Abstract
ABSTRACTImagined interactions are a type of cognition and mental imagery based on symbolic interactionism and cognitive script theory in which people imagine conversations with significant others. Prior research has examined gender differences in this type of mental imagery, but there is no research that simultaneously examines gender (men, women) and LGBT (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender) identity. The authors examined groups based on gender and LGBT identity: heterosexual, lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. A multivariate analysis of variance revealed that gay individuals had more imagined interactions followed by transgender and bisexual individuals while heterosexual individuals reported the least amount of imagined interactions. Lesbian women and gay men as well as bisexual individuals had more retroactive imagined interactions than transgender and heterosexual individuals. Additionally, lesbian women and gay men had the widest variety of interaction partners and topics compared to transgender and heterosexual individuals. Interaction effects revealed that lesbian women had more retroactive imagined interactions than gay and heterosexual men as well as using imagined interactions to rehearse messages. Results are discussed in terms of gender identity differences.
Published Version
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