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Variation in perceptions of sexual identity: partisanship and personal exposure

ABSTRACT Public opinion research on attitudes toward LGB people and policies often implicitly assumes that the public conceptualizes lesbian, gay, or bisexual identity in similar ways. This study empirically tests perceptions of the composition of sexual identity group membership using a survey experiment to examine how people map dimensions of sexual orientation onto discrete sexual identity categories. Respondents are asked to classify the sexual identity of profiles of anonymous adults based on the combination of three attributes related to sexual attraction, experience, and openness to same-sex relationships. The results show that while respondents appear to achieve consensus on how certain “prototypical” combinations of attributes are categorized, there remains substantial variation in how the public makes sexual identity categorizations. In particular, consistent with existing work on the relative invisibility of the middle ground of sexuality, respondents appear hesitant to identify profiles as “bisexual.” Republican respondents and respondents that do not have personal exposure to someone who is bisexual are especially less likely to do so. Overall, the results underscore the complexity of sexual identity and have implications both for understanding public opinion toward sexual minority groups and the ability to accurately assess demand for policies related to sexual minority rights.