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

Oswald, Flora; Champion, Amanda; Khera, Devinder; Mitchell, Jenna Lynn; Pedersen, Cory L.

doi:10.1080/15299716.2021.1994905

Cited by 5 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 67 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…This finding is surprising given that stereotypes about one marginalized group (e.g., queer people) tend to rely on “default” dominant categories to inform other identities (e.g., the stereotypical queer person is thought to be a gay White man; Hsu et al, 2021; Johnson et al, 2012; Petsko & Bodenhausen, 2019b). Our results do suggest that the prototypical member of a racial minority group is assumed to be heterosexual (see also Oswald et al, 2021; Petsko & Bodenhausen, 2019b; Preddie & Biernat, 2021), lending credence to the perspective that gay and lesbian identities are more strongly stereotyped when aligned with certain (White) ethnicities and races (Preddie & Biernat, 2021; Semrow et al, 2020).…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 70%

“…Similar to Oswald et al (2021), participants answered three separate questions assessing the typicality of the target as either a gay or straight person (e.g., “How typical is [the target] of a [gay person/straight person]?”), a White or Asian person (e.g., “How typical is [the target] of a [White/Asian] person?”), and as a man or woman (e.g., “How typical is [the target] of a [man/woman]?”). Response options ranged from 1 ( very atypical ) to 4 ( very typical) , with higher scores reflecting greater typicality.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…To ensure that independent variable conditions were perceived by participants as intended, participants answered three separate questions (see Oswald et al, 2021) assessing the extent to which they perceived the target as experiencing prejudice because of their gender/sex, sexual orientation, and ethnicity/race. Response options ranged from 0 ( none ) to 3 ( an extreme amount ) where higher scores indicated greater perceptions of perceived prejudice.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Typicality informs how people are socially evaluated. That is, people who match expectations of typicality for their social group are evaluated more favorably, while those who are less prototypical of their social identity are associated with more negative evaluations (Oswald et al, 2021). Stereotypes about Asian women align themselves with preestablished and prototypical stereotypes of femininity; however, they are still at a disadvantage due to marginalization through sexist racism (Johnson et al, 2012; Preddie & Biernat, 2021).…”

Section: Asian Identitiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 3 more Smart Citations

Understanding queer Asian in/visibility via stereotype application.

Young,

Pedersen

2024

Asian American Journal of Psychology

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Previous literature has examined the areas of stereotype application with reference to gender, sexual orientation, and ethnicity/race. However, less has explored the intersection of these areas, particularly in reference to Asian individuals. Stereotypes about gender, sexual orientation, and ethnicity/race are interwoven and simultaneously influence perceptions of individuals. In a preregistered study, participants (N = 685, M age = 27.07, SD age = 10.85) were randomly assigned to one of eight conditions, which varied on the basis of gender (man, woman), sexual orientation (lesbian/gay, straight), and ethnicity/race (Asian, White). Based on a fictitious dating profile stimulus, participants responded to measures concerning perceptions of typicality (i.e., that people are quicker to make category judgments about typical members of a category than they are to make such judgments about atypical members), as well as masculinity/ femininity and dominance. Contrary to our hypothesis, we found that gay Asian men and gay White men were perceived as equally typical of their social group, though straight Asian men were perceived as more typical of Asian men than gay Asian men. Gay men were perceived as more feminine than straight men, and lesbian women were perceived as more masculine than straight women. Additionally, gay Asian men were perceived as more feminine than straight Asian men, and lesbian Asian women were perceived as more masculine than straight Asian women. Finally, Asian individuals overall were viewed as less dominant than White individuals. Our findings support the need for research that examines the experiences of marginalized communities through intersectional perspectives.What is the public significance of this article? Our results suggest that the intersections of sexual orientation, gender, and ethnicity/race result in varying perceptions of individuals. In particular, we identified that gay and lesbian Asian people were perceived as equally prototypical of gay communities relative to gay and lesbian White people but less prototypical of their ethnic communities than straight Asian people. Our findings highlight the unique experiences of queer Asian individuals as distinct from other marginalized groups. Further, they inform both educational and intervention efforts designed to promote dialogue and understanding of how social identities are jointly perceived and evaluated.

show abstract

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 70%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Asian Identitiesmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 2 more Smart Citations

Understanding queer Asian in/visibility via stereotype application.

