Individual differences in perceptions of gay men's sexual role preferences from facial cues

Subcultural Identification, Penetration Practices, Masculinity, and Gender Labels within a Nationally Representative Sample of Three Cohorts of American Black, White, and Latina/o LGBQ People

Most quantitative research about lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer (LGBQ) people's sexual subcultures and sexual practices has used non-probability samples due to data limitations. This paper used the Generations study, a national probability sample of LGBQ Americans in three age cohorts, 18-25 (n = 510), 34-41 (n = 294), and 52-59 (n = 425), who also identified as Black, white, or Latina/o. This paper analyzed men (n = 590) and women (n = 639) to answer the following sets of research questions: (1) What is the prevalence of subcultural identification as bear, leather/kink, twink, and jock among men, and how does it differ by cohort, race/ethnicity, and sexual identity? (2) What is the prevalence of men who describe themselves as a top, versatile top, versatile, versatile bottom, and bottom? What is the relationship between penetration practices and masculinity? (3) What is the prevalence of gender labels among women as femme, androgynous, and butch? How does the prevalence differ by cohort, race/ethnicity, and sexual identity? (4) What is the relationship between women's gender labels and masculinity? Penetration practices were fairly evenly distributed among men, and there were few differences in masculinity based on penetration practices after controlling for demographics and subcultural identification. Most women did not use gender labels, but butch identities were more common among lesbians and femme labels were more common among Black women and Latinas.

Top, Bottom, and Versatile Orientations among Adolescent Sexual Minority Men

Sexual role preference or self-label (i.e., top, versatile, or bottom) has been well studied in samples of sexual minority men (SMM) but lacks research among adolescent sexual minority men (ASMM). In response, data were collected from 302 ASMM (15-18 years old), measuring sexual self-label, relationship and sexual experience, sexually explicit media use, use of geosocial networking applications, penis size satisfaction, and gender atypicality. Results showed there was no significant difference in the distribution of sexual position self-identity in ASMM when compared with data from published, adult samples. A model that associated sexual socialization factors with adopting any self-label was significant, with greater number of partners, previous geosocial networking app use, and more relationship experience being positive predictors of having a label. Additionally, a model that tested the convergent validity between self-label and enacted sexual behaviors was significant. Both receptive and insertive sex enactments were highly correlated with corresponding labels. Lastly, gender atypicality and penis size satisfaction were significant predictors of sexual position self-identity. Data from our study supports sexual self-labeling occurring before adulthood, during adolescence for SMM. Furthermore, it shows that socialization factors (e.g., partner frequency, using apps) are important in the development of sexual position self-identity in this population.

Longitudinal Event-Level Analysis of Gay and Bisexual Men's Anal Sex Versatility: Behavior, Roles, and Substance Use

Gay and bisexual Men Who Have Sex with Men (GBM) are sexually unique in that they can practice penile-anal sex versatility, i.e. engage in insertive and receptive anal sex. Individual-level versatility is extensively researched both as a sexual behavior linked to HIV/STI transmission, and as a GBM identity that can change over time. However, there is a dearth of research on event-level versatility (ELV), defined as taking the receptive and insertive role in the same sexual encounter. We analyzed event-level data from 644 GBM in the Momentum Health Study from February 2012-February 2017 to identify factors associated with ELV prevalence, the relationship between ELV and anal sex role preference, and sero-adaptive and sexualized drug use strategies. Univariate analysis revealed ELV prevalence rates between 15% and 20%. A multivariate generalized linear mixed model indicated ELV significantly (p < .05) associated with versatile role preference and condomless sex. However, the majority of ELV came from GBM reporting insertive or receptive role preferences, and there was significantly higher condom use among sero-discordant partners, indicating sero-adaptation. Multivariate log-linear modeling identified multiple polysubstance combinations significantly associated with ELV. Results provide insights into GBM sexual behavior and constitute empirical data useful for future HIV/STI transmission pattern modeling.

Aesthetic as genetic: The epistemological violence of gaydar research

In recent years, “gaydar” has come under increasing scientific scrutiny. Gaydar researchers have found that we can accurately judge sexual orientation at better than chance levels from various nonverbal cues. Why they could find what they did is typically chalked up to gender inverted phenotypic variations in craniofacial structure that distinguish homosexuals. This interpretation of gaydar data (the “hegemonic interpretation”) maintains a construction of homosexuality as both a “natural kind” and an “entitative” category. As a result, culturally and historically contingent markers of homosexuality are naturalized under the guise of gaydar. Of significant relevance to this article’s critique of gaydar research is that the hegemonic interpretation is presented as politically advantageous for LGB people by its authors, an undertheorized assumption that risks sanctioning an epistemological violence with unfortunate, demobilizing sociopolitical consequences. This critique is contextualized within current debates regarding intimate/sexual citizenship and advocates, instead, for a queer political ethic that considers such cultural erasure to be politically untenable.

