Sexual Identity, Sexual Attraction, and Sexual Behavior in the United States: How are they Linked?

• In Event: 308 - Section on Sociology of Sex and Gender Refereed Roundtable Session and Business Meeting
  In Refereed Roundtable 60min: Table 04. Gender, Sexuality, and Identity: Session II

Abstract

Past research provides evidence that self-reported sexual orientation identity is not always consistent with self-reported sexual behavior or self-reported sexual attraction. This study is the first to use a nationally-representative dataset of the U.S. to examine the congruencies and incongruencies of sexual identity, sexual behavior, and sexual attraction for American men and women, as well as examine how these patterns differ by gender, to assess how the estimates for the LGB population would be impacted if sexual behavior and sexual attraction translated differently into identity than it does now. Findings indicate that more men and women report same-sex attraction and same-sex sexual behavior than identify as lesbian, gay, or bisexual; that women are more likely to report same-sex attraction, bisexual behavior, and bisexual identity compared to men; and that men’s predicted probabilities of identifying as gay are higher than women’s if they have engaged in same-sex sexual behavior. This study also finds an asymmetrical relationship of self-reported sexual attraction with sexual identity, in that attraction tends to be weighted towards heterosexual attraction, regardless of identity. Furthermore, if combining sexual identity, sexual attraction, and sexual behavior measures to estimate the size of the LGB population, this study finds that about 18% of women and about 9% of men in America would comprise the LGB community. Understanding the size of the LGB population is important as it instructs research on LGB health and economic disparities, has implications for anti-discrimination laws, and can affect decisions of policy-makers.

Author

• Emma Mishel, New York University