Mating Motives and Concerns About Being Misidentified as Gay or Lesbian

Abstract

Recent research has demonstrated that concerns about being misidentified as gay or lesbian lead to the avoidance of gay men and lesbians. Because being misidentified as gay/lesbian can result in the loss of heterosexual people's mating opportunities, we predicted that the activation of mating motives would heighten concerns among some heterosexuals about being misidentified as gay/lesbian. To combat such misidentification, we argued that heterosexuals would express antipathy toward and avoid contact with gay/lesbian people. Consistent with predictions, the activation of mating motives led heterosexuals who were generally concerned about misclassification as gay/lesbian to denigrate (Study 1) and avoid (Study 2) gay/lesbian people. Activating mating motives increased heterosexual participants' concerns about being misclassified, which in turn heightened interest in avoiding gay/lesbian people (Study 3). These findings indicate that, although the motivation to find a romantic partner can have positive implications, it can contribute to negative responses to gay/lesbian people.

Judged by the Company You Keep? Exposure to Nonprejudiced Norms Reduces Concerns About Being Misidentified as Gay/Lesbian

“…Gender was included as a predictor as there is some precedent that men tend to experience higher levels of social contagion concerns than women (e.g., Buck et al, 2013;Plant et al, 2014). There was a significant effect of perceptions of peer prejudice on contagion scores, B = .34, SE = .072, t(115) = 4.48, p < .001, with perceptions of greater peer prejudice being associated with greater contagion concerns for the individual.…”

Imagined contact with famous gay men and lesbians reduces heterosexuals’ misidentification concerns and sexual prejudice

“…In order to address this problem, researchers have traditionally focused on reducing heterosexuals' sexual prejudice (Paluck & Green, 2009). However, recent work has revealed that heterosexuals' contagion concerns contribute to the derogation and avoidance of gay and lesbian individuals (Buck et al, 2013;Plant et al, 2014). Thus, reducing contagion concerns among heterosexuals is a critical part of decreasing the negativity that gay and lesbian individuals face.…”

“…Although correlated with traditional sexual prejudice (typically around r = .50), contagion concerns independently contribute to negative responses toward gay men and lesbians. For example, high levels of contagion concerns among heterosexuals lead to heightened interorientation anxiety and avoidance, as well as the denigration of gay men and lesbians (Buck et al, 2013;Plant et al, 2014). Importantly, contagion concerns predict anxious and avoidant responses toward gay men and lesbians even when controlling for sexual prejudice and sexual prejudice does not moderate the effect of contagion concerns on these responses (Buck et al, 2013).…”

“…When considering why LGBT individuals are harassed at such high rates, researchers have focused on sexual prejudice, which is most often conceptualized as the moral condemnation of homosexual behaviors (Herek & McLemore, 2013). However, heterosexuals' concerns about being misidentified as gay or lesbian, termed contagion concerns, also lead to discomfort and the avoidance and derogation of gay and lesbian individuals (Bosson, Prewitt-Freilino, & Taylor, 2005;Bosson, Taylor, & Prewitt-Freilino, 2006;Buck, Plant, Ratcliff, Zielaskowski, & Boerner, 2013;Plant, Zielaskowski, & Buck, 2014;Prewitt-Freilino & Bosson, 2008). Therefore, if the harassment of sexual minorities is to be fully addressed, it is important for researchers to consider ways of reducing both sexual prejudice and contagion concerns among heterosexual individuals.…”

'So I decided not to invade straight black men's space': exploring heteronormative spaces on campus

“…The participants' accounts of avoidance attests to the avoidance strategy that many gay men fearful of homophobic violence engage in (Almeida, Johnson, Corliss, Molnar and Azrael 2009;Icard et al 2015;Jacques 2014;Plant, Zielaskowski and Buck 2014;Skinta, Brandrett, Schenk, Wells and Dilley 2013). Strategies of avoidance of avowed physical spaces or social spaces where one's sexuality is considered problematic can be read as a survival strategy that enables the individual to maintain a sense of well-being, both physically and mentally.…”