The Influence of Power and Intimacy Sexual Motives on Sexual Position Preference Among Men Who Have Sex with Men in China

We examined the sexual motives underlying sexual self-labels among Chinese men who have sex with men. A total of 60 bottoms, 120 versatiles, and 48 tops participated in a Web-based survey. Our results showed that tops were more likely to desire exerting power over their partners during sex, while bottoms were more likely to desire being overpowered by their partners. There were no significant sexual self-label differences in the sexual motives of wanting intimacy and the desire for pleasure. The intimacy and power ratings differed across sexual activities and sex positions. There was a tendency for sexual positions in which the performer was facing the receiver to be rated as more intimate than those in which the performer was facing away from the receiver, and for individuals who preferred to be insertive to feel more powerful in sexual positions in which their partner was kneeling down or standing than those in which their partner was sitting or lying down. Tops were significantly more likely than bottoms to engage in insertive sexual positions, while bottoms were significantly more likely to engage in receptive sexual positions. Both tops and bottoms were more likely to engage in the corresponding insertive/receptive position when the insertive position was rated as more powerful than the receptive position. Our results suggest that the concordance between sexual self-labels and sexual position preferences may rely on the power difference between the insertive and receptive positions in addition to body characteristics.

Sexual Positioning Among Men Who Have Sex With Men: A Narrative Review

Sexual positioning practices among men who have sex with men (MSM) have not received a thorough discussion in the MSM and HIV literature, given that risks for acquiring or transmitting HIV and STIs via condomless anal sex vary according to sexual positioning. MSM bear a disproportionate burden of HIV compared to the general population in the United States; surveillance efforts suggest that HIV and STIs are increasing among domestic and international populations of MSM. We conducted a narrative review, using a targeted literature search strategy, as an initial effort to explore processes through which sexual positioning practices may contribute to HIV/STI transmission. Peer-reviewed articles were eligible for inclusion if they contained a measure of sexual positioning identity and/or behavior (i.e., "top", "bottom," etc.) or sexual positioning behavior (receptive anal intercourse or insertive anal intercourse), or assessed the relationship between sexual positioning identity with HIV risk, anal sex practice, masculinity, power, partner type, or HIV status. A total of 23 articles met our inclusion criteria. This review highlights dynamic psychosocial processes likely underlying sexual decision making related to sexual positioning identity and practices among MSM and MSM who have sex with women (MSMW), and ways these contexts may influence HIV/STI risk. Despite limited focus in the extant literature, this review notes the important role the contextual factors (masculinity stereotypes, power, partner type, and HIV status) likely to play in influencing sexual positioning identity and practices. Through this review we offer an initial synthesis of the literature describing sexual positioning identities and practices and conceptual model to provide insight into important areas of study through future research.

Internalized Homophobia Influences Perceptions of Men's Sexual Orientation from Photos of Their Faces

Although researchers have explored the perceiver characteristics that make people accurate at identifying others' sexual orientations, characteristics of the targets remain largely unexplored. In the current study, we examined how individual differences in internalized homophobia among gay men can affect perceptions of their sexual orientation by asking 49 individuals to judge the sexual orientations of 78 gay men from photos of their faces. We found that gay men reporting higher levels of internalized homophobia were less likely to have come out of the closet and were, in turn, less likely to be perceived as gay. Thus, internalized homophobia and the concealment of one's sexual minority status can impact perceptions of sexual orientation.

Event-Level Analysis of Anal Sex Roles and Sex Drug Use Among Gay and Bisexual Men in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada

This study analyzed event-level partnership data from a computer-assisted survey of 719 gay and bisexual men (GBM) enrolled in the Momentum Health Study to delineate potential linkages between anal sex roles and the so-called "sex drugs," i.e., erectile dysfunction drugs (EDD), poppers, and crystal methamphetamine. Univariable and multivariable analyses using generalized linear mixed models with logit link function with sexual encounters (n = 2514) as the unit of analysis tested four hypotheses: (1) EDD are significantly associated with insertive anal sex roles, (2) poppers are significantly associated with receptive anal sex, (3) both poppers and EDD are significantly associated with anal sexual versatility, and (4) crystal methamphetamine is significantly associated with all anal sex roles. Data for survey respondents and their sexual partners allowed testing these hypotheses for both anal sex partners in the same encounter. Multivariable results supported the first three hypotheses. Crystal methamphetamine was significantly associated with all anal sex roles in the univariable models, but not significant in any multivariable ones. Other multivariable significant variables included attending group sex events, venue where first met, and self-described sexual orientation. Results indicate that GBM sex-drug use behavior features rational decision-making strategies linked to anal sex roles. They also suggest that more research on anal sex roles, particularly versatility, is needed, and that sexual behavior research can benefit from partnership analysis.