Gendered Organizations as Heterosexualized Organizations: The Case of Housing, Roommate, and Visitation Policies at Christian Colleges and Universities

Abstract

Gendered organization theory highlights the gendered character of organizations. Recent extensions of gendered organization theory show that gendered organizations are simultaneously racialized, cisgendered, and classed. However, prominent studies in this literature downplay the importance of sexuality to gendered organizations. Building on recent critiques of gendered organization theory, and innovating with the concept of heterosexualized organizations, the authors assess whether some Christian colleges and universities’ heteronormative belief that all students are (or should be) heterosexual is linked to their decision to maintain gendered housing, roommate, and visitation policies. Through logistic regression analyses of residence life policies across 609 Christian colleges and universities, the authors find that schools that maintain bans on so-called homosexual behavior tend to also maintain gendered residence life policies. This suggests that many gendered organizations are also heterosexualized organizations. Our study holds important implications for theories of organizational inequalities, as well as for research on gender, sexuality, and higher education.