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Homophobia

  • Living reference work entry
  • First Online:
Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science

  • 83 Accesses

Synonyms

Heterosexism; Sexual prejudice

Definition

Generally, homophobia refers to prejudice, stereotyping, and/or discrimination based on sexual orientation – particularly directed by heterosexuals toward lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals (hereafter referred to as LGB). Prejudice refers to the specific emotional reaction to a person because of one’s sexual orientation. Stereotypes refer to the beliefs about others due to classifying them according to their sexual orientation, and stereotyping refers to the process of applying stereotypes of a certain sexual orientation group to an individual member of that group. Discrimination refers to differential behavior toward an individual as a function of their sexual orientation.

Introduction

Homophobia is a term often used to describe prejudice and discrimination directed toward nonheterosexual individuals. As the name implies, the concept homophobiadenotes a fear-based response toward those who are attracted to and/or engage in...

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, St Xavier University, Chicago, IL, USA

    Angela Pirlott

  2. University of Washington Tacoma, Tacoma, WA, USA

    Corey L. Cook

Authors
  1. Angela Pirlott
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  2. Corey L. Cook
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Angela Pirlott .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Oakland Univ Dept of Psycholgy, Rochester, Michigan, USA

    Viviana Weekes-Shackelford

  2. Department of Psychology, Oakland University, Rochester, Michigan, USA

    Todd K. Shackelford

  3. Rochester, Michigan, USA

    Viviana A. Weekes-Shackelford

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© 2016 Springer International Publishing AG

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Pirlott, A., Cook, C.L. (2016). Homophobia. In: Weekes-Shackelford, V., Shackelford, T., Weekes-Shackelford, V. (eds) Encyclopedia of Evolutionary Psychological Science. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_3377-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-16999-6_3377-1

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-16999-6

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