The Personal Experience of Community Among Urban Gay Men, Lesbians, and Bisexuals: Melting Pot or Mosaic?

Abstract

Objective: "Gay community" is often conceptualized as a "melting pot" in which gay, lesbian, and bisexual (GLB) persons are united and integrated into one sexual minority community. Evidence, however, indicates that GLB community may also be conceptualized as a mosaic of sexual minority communities with differing goals and ideologies. We test the validity of these conceptions of community with respect to two facets of the personal experiences of GLB individuals: socializing with GLB persons and GLB community cohesion perceptions. Methods: Analyses of the 2005 Sex and Love survey of New York City area GLB persons. Results: GLB persons tended to socialize most with their own sexual identity group. Compared to gay men, only bisexual women reported higher perceptions of GLB community cohesion. Conclusion: Our findings indicate the presence of a mosaic sexual minority community. The extent of sexual-identity-group-specific socializing patterns suggests that personal perceptions of GLB cohesion may either be idealized rather than based on routine interactions or reflect assessments of within-group (not across-group) cohesion. © 2013 by the Southwestern Social Science Association.