Transcultural homo- and transphobia

Abstract

Homophobia and transphobia are defined as the irrational fear, hatred, and intolerance of homosexual and transsexual people by (officially) heterosexual individuals. Various cultural and psychological mechanisms, prejudices, and personal experiences underlie the discriminatory acts and feelings against homosexuals and transsexuals. However, in order to understand these diffuse phenomena, a transcultural approach is crucial. Therefore, we describe differing attitudes toward homosexual and transsexual individuals across states and continents according to jurisdictional, cultural, and religious aspects. We noticed that in some regions and cultures, homosexuality is dramatically criminalized, even with death. In other regions and cultures, instead, civil rights, as same-sex marriage, are recognized. Interestingly, such profound differences seem related more to personal and cultural reasons than religious reasons. Experiences of discrimination and oppression by homosexuals and transsexuals cause “minority stress,” a spectrum of psychological suffering mainly due to social stigma. For all these reasons, the expert in sexology should be cognizant of, and deal with, transcultural differences related to homophobia and transphobia, with the aim of preventing these pathological behaviors that can have dramatic effects on the sexual health of populations.