Young,

Pedersen

2024

Asian American Journal of Psychology

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Indeed, several studies have reported differences between bisexual men and gay men concerning body image concerns. These differences may be attributed to the possible presence of internalized homonegativity, which drives bisexual men to desire a more muscular and masculine body [47][48][49][50].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Body evaluation in men: the role of body weight dissatisfaction in appearance evaluation, eating, and muscle dysmorphia psychopathology

Dal Brun,

Pescarini,

Calonaci

et al. 2024

J Eat Disord

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Background Body image dissatisfaction is a significant concern among men, influencing appearance evaluation, eating behaviors, and muscle dysmorphia psychopathology. However, research on these correlations is notably deficient in men, largely because body image concerns are unevenly distributed between genders. Therefore, this study aims to assess the various dimensions of concerns about body image in men and explore their associations with characteristics such as sexual orientation. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted with 251 adult men from fitness centers in the Veneto Region, Italy. Participants completed self-report questionnaires, including the Eating Attitudes Test (EAT-26), the Appearance Schemas Inventory-Revised (ASI-R), and the Muscle Dysmorphic Disorder Inventory (MDDI). Body weight perception and dissatisfaction were evaluated using a Figure Rating Scale (FRS) with 12 male biometric silhouettes. Results Participants were divided into three subgroups based on the experienced levels of body weight dissatisfaction: those who rated a smaller body (BWsmaller), those who rated a larger body (BWlarger) more highly relative to their own estimated body size, and those who reported implicit neutrality with their current weight (BWneu). BWsmaller participants reported higher levels of eating-related concern, while BWlarger participants exhibited higher levels of muscle dysmorphia. Additionally, the BWlarger group showed the highest degree of quantitative perceptual underestimation of their body weight. Sexual orientation was found to have an impact on body weight dissatisfaction, with bisexual men more likely to desire an increase in weight and gay men more likely to desire a decrease. Conclusions Body weight dissatisfaction significantly impacts appearance evaluation, eating behaviors, and muscle dysmorphia psychopathology in males. Tailored interventions that consider individual differences can support the well-being of men. The study provides useful insight into male body image issues, warranting further exploration to inform effective interventions and promote positive body image and mental health in this population.

show abstract

Stereotype Application at the Intersection of Body Shape, Gender/Sex, and Sexual Orientation

Oswald

Champion

Khera

et al. 2022

The Journal of Sex Research

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Though much work has examined how sexual orientation and body shape are jointly constituted, less has examined the joint perception of body shape, gender/sex, and sexuality. We draw upon multifarious person perception approaches to examine how personality and sexuality-related traits are attributed to bodies of varying shape (skinny, average, fat) when presented with differing social identities along the axes of gender/sex (male, female) and sexual orientation (heterosexual, lesbian/gay). In a sample of 991 participants, we found robust evidence that trait application varied by both body shape and sexual orientation. Further, supporting our hypotheses, we found that gay male bodies were perceived as more feminine than heterosexual male bodies, and skinny male bodies were perceived as more feminine than other body shapes. Supporting additional hypothesizing, we found lesbian female bodies were perceived as more masculine than heterosexual female bodies, and fat female bodies were perceived as the most masculine across sexual orientations. Partially supporting our hypotheses, we found that average bodies were perceived as the most typical for all identities; further, as hypothesized, we found that most bodies perceived as less typical of their social identity category were perceived as experiencing heightened prejudice on the basis of body shape.

show abstract

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

Cited by 5 publications

References 67 publications

Understanding queer Asian in/visibility via stereotype application.

Understanding queer Asian in/visibility via stereotype application.

Body evaluation in men: the role of body weight dissatisfaction in appearance evaluation, eating, and muscle dysmorphia psychopathology

Stereotype Application at the Intersection of Body Shape, Gender/Sex, and Sexual Orientation

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About