In our target article, "The Fewer the Merrier: Assessing Stigma Surrounding Consensual Nonmonogamous Relationships," we documented a robust stigma toward consensual nonmonogamous relationships and a halo surrounding monogamous relationships. In the present piece, we respond to six commentaries of our target article with the aim of promoting future research and policy change. First, we address questions and concerns raised by commentators using existing data and found that regardless of perceived relationship happiness, sexual orientation, or gender (of experimental targets), individuals in consensual nonmonogamous relationships were more negatively viewed on a variety of qualities (both relationship-specific and nonrelationship specific) compared to those in monogamous relationships. Second, we suggest productive future research avenues with regards to implications for social change, and strengthening methodology used in consensual nonmonogamous research. Finally, we consider common ground among the commentators as an avenue to promote coalition building through the examinations of prejudice toward individuals in nonnormative romantic relationships. We conclude that this is only the beginning of a fruitful line of research and argue that the stigma toward departures from monogamy is robust and, of course, worthy of additional research.

No abstract

Facebook offers a socialisation context in which young people from ethnic, gender and sexual minorities must continually manage the potential for prejudice and discrimination in the form of homophobia and racism. In-depth interviews were conducted with eight young women, aged 16-19 years, who self-identified as queer and as women of colour. A detailed analysis of these interviews--focusing in particular on how young people described navigating expectations of rejection from family and friends--offered insight into the psychological and health consequences associated with managing sexual identity(s) while online. The 'closet' ultimately takes on new meaning in this virtual space: participants described trying to develop social relationships within Facebook, which demands sharing one's thoughts, behaviours and ideas, while also hiding and silencing their emerging sexuality. In this 'virtual closet', tempering self-presentation to offset social exclusion has become a continuous, yet personally treacherous, activity during the daily practice of using Facebook.

Research on dynamics within communities of sexual and gender minorities is scant, despite reports that people experience prejudice within lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) spaces. The present research examined dynamics within LGBTQ communities and used gender as a lens of understanding bisexual prejudice among lesbian women and gay men. In two online studies with lesbian and gay participants (N Study1 ϭ 120; N Study2 ϭ 165), we randomly assigned participants to reflect on lesbian and gay people's attitudes toward bisexual women or bisexual men. In each study, we evaluated lesbian and gay people's perceptions of identity instability, sexual irresponsibility, and interpersonal hostility. In Study 2, we proposed that beliefs about bisexual people's attraction (to men or to women) serve as a mechanism of bisexual prejudice among lesbian and gay people. We found that people perceived bisexual women and men as being more sexually attracted to men than they are to women, which helps to explain why some lesbian women reported more negative attitudes toward bisexual women than gay men did. Moreover, we tested whether lesbian and gay people's identification with their ingroup, as well as their experiences with dating bisexuals, exacerbated negative perceptions of bisexuals. Taken together, these studies offer implications for reducing bisexual health disparities via improving dynamics within LGBTQ communities. Public Significance StatementThis research suggests that gender dynamics play a critical role in how bisexual women and men are evaluated in LGBTQ communities. Lesbian and gay people perceive bisexual women and men as being more sexually attracted to men than they are to women, which helps to explain why some lesbian women may feel negatively about bisexual women. These results shed light on how and why bisexual individuals may experience prejudice from lesbian and gay people.

In spite of years of equal opportunities legislation and guidelines, a marked gender imbalance at the apex of organizational career structures persists (Carrier 1995). The predominant liberal model of equal opportunities (EO) seeks to alleviate sex‐discrimination through advocating gender‐neutral or ‘same’ treatment (Meehan and Sevenhuisjen 1991; Gatens 1991; Bock and James 1992). However, the present study suggests that ostensibly gender‐neutral organizational practices may exclude characteristics, values and concerns more typically associated with women. This paper draws on a study of gender in selection to corporate management and raises questions about whether and how characteristics, values, goals and concerns which have been perceived as ‘female’ or ‘feminine’ may be excluded from ostensibly gender‐neutral equality practices. Findings suggest that EO theory and practice need to move beyond limited either/or debates around ‘equality’ and ‘difference’. In order to do so, it may also be necessary to challenge dichotomous thinking about gender which currently informs much of that debate. In order to facilitate the development and progress of women in organizations it is not enough for EO initiatives to treat gender as a category of difference that can be overcome through superficial changes, for example in interview procedures, which merely seek to exclude issues perceived as gendered. Instead, a longer agenda for equality must move beyond the debate about women’s ‘sameness’ or ‘difference’ from men to include a deeper understanding of the gendered nature of organizational positions, structures and practices.

Monogamous individuals are believed to have better sex lives than those who are consensually non-monogamous (CNM). We compared the sexual satisfaction of CNM and monogamous individuals and also considered the relationship satisfaction of participants utilizing a non-targeted sample of CNM participants. We found that monogamous people reported slightly lower sexual satisfaction and lower orgasm rates than those who are CNM. Moreover, the type of CNM in which a person engages is important: swingers consistently reported higher sexual satisfaction than monogamous individuals, whereas those in open relationships had equivalent levels of satisfaction to those in monogamous relationships. Relationship satisfaction did not differ between CNM and monogamous groups. These findings do not support the perception that people in monogamous relationships have better sex than CNM individuals.

No abstract

No abstract