Linking Public Opinion Perception, Minority, and Stigma – An Integrated Model of Hiding Male Same-Sex Affection in Public

Abstract

ABSTRACT Inspired by the question of why some gay and bisexual men hide same-sex affection when in public, this study integrates the concept of minority stress into Noelle-Neumann’s spiral of silence theory and Goffman’s interaction order to build an integrated model explaining why some people avoid nonverbal stigma expression in public. It is hypothesized that perceived stigma, prejudice events, and internalized stigma will result in a greater tendency to hide male same-sex affection. An empirical study involving n = 25,884 gay and bisexual men in Germany showed that higher levels of perceived stigma and internalized stigma were associated with a greater tendency to hide male same-sex affection when in public. However, being a victim of prejudice events did not substantially predict whether individuals hide their male same-sex affection. Findings are discussed in terms of their generalizability and implications for the underlying theory.