“I'm not gay.... I'm a real man!”: Heterosexual Men's Gender Self-Esteem and Sexual Prejudice Author Juan Falomir-Pichastor, Gabriel Mugny Publication Year 2009 Type Journal Article Abstract Five studies examined the hypothesis that heterosexual men, but not heterosexual women, endorse negative attitudes toward homosexuality (i.e., sexual prejudice) in order to maintain a positive gender-related identity that is unambiguously different from a homosexual identity. Studies 1 and 2 showed that men's (but not women's) gender self-esteem (but not personal self-esteem) was positively related to sexual prejudice: The more positive heterosexual men's gender self-esteem, the more negative their attitude toward homosexuality. Studies 3 and 4 showed that this link appears specifically among men motivated to maintain psychological distance from gay men. Study 5 experimentally manipulated the perceived biological differences between homosexual and heterosexual men. The previously observed link between men's gender self-esteem and sexual prejudice appeared in the control and no-differences conditions but disappeared in the differences condition. These findings are discussed in terms of men's attitudes as a defensive function against threat to masculinity. Keywords self-esteem, sexual prejudice, heterosexual, LGBTQ, gender bias Journal Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin Volume 35 Pages 1233–1243 Type of Article Journal Article DOI 10.1177/0146167209338072 Full text Open access via the link provided. Type of Prejudice/Bias Sexuality Country Switzerland Method Lab Setting College/University Community Google ScholarDOIBibTeX