Biphobia and gender: A questionnaire study into the effect of gender of participant and bisexual target on attitudes towards bisexuality

Previous research into attitudes towards bisexuality has explored how the gender of participant and the bisexual individual each influence attitudes, but has overlooked an interaction between the two factors. This study aimed to examine the influence of both factors simultaneously. 290 participants (191=females; 99=males) completed the two scales of the Attitudes Regarding Bisexuality Scale (Mohr and Rochlen, 1999); one regarding male and one regarding female bisexuals. Their responses were analysed using a 2x2 mixed between-within subjects analysis of variance. Results indicated the gender of participant did not significantly influence attitudes, which contradicted the hypotheses and previous research (Steffens & Wagner, 2004). Gender of bisexual did have influence, with attitudes towards male bisexuals being more negative than towards female bisexuals. This supported existing research (Arndt, 2009), and the hypotheses. A significant interaction effect was also found, and post-hoc t-tests revealed male participants to have more negative attitudes towards male bisexuals than female bisexuals, whereas female participants were not influenced by the gender of the bisexual. This too supported the hypotheses. Thus, it was concluded that it is the gender of the bisexual that influences attitudes, rather than the gender of participant, which indicates male and female bisexuals experience different prejudices