The gender belief system, authoritarianism, social dominance orientation, and heterosexuals' attitudes toward lesbians and gay men

Abstract

We tested hypotheses drawn from three theoretical perspectives -gender belief system, authoritarianism, and social dominance - concerning heterosexuals' attitudes toward lesbians and gay men. Data from 122 male and 131 female heterosexual college students with mostly White, middle-class backgrounds indicated that constructs postulated by all three perspectives played important roles in predicting attitudes: Gender differences in attitudes toward lesbians and gay men were mediated by social dominance orientation and gender-role beliefs, indicating that gender role beliefs may act as legitimizing myths to justify antigay attitudes. Authoritarianism had both a direct relationship to attitudes toward lesbians and gay men and an indirect relationship mediated by gender-role beliefs.