Modern prejudice at work: Effects of homonegativity and the perceived erotic value of lesbians and gay men on heterosexuals’ reactions to explicit and discrete couples

Modern heterosexism has been described as a negative attitude that differs from ‘old-fashioned’ moral objections about homosexuality, but includes more abstract objections, such as the view that gay men and lesbian women exaggerate the importance of, or flaunt their sexuality (Morrison & Morrison, 2002). Modern heterosexists are likely to accept homosexuality per se, while feeling uncomfortable with people ‘doing’ homosexuality. Sixty-seven male and 68 female students read vignettes about either a gay, lesbian, or straight couple who were co-workers and who were dating explicitly or discretely. Participants expressed their acceptance of and comfort with the couple, and their reaction to a complaint made about them by a co-worker. Males scored higher than females on old-fashioned and modern prejudice. High scorers, but not low scorers, on a modern heterosexism scale preferred discrete to explicit homosexual couples. Additionally, men who perceived lesbianism as highly erotic were no more acceptant of lesbian than gay couples. Results are discussed and implications for future research are described.