Abstract
We examined whether heterosexual individuals’ self-reported sexual orientation could be influenced experimentally by manipulating their knowledge of the nature of sexual orientation. In Study 1 (180 university students, 66% female) participants read summaries describing evidence for sexual orientation existing on a continuum versus discrete categories or a control manipulation, and in Study 2 (460 participants in a nationally representative Qualtrics panel, 50% female) additionally read summaries describing sexual orientation as fluid versus stable across the life-course. After reading summaries, participants answered various questions about their sexual orientation. In Study 1, political moderates and progressives (but not conservatives) who read the continuous manipulation subsequently reported being less exclusively heterosexual, and regardless of political alignment, participants reported less certainty about their sexual orientation, relative to controls. In Study 2, after exposure to fluid or continuous manipulations heterosexual participants were up to five times more likely than controls to rate themselves as non-exclusively heterosexual. Additionally, those in the continuous condition reported less certainty about their sexual orientation and were more willing to engage in future same-sex sexual experiences, than those in the control condition. These results suggest that non-traditional theories of sexual orientation can lead heterosexuals to embrace less exclusive heterosexual orientations.
Highlights
We examined whether heterosexual individuals’ self-reported sexual orientation could be influenced experimentally by manipulating their knowledge of the nature of sexual orientation
Across two studies we examined whether exposure to different accounts of sexual orientation influenced how heterosexual men and women rated their sexual orientation on a Kinsey-type continuum, as well as their willingness to engage in sexual/romantic encounters with members of the same-sex, and their level of uncertainty in their sexual orientation
In Step 2, we examined the main effect of political orientation, gender, and added interactions between political orientation × gender, continuous condition × political orientation, continuous condition × gender, discrete condition × political orientation, and discrete condition × gender
Summary
Participants completed the same set of outcome measures as in Study 1 (those relevant to this study were sexual orientation, sexual orientation uncertainty, and willingness to engage same-sex behaviours). One in the control condition and one in the discrete condition, reported their sexual orientation as exclusively homosexual on the post-test 9-point Kinsey type scale. These participants were excluded from the relevant analysis of sexual orientation due to high likelihood these were non-serious responses (meaning that sample size for this analysis was n = 458, but still n = 460 for subsequent analysis of sexual orientation uncertainty and willingness to engage in same-sex experiences). The experimental protocol (for research involving humans) was approved by The University of Sydney Research Ethics Committee
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