Effects of Anticipated Interaction, Sex, and Homosexual Stereotypes on First Impressions¹

Abstract

The effects of anticipated interaction on liking were examined, with the person being evaluated sometimes being presented as a member of a negatively stereotyped group. The stereotype studied was that associated with male homosexuals. The standard effect of anticipated interaction causing increased liking was obtained when females rated either a homosexual or a non‐ homosexual male and when males rated a nonhomosexual male. When males anticipated interacting with a homosexual male, however, they rated him less favorably than did males who did not anticipate interacting with him. It was also found that both males and females liked the stimulus person less and attributed stereotypic traits to him more when he was homosexual than when he was not. These latter effects were stronger for males than for females.

In the Eye of the Beholder: Knowledge that a Man is Gay Promotes American College Students’ Attributions of Cross-Gender Characteristics

“…The men (both of at least average masculinity) were just as likable when labeled gay as when not, whether labeled by themselves or not. This finding contradicts evidence from three decades ago that, when actual men are evaluated, men labeled (or implicitly) gay are less well liked than the same men when implicitly heterosexual (Gurwitz and Marcus 1978;Karr 1978). It also contrasts with earlier and recent evidence that gay men in the abstract (Blashill and Powlishta 2009b;Istvan 1983;Storms 1978) are less well liked than heterosexual men.…”

“…Heterosexual was not used as a control label because having one man label himself or another man heterosexual seems odd, and might raise suspicions. Other studies examining effects of the gay label similarly left heterosexuality implicit in the control condition (e.g., Ewing et al 2003;Gurwitz and Marcus 1978;Horvath and Ryan 2003;Karr 1978;Sigelman et al 1991).…”

“…Because gender-related stereotypes are more likely to be maintained when evaluating hypothetical people than when evaluating people who are actually experienced (Robinson et al 1998), we wondered whether undergraduate participants in the US who were exposed to relatively gender-typical white men who did not fit the gay stereotype but were labeled gay would express gender-inverted attributions. We expected that undergraduate participants would view these men as less likeable when labeled gay than otherwise, as American undergraduates expect hypothetical gay men to be less likeable than other men (Blashill and Powlishta 2009b;Gurwitz and Marcus 1978;Istvan 1983;Storms 1978). In this study, we examined the effects of the gay (vs. adopted) label on male and female undergraduates' ratings of gender-related (masculinity, femininity) and social (likeability) attributes of two men they watched on videotape.…”

Pride and Prejudice: Employment Discrimination against Openly Gay Men in the United States

“…What might these attributes be? Research suggests that gay men are often perceived to exhibit behaviors associated with "feminine" characteristics; for example, they are commonly seen as sensitive, emotional, gentle, affectionate, and passive (Gurwitz and Marcus 1978;Page and Yee 1986;Jackson and Sullivan 1989;Madon 1997). Indeed, a general finding is that people frequently perceive gay men to be feminine or effeminate (Haddock, Zanna, and Esses 1993;Madon 1997;see also Connell 2005).…”

Courtesy Stigma: The Social Implications of Associating with a Gay Person

“…First, the associate of a gay could be stigmatized based on an inference that he must be gay himself. In fact, it has been speculated, although not demonstrated empirically, that avoidance of gays by heterosexuals is partially motivated by a fear of being labeled gay (Gurwitz & Marcus, 1978;Karr, 1978). In a similar vein, perceivers could believe that homosexuality is contagious and can be contracted as if it were a social disease.…”