Homosexuality and Pro-Gay Ideology as Pathogens? Implications of a Disease-Spread Lay Model for Understanding Anti-Gay Behaviors

Filip-Crawford, Gabrielle; Neuberg, Steven L.

doi:10.1177/1088868315601613

Cited by 17 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 172 publications

(259 reference statements)

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“…Dissenters who deviate from traditional sexual norms are especially likely to be stigmatized during the outbreaks of infectious disease because they are construed metaphorically COVID-19, NATIONAL CONTINUITY, SEXUAL PREJUDICE as an contaminant (Filip-Crawford & Neuberg, 2016) and prejudice towards them is expressed as disgust (Cottrell & Neuberg, 2005). Disgust is an affective reaction to bodily contamination and a moral emotion characterizing responses to violation of values of purity (Haidt et al, 1997).…”

Section: Sexual Dissenters and The Metaphor Of Contaminationmentioning

confidence: 99%

The COVID-19 pandemic, authoritarianism, and rejection of sexual dissenters in Poland.

Zavala

Bierwiaczonek

Baran

et al. 2021

Psychology of Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity

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In Poland, gender hierarchy restricting women's sexuality and hetero-normativity are rooted in traditional 'family values' supported by the teachings of the Polish Catholic Church and attached to Polish national identity. Dissenters to traditional norms regulating gender and sexual relations are rejected as threat to social order and national unity. Latent growth curve modeling performed on data from a three-wave longitudinal study indicated linear, interrelated increases in authoritarianism, a desire for national cohesion and rejection of sexual dissenters in the nationally representative sample of participants (N = 889) as the COVID-19 pandemic unfolded in Poland. Data were collected before and during the outbreak of the pandemic allowing us to link the changes in social attitudes to this naturally occurring threat. Cross-lagged panel analysis indicated that authoritarianism predicted desire for national cohesion, which resulted in rejection of dissenters. These results are in line with theoretical models of authoritarianism as a response to threat. They are also in line with findings linking death anxiety and the threat of infectious disease to increases in authoritarianism, traditional worldview defense, in-group cohesion and sexual restrictiveness.

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Section: Sexual Dissenters and The Metaphor Of Contaminationmentioning

confidence: 99%

The COVID-19 pandemic, authoritarianism, and rejection of sexual dissenters in Poland.

Zavala

Bierwiaczonek

Baran

et al. 2021

Psychology of Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity

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“…For instance, research has indicated that heterosexual and homosexual groups differ in neurodevelopment (e.g. Santtila et al, 2008), social pressure (Filip-Crawford & Neuberg, 2016), and mating market (Black, Gates, Sanders, & Taylor, 2000). Consequently, homosexual people might exhibit different ideal partner preference patterns.…”

Section: Strengths and Limitationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Similar to And/Or Better than Oneself? Singles’ Ideal Partner Personality Descriptions

et al. 2018

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Using the HEXACO Model of Personality, we explored two kinds of ideal partner preferences regarding personality traits, namely, to what extent people prefer partners similar to themselves (similarity preference) and to what extent people prefer partners with more desirable trait levels than themselves (aspirational assortative preference). We conducted five studies (overall N > 900) across four countries (China, Denmark, Germany, and the USA), looking at both HEXACO factors and facets, using both self‐report questionnaires and real‐life data (personal profiles from a dating website), and comprising both student and more heterogeneous samples. The results provided support for both kinds of ideal partner preferences, with important differences across traits. Specifically, similarity preference was supported by all studies concerning all HEXACO traits, and aspirational assortative preference was supported by all four self‐report studies (though not the dating website study) concerning all HEXACO traits except for Openness to Experience. Concerning differences in preferences among the HEXACO traits, similarity preference was particularly pronounced for Honesty–Humility and Openness to Experience, moderate for Agreeableness and Conscientiousness, and less pronounced for Emotionality and Extraversion. Aspirational assortative preference, by contrast, was particularly pronounced for Emotionality, Extraversion, and Agreeableness, moderate for Honesty–Humility, and inconsistent for Conscientiousness. © 2018 European Association of Personality Psychology

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“…In this context, one of the highly relevant domains concerns social attitudes, as they often have disease-related origins (Faulkner et al, 2004). Here, we focus on homosexual individuals, both men and women, who have been frequently framed as "unclean, " and associated with germs and diseases (such as AIDS) (Crandall et al, 1997;Herek, 2002;Greene and Banerjee, 2006;Golec de Zavala et al, 2014;Pachankis et al, 2015;Filip-Crawford and Neuberg, 2016).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Testing the Disgust-Based Mechanism of Homonegative Attitudes in the Context of the COVID-19 Pandemic

2021

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Negative attitudes and stigmatization can originate from the perception of a disease-related threat. Following the spread of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is often suggested that incidents of discriminatory behavior are the result of defense mechanisms aimed at avoiding pathogens. According to the behavioral immune system theory, people are motivated to distance themselves from individuals who show signs of infection, or who are only heuristically associated with a disease, primarily because of the disgust they evoke. In this paper we focus on negative attitudes toward gay men and lesbians who are among social groups that have been persistently framed as “unclean.” In our correlational study (N = 500 heterosexual participants; Polish sample data collected during the first COVID-19 lockdown in Poland, in March/April 2020) we tested moderation models derived from the behavioral immune system theory. Specifically, we investigated whether perceived vulnerability to disease and perceived threat of contracting COVID-19 moderate the relation between disgust and homonegativity. We found that sexual disgust (but not pathogen nor moral disgust) predicted homonegative attitudes. This effect was stronger for participants expressing higher levels of perceived vulnerability to disease but was not dependent on the perception of the COVID-19 threat. The results reaffirm previous evidence indicating a pivotal role of disgust in disease-avoidance mechanisms. They also point to functional flexibility of the behavioral immune system by demonstrating the moderating role of perceived vulnerability to disease in shaping homonegative attitudes. Finally, they show that the threat of COVID-19 does not strengthen the relationship between disgust and homonegativity.

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Homosexuality and Pro-Gay Ideology as Pathogens? Implications of a Disease-Spread Lay Model for Understanding Anti-Gay Behaviors

Cited by 17 publications

References 172 publications

The COVID-19 pandemic, authoritarianism, and rejection of sexual dissenters in Poland.

The COVID-19 pandemic, authoritarianism, and rejection of sexual dissenters in Poland.

Similar to And/Or Better than Oneself? Singles’ Ideal Partner Personality Descriptions

Testing the Disgust-Based Mechanism of Homonegative Attitudes in the Context of the COVID-19 Pandemic

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