Exploring patterns of explicit and implicit anti‐gay attitudes in Muslims and Atheists

Abstract

Research into the relationship between religion and anti-gay attitudes frequently focuses on Christianity. We explored the role of religiosity dimensions, previous contact, and factors in the dual-process motivation model as predictors of explicit and implicit anti-gay attitudes in samples of Muslims and Atheists. The explicit and implicit attitudes of Muslims were more negative than the attitudes of Atheists. Explicit attitudes were more negative towards gay men than lesbians; implicit attitudes were negative towards gay men but were unexpectedly positive towards lesbians. In regression analyses, religious fundamentalism and extrinsic religious orientations (Study 1), and contact and right-wing authoritarianism (Study 2) were strong significant predictors of explicit anti-gay attitudes. Interestingly, none of the factors of interest predicted implicit anti-gay attitudes. These findings reveal a strong link between Islam and explicit anti-gay attitudes, but suggest that the relationship between religion and implicit anti-gay attitudes may be more complex than previously thought.

Demographic and ideological correlates of negative attitudes towards asylum seekers: A meta‐analytic review

“…Anderson et al (2015) found that this relationship exists after statistically controlling for the variables in the DPM, and in fact macro justice explains approximately equal amounts of variance as RWA (albeit in different directions). Anderson et al (2015) found that this relationship exists after statistically controlling for the variables in the DPM, and in fact macro justice explains approximately equal amounts of variance as RWA (albeit in different directions).…”

“…J. Indeed, there is evidence from research into other prejudices that religiosity (i.e., individual differences in religion) is more important than religious affiliation (i.e., self-identified social category; Anderson & Koc, 2015;Whitley, 2009). Although Perry and colleagues reported that Christians were more negative towards asylum seekers than non-Christians, they also revealed a suppression effect to the extent that the positive attitudes of Christians in their sample were being attenuated because of an internal conflict with high levels of authoritarianism.…”

“…Zdaniuk and Bobocel (2011) operationalised two individual difference factors that differentiation equity-based principles (i.e., a micro justice orientation) from equality-based principles (i.e., a macro justice orientation). The research exploring these factors explored the role of micro justice and macro justice orientations in predicting variance in attitudes towards asylum seekers beyond that accounted for by RWA and SDO (Anderson, 2016a, Study 2;Anderson et al, 2015). Both of these studies revealed that a macro justice, but not micro justice, orientation predicted positive attitudes towards asylum seekers.…”

“…It is also worth noting that it has been argued that how religion is quantified (affiliation (i.e., categorical quantification) vs religiosity (i.e., continuous quantification)) is important in the religion-attitudes relationship (Anderson, 2015;Saroglou, 2013). Indeed, there is evidence from research into other prejudices that religiosity (i.e., individual differences in religion) is more important than religious affiliation (i.e., self-identified social category; Anderson & Koc, 2015;Whitley, 2009). The role of religiosity in these attitudes is unconfirmed; the relationship between religion and these attitudes warrants continued consideration.…”

Global identification helps increase identity integration among Turkish gay men

“…However, attitudes towards gay men have remained quite negative in Turkey, despite improvements in other western nations (Anderson & Koc, 2015;Sakalli, 2002), and LGBT people continue to experience direct and indirect forms of discrimination in access to education, employment and health care (Gocmen & Yilmaz, 2017). Dominant cultural conceptions of manhood in Turkey, also echoed by gay men themselves, maintained the importance of masculinity and the rejection of femininity (Bolak-Boratav, Fisek, & Ziya, 2014;Erol & Ozbay, 2013).…”