The experience and expression of romantic jealousy in same-sex and opposite-sex romantic relationships

This study examines and compares how males and females in same-sex and __o^osite-sex romanjic^elationships^^perience and express ^ romanHc^jealousy. Undergraduates at a large, southern university and visitors at a metropolitan Pride Celebration (N = 149) completed measures assessing cognitive and emotional jealousy experience, jealousy expression, and demographic information. The reported usage of two of Guerrero, Andersen, Jorgensen, Spitzberg, and Eloy's (1995) communicative responses to jealousy typology significantly varied by sexual orientation and sex. Specifically, gay males were significantly more likely to use violent communication/ threats than were heterosexual males. Further, lesbians reported using manipulation attempts to a significantly lesser degree than did heterosexual participants and gay males. In contrast, levels of cognitive and emotional jealousy experience did not significantly differ by sexual orientation or sex. Implications for these findings are presented in light of the broader study of close opposite-sex and same-sex romantic relationships. Although a coherent and comprehensive picture of how individuals experience and express thoughts and feelings related to romantic jealousy to their relational partners continues to emerge, one aspect of romantic jealousy remains unclear: the extent to which same-sex and opposite-sex romantic couples compare in their experience and expression of romantic jealousy. Past research has explored the experience of jealousy within gay male partnerships (e.g., Hawkins, 1987, 1990) and lesbian relationships (e.g., Lewis, Kozac, Milardo, & Grosnick, 1981) and recent research has examined the impact of various jealousy sources in heterosexual an