PERCEPTION OF THE HOMOSEXUAL COMMUNITY

Cultural Immersion and Perception of the Homosexual Community

Robert M. Chadwick
University of Kentucky CIS 110

PERCEPTION OF THE HOMOSEXUAL COMMUNITY

ABSTRACT
In this paper the topic of the homosexual community is the focus. More specifically
the perception of the community by dominates culture, and also my own perception and
preconceived notions of the community. Through the process of familiarizing myself with
the community through interviews and research one can really open up their mind and
possibly change their views. With just a small amount of research into the homosexual
community I was able to alter my views and judgments on the community.

PERCEPTION OF THE HOMOSEXUAL COMMUNITY

Today we live in a vastly different society than that of out parents, and even more so
than that of our grandparents. Popular culture and media are ever changing and have a large
influence on what the youth and the dominant culture view or deem as the norm or
acceptable. Some communities are ostracized and some are deemed popular or cool. Along
with the popular culture many factors effect and individuals views upon cultures or
communities that are not their own. I have been raised in a conservative, white, military
family. Being raised in this environment has obviously influenced my identity and the
preconceived notions I have on others and their communities. A community that I have
found my self judgmental towards at times is the homosexual community. That is why the
community that I have decided to research and open my mind towards is the homosexual
community.
Unfortunately popular culture and individuals themselves can be very shallow. The
idea of a judgment free world is idealistic, everyone falls victim to preconceived notions and
judgments towards others. In or culture it is known that first impressions can make or break
you, whether it is a job interview, or a date the first seconds you meet someone can decide
their views on you for the entirety of the relationship. Dominant culture can have a large
effect on a community, as the name clearly states the dominant culture influences the
majority of people and their views.
A community that has recently seen a lot of publicity in the dominant culture is the
homosexual community. Whether it is on popular television shows, on the news, or just in
the local schools. For instance the show Modern Family, this
is a fairly popular television show that has a homosexual
couple in a main role in the television show as seen in
Figure 1. At first glance the two males seem normal
Figure 1 Modern Family's
Homosexual couple

PERCEPTION OF THE HOMOSEXUAL COMMUNITY

besides the physical contact, but upon watching the television show they are very clearly
homosexual. Both fit into certain stereotypes that are perpetuated by shows such as this and
popular culture. The two are very fashion forward and emotional, as well as cheery. Where
none of these traits have directly negative connotations to them it is very clear that the two
are effeminate. Which is not necessarily the case for all of the homosexual community. In
recent episodes of Modern Family the two have decided that they will become legally married,
this brings up another area where the homosexual community is being brought up more
frequently. The topic of the legalization of gay marriage has
become readily covered in the media, many states have started to
legalize gay marriage, including elected officials and general public
(Woodford M. 2012) which shows support of the homosexual
Figure 2
Gay marriage

community among the dominant culture. The acceptability of the

homosexual community has slowly been changing over the last two to three decades. In
1973 seventy percent of people surveyed felt that same-sex relationships were always
wrong (Williams, H 2014) that statistic has slowly changed over the year where in 2010
when people were surveyed with the same question the percentage was down to 43.7, This
information can be found here.
The homosexual community has been seeing significantly more publicity in every
aspect of media. Some of this attention has been positive but along with the positives there
are also negative aspects to the attention. The positive aspect of the attention is the rising
level of support on the front of the legalization of gay marriage. It has been covered
extensively on media and has proven to increase the support ratings among the public.
Along with all the attention many of stereotypes can be transmitted to the public. Often the
dominant culture uses the media as their sole source of information on topics so if

PERCEPTION OF THE HOMOSEXUAL COMMUNITY

something is improperly portrayed on the news it can be carried on through the public. Even
though there are both positives and negatives to the coverage of the community on media
the more important thing is that it is being covered. If topics such as same sex marriage were
brought up in media forty years ago there would have been a full out riot in the streets
among the dominant culture.
With the issue of the acceptance of the homosexual community along comes the
discrimination factor that the dominant culture has upon the community. As with all
communities that do not conform to that of which the dominant culture deems acceptable
or right the homosexual community must face discrimination and adversity. A study done by
Vickie Mays and Susan Cochran looked into the issue of discrimination of the homosexual
community. Studies have shown that homosexuals are having higher rates of stress-sensitive
psychiatric disorders than the heterosexual people. During my interviews I asked the
question, have you ever felt discrimination towards yourself because of your sexual
orientation, the answer was an expected yes. Both of the people that I had interviewed had
both said that they had felt discrimination. Whether it had been someone being out right
rude or mean towards them or it was someone tip toeing around topics that the person
might have thought would make the interviewee uncomfortable. When I asked which type of
discrimination bothered them more they both had said that they were equal. One said that it
doesnt matter the type of discrimination it is the fact that there is discrimination. It shows
that the person doing the discriminating does not accept the person that you are and feels
that they must treat you differently. After I had discussed this fairly emotional topic I asked
the interviewees if they had ever faced any psychiatric problems related to the discrimination
that they had experienced. This was obviously a very touchy subject and one person was not
willing to talk about and the other person was willing to share a little bit but both requested

