Effect of Sexual Racism on Partner Desirability in Gay Asian Men

Abstract

ABSTRACT Sexual racism—including or excluding racial minority members in partner selection based on race—negatively affects Asian men who have sex with men (MSM) across various domains. The current study aims to investigate the effect of potential partners’ racial preferences on desirability in Asian MSM. The relationship between sexual racism awareness and partner desirability when evaluating white partners with racial preferences was also investigated. A sample of Asian MSM (N = 128) responded to hypothetical online dating scenarios in which the racial background (Asian/white) and racial preference (none/Asian/white) of facial stimuli were manipulated. A two-way ANOVA with post-hoc Bonferroni analyses confirmed that, as hypothesized, among potential white partners, those that exhibited no racial preferences were most desirable, F(1.66, 210.54) = .11.37, p < .001, ηp 2 = .08. Among potential Asian partners, those that preferred white men were least desirable, F(1.82, 231.60) = 81.95, p < .001, ηp 2 = .39. Unexpectedly, there was no relationship evident between sexual racism awareness and desirability for potential white partners (in any racial preference condition; all rs < .20). Our findings suggest that overt expression of certain racial preferences can negatively affect desirability in online dating applications.