Stigma and Sexual Orientation: Understanding Prejudice against Lesbians, Gay Men and Bisexuals

292 Pages·1997·16.855 MB·English

by  Gregory M. Herek

Stigma and Sexual
Orientation
Understanaing Prejudice Against
Lesbians, Gay Men, and Bisexuals
editor
Gregory M. Herek

Stigma and Sexual
Orientation
Ps Y-CH'O LOGEC AL PEPiRe GeS aie
ON. LESBIAN AND GAY ISSUES
editors
Beverly Greene
Gregory M. Herek
v1. Lesbian and Gay Psychology:
Theory, Research, and Clinical Applications
Edited by Beverly Greene and Gregory M. Herek
Vv 2. AIDS, Identity, and Community:
The HIV Epidemic and Lesbians and Gay Men
Edited by Gregory M. Herek and Beverly Greene
Vv 3. Ethnic and Cultural Diversity Among
Lesbians and Gay Men
Edited by Beverly Greene
Vv 4. Stigma and Sexual Orientation: Understanding Prejudice
Against Lesbians, Gay Men, and Bisexuals
Edited by Gregory M. Herek
EDDTORTAL- BOARD
Laura S. Brown, Ph.D. Gary Melton, Ph.D.
Ellen Cole, Ph.D. Letitia Anne Peplau, Ph.D.
John P. De Cecco, Ph.D. Pamela T. Reid, Ph.D.
Oliva Espin, Ph.D. Esther Rothblum, Ph.D.
Linda Garnets, Ph.D. Royce W. Scrivner, Ph.D.
John C. Gonsiorek, Ph.D. Charles Silverstein, Ph.D.
Arnold Kahn, Ph.D. Mark Snyder, Ph.D.
Douglas Kimmel, Ph.D. Leonore Tiefer, Ph.D.
Stigma and Sexual
Orientation
Understanding Prejudice Against
Lesbians, Gay Men, and Bisexuals
v
editor
Gregory M. Herek
Psychological Perspectives on Lesbian and Gay Issues
Volume 4
Sponsored by the Society for the Psychological Study
of Lesbian and Gay Issues, Division 44 of the
American Psychological Association
SAGE Publications
International Educational and Professional Publisher
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Copyright © 1998 by Sage Publications, Inc.
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Main entry under title:
Stigma and sexual orientation: Understanding prejudice against lesbians,
gay men, and bisexuals/editor, Gregory M. Herek.
p. cm.—(Psychological perspectives on lesbian and gay issues; v. 4)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 0-8039-5384-4 (cloth: acid-free paper).—ISBN 0-8039-5385-2
(pbk. : acid-free paper)
1. Heterosexiam. 2. Homophobia. 3. Gays—Public opinion. 4. Stigma
(Social psychology) I. Herek, Gregory M. II. Series.
HQ76.25.S78 1998
305.9’0664—dc21 97-33909
98; 99 T00S01 20203 (04 10N9S8R7e 665" 493 20
Acquiring Editor: C. Terry Hendrix
Editorial Assistant: Dale Mary Grenfell
Production Editor: Diana E. Axelsen
Production Assistant: Karen Wiley
Typesetter/Designer: Marion Warren
Indexer: Mary Mortensen
Print Buyer: Anna Chin
When citing a volume from Psychological Perspectives on Lesbian and Gay Issues, please
use the following style:
Herek, Gregory M. (Ed.). Psychological perspectives on lesbian and gay issues: Vol. 4. Stigma and
sexual orientation: Understanding prejudice against lesbians, gay men, and bisexuals. Thousand
Oaks, CA: Sage.
Contents
Preface | viii
1. Unassuming Motivations: Contextualizing the Narratives
of Antigay Assailants | 1
KAREN FRANKLIN
2. Homophobia in the Courtroom: An Assessment of
Biases Against Gay Men and Lesbians in a Multiethnic
Sample of PotentialJurors | 24
DRURY SHERROD
PETER M. NARDI
3. Do Heterosexual Women and Men Differ in Their
Attitudes Toward Homosexuality? A Conceptual and
Methodological Analysis | 39
MARY E. KITE
BERNARD E. WHITLEY, Jr.
4. The Relationship Between Stereotypes of and Attitudes
Toward Lesbians and Gays | 62
ANGELA SIMON
5. Authoritarianism, Values, and the Favorability and
Structure of Antigay Attitudes | 82
GEOFFREY HADDOCK
MARK P. ZANNA
. Civil Liberties, Civil Rights, and Stigma: Voter Attitudes
and Behavior in the Politics of Homosexuality | 108
DOUGLAS ALAN STRAND
Minority Stress Among Lesbians, Gay Men, and
Bisexuals: A Consequence of Heterosexism, Homophobia,
and Stigmatization | 138
JOANNE DiPLACIDO
. Internalized Homophobia, Intimacy, and Sexual Behavior
Among Gay and Bisexual Men | 160
ILAN H. MEYER
LAURA DEAN
Developmental Implications of Victimization of Lesbian,
Gay, and Bisexual Youths | 187
ANTHONY R. D’AUGELLI
10. The Postmodern Family: An Examination of the
Psychosocial and Legal Perspectives of Gay and
Lesbian Parenting | 211
ANDREW McLEOD
ISIAAH CRAWFORD
lf Bad Science in the Service of Stigma: A Critique of the
Cameron Group’s Survey Studies | 223
GREGORY M. HEREK
Index | 257
About the Editor | 273
About the Contributors | 275
Evelyn Hooker, Ph.D.
1907-1996
This volume is dedicated to the memory of Evelyn Hooker, a pioneering
psychologist who was not afraid tc use the scientific method to question the
prevailing assumptions of her time. Her research helped to lay a foundation for
the modern movement in psychology that is affirmative of minority sexual
orientations—lesbian, gay, and bisexual. She was an inspiration, mentor, and
friend to scientists, clinicians, and teachers from all over the world. Her passing
leaves a gap in our lives that will not soon be filled.
Preface
his volume, the fourth in the annual series Psychological Perspec-
tives on Lesbian and Gay Issues, is devoted to research on the
phenomenon variously referred to as homophobia, heterosexism, and
simply prejudice based on sexual orientation. Empirical study in this
area has advanced at a rapid pace in the 1990s. Researchers increasingly
are using more sophisticated theories and methods to investigate
stigma and sexual orientation, and their reports are appearing more
frequently in general scientific journals.
This mainstreaming of research on antigay stigma is important not
only because it offers the promise of finding better ways to combat preju-
dice, but also because studying homophobia will enrich the study of
intergroup attitudes in general. Understanding prejudice based on sex-
ual orientation inevitably raises a wealth of important questions relevant
to other forms of stigma—about the nature of concealable stigmas, the
expression of prejudice through violence and discrimination, the dialec-
tic between cultural ideologies and individual attitudes and values, and
responses to stigma by its targets.
The first six chapters of the present volume address the nature of anti-
gay stigma. The authors consider attitudes, values, and stereotypes, as
well as homophobic assaults and public opinion. They also examine
antigay behaviors outside the laboratory—in the courtroom, on the
streets, and in the voting booth. Karen Franklin reports findings from her
study of perpetrators of hate crimes. Her data highlight the importance
of understanding situational factors that give rise to assaults based on
sexual orientation. Drury Sherrod and Peter Nardi report data from a
large-scale study of homophobia among prospective jurors in 15 differ-
vill