Societal attitudes toward homosexuality vary greatly across different cultures and historical periods, as do attitudes toward sexual desire, activity and relationships in general. All cultures have their own values regarding appropriate and inappropriate sexuality; some sanction same-sex love and sexuality, while others may disapprove of such activities in part. As with heterosexual behaviour, different sets of prescriptions and proscriptions may be given to individuals according to their gender, age, social status or social class.
Many of the world's cultures have, in the past, considered procreative sex within a recognized relationship to be a sexual norm—sometimes exclusively so, and sometimes alongside norms of same-sex love, whether passionate, intimate or sexual. Some sects within some religions, especially those influenced by the Abrahamic tradition, have censured homosexual acts and relationships at various times, in some cases implementing severe punishments. Homophobic attitudes in society can manifest themselves in the form of anti-LGBTQ discrimination, opposition to LGBTQ rights, anti-LGBTQ rhetoric, and violence against LGBTQ people.
Since the 1970s, much of the world has become more accepting of homosexual acts and relationships. Cross-national differences in acceptance can be explained by three factors: the strength of democratic institutions, the level of economic development, and the religious context of the places where people live. The Pew Research Center's 2013 Global Attitudes Survey "finds broad acceptance of homosexuality in North America, the European Union, and much of Latin America, but equally widespread rejection in predominantly Muslim nations and in Africa, as well as in parts of Asia and in Russia". The survey also finds "acceptance of homosexuality is particularly widespread in countries where religion is less central in people's lives. These are also among the richest countries in the world. In contrast, in poorer countries with high levels of religiosity, few believe homosexuality should be accepted by society. Age is also a factor in several countries, with younger respondents offering far more tolerant views than older ones. And while gender differences are not prevalent, in those countries where they are, women are consistently more accepting of homosexuality than men."
Difficulties in interpreting homosexuality Contemporary scholars caution against applying modern Western assumptions about sex and gender to other times and places; what looks like same-sex sexuality to a Western observer may not be "same-sex" or "sexual" at all to the people engaging in such behaviour. For example, in the Bugis cultures of Sulawesi, a female who dresses and works in a masculine fashion and marries a woman is seen as belonging to a third gender;Graham, Sharyn, Sulawesi's fifth gender , Inside Indonesia, April–June 2001. to the Bugis, their relationship is not homosexual (see sexual orientation and gender identity). In the case of the 'Sambia' (a pseudonym coined by anthropologist Gilbert Herdt), boys in Papua New Guinea ingest the semen of older males as part of initiation rituals intended to aid their maturation; it is disputed whether this is best understood as a sexual act at all.Leila J. Rupp, "Toward a Global History of Same-Sex Sexuality", Journal of the History of Sexuality 10 (April 2001): 287–302. Many scholars argue that modern concepts of homosexual and heterosexual identity emerged in Europe during the mid-to-late nineteenth century, although this interpretation is disputed by other scholars. The author has made adapted and expanded portions of this book available online as A Critique of Social Constructionism and Postmodern Queer Theory . Behaviors that today would be widely regarded as homosexual, at least in the West, were reported to enjoy varying degrees of acceptance in many of the cultures surveyed, although the frequently cited figure of "around three-quarters" depends on the interpretation of the original source and should be attributed explicitly (1951).Ford, C. S. & Beach, F. A. (1951). Patterns of Sexual Behavior. New York: Harper and Row.
Measuring attitudes toward homosexuality + Pew Global Attitudes Project 2019: #1 – Homosexuality should be accepted by society, #2 – Homosexuality should not be accepted by society" Country #1 #2 North America Canada 85%10% United States 72%21% Europe Sweden94%5% Netherlands92%8% Spain89%10% Germany86%11% France86%11% United Kingdom86%11% Italy75%20% Czech Republic59%26% Greece53%40% Hungary49%39% Poland47%42% Slovakia44%46% Bulgaria32%48% Lithuania28%45% Ukraine14%69% Russia14%74% Middle East Israel47%45% Turkey25%57% Lebanon13%85%Asia/PacificAustralia81%18%Philippines73%24%Japan68%22%South Korea44%53%India37%37%Indonesia9%80%Latin AmericaArgentina76%19%Mexico69%24%Brazil67%23%AfricaSouth Africa54%38%Kenya14%83% Tunisia9%72% Nigeria7%91% From the 1970s, academics have researched attitudes held by individuals toward lesbians, gay men and bisexuals, and the social and cultural factors that underlie such attitudes. Numerous studies have investigated the prevalence of acceptance and disapproval of homosexuality, and have consistently found correlates with various demographic, psychological, and social variables. For example, studies (mainly conducted in the United States) have found that heterosexuals with positive attitudes towards homosexuality are more likely to be female, white, young, non-religious, well-educated, politically liberal or moderate, and have close personal contact with homosexuals who are out.Studies finding that heterosexual men usually exhibit more hostile attitudes toward gay men and lesbians than do heterosexual women:
Herek, G. M. (1994). "Assessing heterosexuals' attitudes toward lesbians and gay men". In B. Greene and G. M. Herek (Eds.) Psychological perspectives on lesbian and gay issues: Vol. 1 Lesbian and gay psychology: Theory, research, and clinical applications. Thousands Oaks, California: Sage.
