From Bias to Bisexual Health Disparities: Attitudes Toward Bisexual Men and Women in the United States

Abstract

PUROPSE A newly emergent literature suggest that bisexual men and women face profound health disparities in comparison to both heterosexual and homosexual individuals. Additionally, bisexual individuals often experience prejudice, stigma, and discrimination from both gay/lesbian and straight communities, termed “biphobia.” However, only limited research exists that empirically tests the extent and predictors of this double discrimination. The Bisexualities: Indiana Attitudes Survey (BIAS) was developed to test associations between biphobia and sexual identity. METHODS Using standard techniques, we developed and administered a scale to a purposive online sample of adults from a wide range of social networking websites. We conducted exploratory factor analysis to refine scales assessing attitudes toward bisexual men and bisexual women, respectively. Using generalized linear modeling, we assessed relationships between BIAS scores and sexual identity, adjusting for covariates. RESULTS Two separately gendered scales were developed, administered, and refined: BIAS-m (n=645), focusing on attitudes toward bisexual men; and BIAS-f (n=631), focusing on attitudes toward bisexual women. Across scales, sexual identity significantly predicted response variance. Lesbian/gay respondents had lower levels of bi-negative attitudes than their heterosexual counterparts (all p-values <.05); bisexual respondents had lower levels of bi-negative attitudes than their straight counterparts (all p-values <.001); and bisexual respondents had lower levels of bi-negative attitudes than their lesbian/gay counterparts (all p-values <.05). Within racial/ethnic minority respondents, biracial/multiracial status was associated with lower bi-negativity scores (all p-values <.05). CONCLUSION This study provides important quantitative support for theories related to biphobia and double discrimination. Our findings provide strong evidence for understanding how stereotypes and stigma may lead to dramatic disparities in depression, anxiety, stress, and other health outcomes among bisexual individuals in comparison to their heterosexual and homosexual counterparts. Our results yield valuable data for informing social awareness and intervention efforts that aim to decrease bi-negative attitudes within both straight and gay/lesbian communities, with the ultimate goal of alleviating health disparities among bisexual men and women.

Exploring the Sexual Development Experiences of Black Bisexual Male Adolescents Over Time

“…The intersectionality framework may be especially useful for racial and sexual minority youth workers and clinicians in considering the experiences at the center of overlaping identities, i.e., Black, bisexual, and male (Fields et al, 2016). This developmental experience which prior work has documented as often occurring within homophobic, sexist and racist social contexts (Friedman et al, 2014; Jamil et al, 2009; Malebranche, 2008) may impact one’s ability to articulate and describe one’s sexual orientation. This may have important implications because romantic relationships may serve as a buffer against sexual orientation-based discrimination and micro-aggressions for sexual and racial minority youth during this time (Macapagal, Greene, Rivera, & Mustanski, 2015).…”

“…Prior work exploring the sexual identity development experiences of sexual minority adolescents has failed to understand the sexual development of youth who may exist at the intersection of multiple marginalized identities, such as Black and bisexual (Dubé & Savin-Williams, 1999; Jamil, Harper,& Fernandez, 2009; Rosario, Schrimshaw,& Hunter, 2004,2008; Rosario, Schrimshaw, Hunter,& Braun, 2006; Toomey, Huynh, Jones, Lee, & Revels-Macalinao, 2017; Wade & Harper, 2015). Past work suggests that bisexual youth of color, including Black bisexual male adolescents (BBMA), may have significant and unmet sexual and reproductive as well as mental health needs during sexual development (Chun & Singh, 2010; Dodge et al, 2016; Friedman et al, 2014; Saewyc et al, 2009), which are unique and distinct from those adolescents who identify as gay, lesbian or heterosexual (Friedman et al, 2014; Mereish, Katz-Wise, & Woulfe, 2017). Understanding the context of sexual orientation development in BBMA may uncover key insights into opportunities for programmatic intervention in this population.…”

Explaining mental health disparities for non-monosexual women: Abuse history and risky sex, or the burdens of non-disclosure?

“…Recent research in the Unites States has found that bisexual individuals face prejudice from both heterosexual and homosexual individuals, and that close to 15 percent do not trust that bisexuality is a legitimate sexual orientation (Friedman et al, 2014). The authors argue that the stigma faced by bisexual people may lead to them hiding their sexuality, in turn resulting in social isolation and negative mental health outcomes.…”

Reply to: Are stressful childhood experiences relevant in non-monosexual women?

“…The commentator describes this novel methodology as "forward-looking" because "it focuses on the knowledge that analyzing LGBT populations as a whole neglects many noteworthy features that affect only subgroups." As has been demonstrated by research, non-monosexual women may report worse mental health, may experience more lifetime adversity, and may face more stigma and discrimination than monosexual women (Friedman et al, 2011(Friedman et al, , 2014Kerr et al, 2013). Further, bisexual individuals may not feel part of the LGBT community (Herek et al, 2010).…”

“…Future studies should continue to explore how mental health outcomes may vary by non-monosexual behavior versus by identifying as mostly heterosexual, bisexual, or mostly lesbian. For example, considering that "bisexual" appears to be a stigmatized label (Friedman et al, 2014;Zivony and Lobel, 2014), it is possible that those who behave bisexually without identifying as bisexual may be at lower risk of poor mental health compared to those who both behave bisexually and identify as bisexual. Schneeberger (2015) raises the very important question of whether stressful childhood experiences are relevant in nonmonosexual women.…”