Americans' Gender Attitudes at the Intersection of Sexual Orientation and Gender

Extensive research on differences in women's and men's gender attitudes and more recent work on sexual orientation differences in these and other social attitudes have overlooked the potential intersection between gender and sexual orientation in predicting Americans' gender attitudes. I use data from the 2012 American National Election Survey 2012 to investigate differences in views on gender roles, gender discrimination and inequality, and abortion among lesbian and bisexual women, gay and bisexual men, heterosexual women, and heterosexual men. The results suggest that heterosexual men hold the most conservative views on gender, while lesbian and bisexual women are most conscious of gender discrimination and inequality. These differences are partially explained by LGB Americans' liberal political ideology and heightened awareness of homophobic discrimination-two mechanisms that are also gendered. I conclude by arguing that the intersection between sexual orientation and gender produces unique lived experiences that, in turn, produce gendered sexual orientation gaps in worldviews.