For other correlates, see:
See also: Lewis, Gregory B., "Black–White Differences in Attitudes toward Homosexuality and Gay Rights", Public Opinion Quarterly, Volume 67, Number 1, pp. 59–78 They are also more likely to have positive attitudes towards other minority groupsHerek, G. M. (1991). "Stigma, prejudice, and violence against lesbians and gay men". In: J. Gonsiorek & J. Weinrich (Eds.), Homosexuality: Research implications for public policy (pp. 60–80). Newbury Park, California: Sage. and are less likely to support traditional gender roles. Several studies have also suggested that heterosexual females' attitudes towards gay men are similar to those towards lesbians, and some (but not all) have found that heterosexual males have a more positive attitude toward lesbians. Herek (1984) found that heterosexual females tended to exhibit equally positive or negative attitudes toward gay men and lesbians. The heterosexual males, however, tended to respond more negatively, or unfavorably, to gay men than lesbians.
Social psychologists such as Gregory Herek have examined underlying motivations for homophobia (hostility toward lesbians and gays), and cultural theorists have noted how portrayals of homosexuality often center around stigmatized phenomena such as AIDS, pedophilia, and gender variance. The extent to which such portrayals are stereotypes is disputed.
Contemporary researchers have measured attitudes held by heterosexuals toward gay men and lesbians in a number of different ways.Commonly used scales include those designed by Herek, G. (1988), Larson et al. (1980), Kite, M. E., & Deaux, K. (1986), and Haddock et al. (1993)
Certain populations are also found to accept homosexuality more than others. In the United States, African Americans are generally less tolerant of homosexuality than European or Hispanic Americans. However, survey data from ABC News after President Barack Obama's public support of same-sex marriage showed a shift in attitudes to 59% support among African Americans compared to 50% among White Americans. Israelis were found to be the most accepting of homosexuality among Middle Eastern nations and Israeli laws and culture reflect that. According to a 2007 poll, a strong majority of Israeli Jews say they would accept a gay child and go on with life as usual. A 2013 Haaretz poll found that most of the Arab and Haredi sector saw homosexuality negatively, while the majority of secular and traditional Jews say they support equal rights for gay couples.
Much less research has been conducted into societal attitudes toward bisexuality. What studies do exist suggest that the attitude of heterosexuals toward bisexuals mirrors their attitude toward homosexuals,*Ochs, R. (1996). "Biphobia: It goes more than two ways". In: B. A. Firestein (Ed.), Bisexuality: The psychology and politics of an invisible minority (pp. 217–239). Thousand Oaks, California: Sage
Weinberg, M. S., Williams, C. J., & Pryor, D. W. (1994). Dual attraction: Understanding bisexuality. New York: Oxford University Press. and that bisexuals experience a similar degree of hostility, discrimination, and violence relating to their sexual orientation as do homosexuals.*Paul, J. P., & Nichols, M. (1988). "'Biphobia' and the construction of a bisexual identity". In: M. Shernoff & W. Scott (Eds.), The sourcebook on lesbian/gay health care (pp. 142–147). Washington, DC: National Lesbian and Gay Health Foundation. Ochs, R. (1996). "Biphobia: It goes more than two ways". In: B. A. Firestein (Ed.), Bisexuality: The psychology and politics of an invisible minority (pp. 217–239). Thousand Oaks, California: Sage Weinberg, M. S., Williams, C. J., & Pryor, D. W. (1994). Dual attraction: Understanding bisexuality. New York: Oxford University Press. Herek, Gillis, and Cogan (1999) found that 15% of bisexual women (n = 190) and 27% of bisexual men (n = 191) had experienced a crime against their person or property because of their sexual orientation. compared to 19% of lesbians (n = 980) and 28% of gay men (n = 898). (Gillis, J. R., & Cogan, J. C. (1999). Psychological sequelae of hate crime victimization among lesbian, gay, and bisexual adults. Journal of Consulting and Clinical Psychology, 67, 945–951.) Note: the Kaiser Family Foundation (2001) found that bisexuals reported experiencing less prejudice and discrimination, while a 1997 study of heterosexual U.S undergraduate students found that they had more negative attitudes toward bisexuals than towards lesbians and gays. Kaiser Family Foundation (2001), Inside-out: A report on the experiences of lesbians, gays, and bisexuals in America and the public's view on issues and politics related to sexual orientation. http://www.kff.org ;
Research (mainly conducted in the United States) show that people with more permissive attitudes on sexual orientation issues tend to be younger, well-educated, and politically liberal. Tolerance toward homosexuality and bisexuality have been increasing with time. A 2011 Public Policy Polling survey found that 48 percent of voters in the state of Delaware supported the legalization of same-sex marriage, while 47 percent were opposed and 5 percent were not sure. A 2011 poll by Lake Research Partners showed that 62% in Delaware favored allowing same-sex couples to form civil unions, while 31% were opposed, and 7% were not sure.
Same-sex marriage
Adoption
Law
The legal status of homosexuality varies greatly around the world. Homosexual acts between consenting adults are known to be illegal in about 70 out of the 195 countries of the world.