Bisexual Stereotypes Apply Differently by Body Size: An Assessment of Bisexual Prototypicality, Trait Application, and Body Size

We blend person perception work with queer appearance psychology to examine the relationship between body size and bisexuality. In an online survey (N = 472, Mage = 25.15, 63.8% women), we examined the specific traits associated with a range of computer-modeled bodies identified as bisexual. We found that average body sizes were perceived as most prototypical of both bisexual men and bisexual women, skinny, and fat bodies were more associated with clusters of traits that contrast with common stereotypes about bisexuality. Additionally, we found that bisexual men were associated with increased masculinity and decreased femininity relative to bisexual women, and found a general, though nonsignificant trend such that bisexual men were perceived as having heightened androcentric desire relative to women. Finally, we found evidence for the role of typicality as a mediator of perceived prejudice; less prototypical bodies tended to be perceived as experiencing greater prejudice based on body size.