Psychologist Urges Caution In Speculation About Orlando Gunman’s Sexuality
▻http://www.npr.org/2016/06/15/482206179/psychologist-urges-caution-in-speculation-about-orlando-gunmans-sexuality
#orlando #prejugés
SHAPIRO: What do you mean when you say it’s common that people associate this narrative with acts of anti-gay violence and prejudice? What do you mean by that?
HEREK: Well, the idea of these repressed homosexual urges and personal conflicts about sexuality probably goes back to psychoanalytic theory. And it’s made its way into popular culture, so that people often make these assumptions. What it ignores, though, is that even today, homosexuality is still very stigmatized American society. And everyone grows up learning about that stigma and internalizing it, regardless of their own sexual orientation.
SHAPIRO: So what does the research show about the connection between repressed sexuality and homophobia or anti-gay acts?
HEREK: There isn’t a great deal of research. There’s a lot of speculation. But certainly there’s as much research suggesting that there is not some sort of underlying same-sex attraction associated with strong anti-gay attitudes as suggesting that there is.
SHAPIRO: So you’re saying - I think a lot of people may have heard this idea that the most anti-gay people are themselves repressed homosexuals. Are you saying that’s got no founding in science?
HEREK: I’m saying that that has happened, but, yeah, we don’t have support to say that that’s typically the case. And, in fact, we have much more evidence for saying that it’s not.
