specifically concerning the gender asterisk, a form of gender-fair language that makes people outside the male-female dichotomy typographically more visible in German. In two experiments with N = 133 and N = 110, subjects were randomly given one of three versions of a text, either with masculine-only forms (e.g. die Spieler*innen, ~“the fe*male players”), the gender asterisk in its plural form (e.g. die Spieler*innen, “the fe*male players”), or the gender asterisk in its singular form (e.g. der*die Spieler*in, “the*the fe*male player”). Subsequently, participants completed a comprehensibility questionnaire. Both experiments show that the gender asterisk in its singular form impairs comprehensibility, but only Experiment 1 shows an impairment due to its plural form.