Gay Asian Americans Are Seen as More American Than Asian Americans Who Are Presumed Straight

Gay Asian Americans Are Seen as More American Than Asian Americans Who Are Presumed Straight. Mika Semrow et al. Social Psychological and Personality Science, June 27, 2019. https://doi.org/10.1177/1948550619849426

Abstract: Four studies investigate whether gay Asian Americans are stereotyped as more American than Asian Americans who are presumed straight. Gay Asian American men (Study 1) and women (Study 2) were rated as more American than their counterparts whose sexual orientation was unspecified. However, sexual orientation did not influence judgments of Whites’ American identity. The relationship between Asian Americans’ sexual orientation and perceptions of their American identity was mediated by a belief that American culture is relatively more accepting of gay people than Asian culture (Studies 3 and 4). Manipulating how accepting of gay people a target’s country of origin is relative to the United States altered ratings of American identity for gay but not straight targets (Study 4). Using an intersectional approach, these studies demonstrate that sexual orientation information comes together with race to influence who is likely to be perceived as American.

Keywords: race, sexual orientation, intersectionality, foreign stereotypes, acceptance