McNair Scholars Research Journal
Abstract
Despite the great strides that the Lesbian and Gay (LG) community has made in the last four decades, bisexual individuals still “report a lack of validation, isolation and ostracism within both the heterosexual and homosexual communities” (Israel & Mohr, 2004, p. 119). This study focuses on undergraduate students’ attitudes towards bisexuality and bisexual individuals at Eastern Michigan University by testing the hypothesis that homosexual and heterosexual students will have a significant bias towards bisexual persons, and that male students will demonstrate bias towards bisexual persons, regardless of their own sexual orientation. The survey instrument was an 18-item questionnaire revised from the Biphobia Scale, which presented Likert scale response options paired with statements describing stereotypical bisexual traits. An analysis of variance (ANOVA) was conducted to see significance between groups, followed by a Tukey post hoc test. Recommendations will include counseling techniques for social workers and other supporting professionals who counsel bisexual persons.