Abstract
This work focuses on the variations in societal responses perceived by male homosexuals in different group settings of interaction and on the relationship of these responses to their social status and related behavioral characteristics. Based on the analysis of data collected from a sampling of 148 male homosexuals in and around a large midwestern city, it is concluded that (1) stereotypic responses are more likely to occur under the interactional prescripts characteristic of secondary groups due to the impersonal and almost “one-way” interaction which characterizes them and (2) lower-class homosexuals are more likely to perceive stereotypic responses because of their closer approximation to the stereotypic image of the homosexual. It is also suggested that exhibiting behavior which closely approximates the stereotype may be a manifestation of the lowerclass homosexual's desire to be clearly identified with the homosexual community and to conform to the sex role stereotypic expectations of the lower classes. Such behavior may provide for a meaningful self-definition and opportunity for upward mobility unattainable in the larger society.
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Farrell, R.A., Morrione, T.J. Social interaction and stereotypic responses to homosexuals. Arch Sex Behav 3, 425–442 (1974). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01541163
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF01541163