Sex differences in attitudes toward gay men and lesbians: A multidimensional perspective

We addressed four components of attitudes toward gay men and lesbians: condemnation/tolerance, morality, contact, and stereotypes. We hypothesized that attitudes would vary by component and by the sex of the person being rated. Results indicated that men (n = 137) held more negative attitudes toward homosexuals than did women (n = 133) on all factors except stereotypes, and that attitudes toward gay men were more negative than were attitudes toward lesbians on all factors. On all subscales except stereotypes, men rated gay men more negatively than lesbians. Women rated gay men and lesbians similarly on the condemnation/tolerance subscale and the morality subscale, but rated lesbians more negatively on the contact subscale. The results confirm that to understand sex differences in attitudes toward homosexuality fully, researchers must consider both attitude component and the sex of the person being rated.