PERCEPTION OF THE HOMOSEXUAL COMMUNITY

to remain anonymous. The person who shared about his psychiatric state recalled a time
through high school were a day wouldnt go by that he wouldnt wonder what was wrong
with him. An experience like this at such a developmental period in a persons life is sure to
have left some sort of effects on a persons psychiatric state. While it seemed that both of the
individuals I had interviewed had experienced discrimination that effected them in a negative
way, Out of population of homosexual interviewed as part of this study results showed that
42 percent attributed discrimination had a negative affect to quality of life and indicators of
psychiatric morbidity(Mays V & Cochran S 2011). With number like these even though the
sample size was relatively small the reflections of the dominant cultures discrimination upon
the homosexual communities is clearly seen. More detail on the graphs and research can be
obtained here. After examining those visuals in that research project and just the general
research project itself it really put the issue of discrimination of the homosexual community
into perspective. Often time people who were surveyed said that denial from a job or even a
neighborhood could have been directly related to the simple fact that they were not
heterosexual. Often times issues such as this are avoided or not talked about even though
they may be prevalent in the dominant culture, not until some research is done that ones
eyes can be opened to the situation at hand. Seeing these statistics about the mental health of
the homosexual community really put things in to perspective.
Other areas where the homosexual community and more specifically the male
population see a lot of attention is with the heterosexual female population. The attention
from this group is different than that of the general view but still holds on to some of the
stereotypes that are enforced my media or just socially. While the stereotypes held by females
about homosexual males are not necessarily of the negative sort they still can cause social
pressure on the community, which affects that community in several ways. The classic case

PERCEPTION OF THE HOMOSEXUAL COMMUNITY

of non-negative stereotype held by females is the gay best friend every girl must have or
really wants. This idea of the gay best friend is reinforced in television shows and also the
Internet. In figure three an Ecard is depicted which is a popular
Internet trend that depicts popular views or funny statements. In an
article that I found online it talks about all the benefits of the coveted
Figure 3
Gay best friend

gay best friend the shopping, the wit, the security, the style, and the

flirting(Bexley S. 2012) while many homosexual males may share some or all of these traits
there is still a large portion that are not the gay best friend material and that can cause social
pressures from females on the male homosexual community. The two individuals that I had
interviewed were both male so they were able to relate to this situation and found it
interesting that I had taken this approach to the gay best friend topic. I asked them both
how females reacted when they found out that they were homosexual. Both responded with
similar answers along the lines of most females would jokingly throw a gay best friend
comment into the conversation. While some may be joking others were not and they both
said that it made casual relationships with females difficult since they had those preconceived
notions of the gay best friend.
Given that I would say that I fall into the dominant culture I can also say that I
probably share several views about different communities with it due to my affiliation with
dominant culture. That being said I would also like to claim that I aware enough of what I
am being subjected to through popular media and other forms of information or
indoctrination that I am able to construct my own perceptions about communities and
cultures. I come from a fairly normal American family as I see, which of course thats how I
see it because it is the norm for me because it is what I have been exposed to all my life. We
are white, middle class, publically educated, republican, non-divorced, heterosexual, military

PERCEPTION OF THE HOMOSEXUAL COMMUNITY

family. Along with many other factors that have an affect on out family identity. All of these
play a role in my preconceived notions of anything. As much as I would like to deny it, I am
often extremely judgmental and critical of others and even myself. So when it come to
homosexual community the same thing applies, while I may not share all the views or
stereotypes perpetuated by the dominant culture I am sure I hold a couple in my
subconscious when I first meet or see a homosexual whether they be male or female. Things
like they must not do masculine things or homophobic thoughts occasionally cross my mind
even when I try to suppress them. That being said having the opportunity to meet with and
study the homosexual community has given me a great opportunity to disprove some of
those stereotypes or misconception that I may have just due to lack of education or
familiarity with the community. The immersion into the culture and community that makes
up the identity of the homosexual community give me a chance to meet with the either
exceptions to the stereotypes or the normal ones for lack of a better word.
Through this opportunity I have been able to expose myself to several things that are
outside of my comfort zone or otherwise I wouldnt do, through these experiences I have
been able to expand my views upon the homosexual community. Through this experience I
can also say that my acceptance of a community that I am not associated with has improved
not only towards the homosexual community but also but also towards just communities
that I do not associate with in general. Applying the lessons and knowledge gained through
this assignment to a broader extent allows me to accept other communities at least a little bit
more than I may have previously done. Even though we have only been studying out
communities for a short period of time I have already seen a change in my perception of the
community. With just a minor amount of education of what the community goes through as
far as hardships, discrimination, or just everyday life has already opened my eyes to some of

PERCEPTION OF THE HOMOSEXUAL COMMUNITY

the misjudgments. For example the after reading in to the study about the mental health
conditions that the homosexual community, it makes me feel bad about any judgment or
discrimination I may have had upon them even if it was not verbal or had a direct impact on
their life.

References
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Troiden, R. (1988). Gay and Lesbian Identity: A Sociological Analysis (1st ed., Vol. 1). Dix
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Williams, H. (n.d.). Americans Move Dramatically Toward Acceptance of
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Mays, V., & Cochran, S. (2001). Mental Health Correlates of Perceived Discrimination
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Woodford, M. (2012). Religion and Endorsement of Same-Sex Marriage: The Role of
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Religious Beliefs. Interdisciplinary Journal of Research on Relgion, 1(1). Retrieved
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Figure 1
ABC Modern Family. (2012). Mitch and Cam, Retrieved October 5, 2014, from:
http://www.yourtv.com.au/blog.aspx?blogentryid=690757&showcomments=true (
Figure 2
Illinous Obsever, (2013). Gay marriage, Retrieved November 5th, 2014, from:
http://www.illinoisobserver.net/2013/10/22/poll-by-2-to-1-illinois-catholic-voters-back-same-sex-marriage/
Figure 3

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Her Campus, (2013). Gay Bestfriend, retrieved November 5th, 2014, from:
http://www.hercampus.com/school/vcu/ask-your-gay-best-friend-all-your-questions-answered-sassy-twist