Abstract
This essay offers a brief history of homosexuals’ rights in the United States, explains why same-sex marriage is the ultimate civil right for sexually marginalized persons, reviews prior public opinion research on attitudes toward homosexuals, and disentangles predictors of support for same-sex marriage. Consistent with prior research, we find greater support for same-sex marriage among Democrats, liberals, young people, more educated people, non-Blacks, and women. Contrary to expectations, we do not find that increased contact with homosexuals improves support for marriage equality. We explain these results and offer recommendations for future research at the nexus of race, age cohort, education, and religious affiliation.
Thanks to Professors Jiannbin Shiao and Robert O’Brien in the University of Oregon Sociology Department, Luis Sandoval in the University of Oregon Social Science Instructional Laboratory, and Andrew Schwartz for comments and assistance.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Adams, Jimi and Ryan Light. (2015) Scientific consensus, the law, and same sex parenting outcomes. Social Science Research, 53, in press. (http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0049089X15001209, retrieved 6/17/2015)
Andersen, Robert And Tina Fetner. (2008) Cohort differences in tolerance of homosexuality: Attitudinal change in Canada and the United States, 1981–2000. Public Opinion Quarterly, 72 (2), pp. 311–30.
Andriote, John-Manuel. (1999) Victory Deferred: How AIDS Changed Gay Life in America. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Baunach, Dawn Michelle. (2012) Changing same-sex marriage attitudes in America from 1988 through 2010. Public Opinion Quarterly, 76(2), pp. 364–78.
Blumenthal, Mark, Ariel Edwards-Levy and Janie Valencia. (2015) Huffpollster: Growing support for same sex marriage among fastest ever measured. (http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2015/03/06/same-sex-marriage-_n_6815488.html, retrieved 5/15/2015)
Burdette, Amy M., Christopher G. Ellison, and Terrence D. Hill. (2005) Conservative Protestantism and tolerance toward homosexuals: An examination of potential mechanisms. Sociological Inquiry, 75 (1), pp. 177–196.
Button, James, Barbara A. Rienzo, and Kenneth Wald (1997) Private Lives, Public Conflict: Battle Over Gay Rights in American Communities. Washington DC: CQ Press.
Cable News Network Fast Facts. (2013) (http://www.cnn.com/2013/05/28/us/same-sex-marriage-fast-facts, retrieved 8/11/2014)
Calmes, Jackie and Peter Baker. (2012) Obama says same-sex marriage should be legal. New York Times, May 9th. (www.nytimes.com/2012/05/10/us/politics/obama-says-same-sex-marriage-should-be-legal.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0, retrieved 11/2/2012)
Cantwell, Alan. (2006) Make AIDS a gay disease. The Los Angeles Gay and Lesbian Center. (www.rense.com/general73/homphn.htm, retrieved 12/3/2012)
Chauncey, George. (2004) Why Marriage: The History Shaping Today’s Debate Over Gay Equality. New York: Basic Books.
Cohen, Cathy J. (1999) The Boundaries of Blackness: AIDS and the Breakdown of Black Politics. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Connelly, Marjorie. (2012) Support for gay marriage growing, but U. S. remains divided. New York Times, December 7. (www.nytimes.com/2012/12/08/us/justices-consider-same-sex-marriage-cases-for-docket.html?_r=0, retrieved 3/10/2013)
Crimp, Douglas and Adam Rolston. (1990) AIDS Demo Graphics. Seattle: Bay Press.
Cruikshank, Margaret. (1992) The Gay and Lesbian Liberation Movement. New York: Routledge.
Danigelis, Nicholas L., Melissa Hardy, and Stephen J. Cutler. (2007) Population aging, intracohort aging, and sociopolitical attitudes. American Sociological Review, 72 (5), pp. 812–830.
D’Emilio, John. (1983) The Making of a Homosexual Minority in the United States. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Duberman, Martin. (1993) Stonewall. New York: Penguin Books.
Epstein, Steven. (1996) Impure Science: AIDS, Activism, and the Politics of Knowledge. Berkeley: University of California Press.
Eskridge, William. (1999) Gaylaw: Challenging the Apartheid of the Closet. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.
Finlay, Barbara AND Carol S. Walther. (2003) The relation of religious affiliation, service attendance, and other factors to homophobic attitudes among university students. Review of Religious Research, 44 (2), pp. 370–93.
Firebaugh, Glenn. (2011) Analyzing data from repeated surveys. In: Wright, J. D. and P. V. Marsden (eds.) Handbook of Survey Research. New York: Academic Press, pp. 795–812.
Frank, David John and Elizabeth H. Mceneaney. (1999) The individualization of society and the liberalization of state policies on same-sex sexual relations, 1984–1995. Social Forces, 77 (3), pp. 911–944.
Geiger, Jack. (1988) Plenty of blame to go around. New York Times, November 8th. (www.nytimes.com/1987/11/08/books/plenty-of-blame-to-go-around.html?src=pm, retrieved 4/9/2013)
Gould, Deborah. (2000) Sex, Death, and the Politics of Anger: Emotions and Reason to ACT Up’s Fight Against AIDS. Chicago: University of Chicago Press.
Grimsley, Kirstin D. (2002) Rights group rates gay-friendly firms: Tech, financial companies’ policies get kudos; Lockheed lags. Washington Post. August 14. (http://www.gaypasg.org/gaypasg/PressClippings/2002/August%202002/Rights%20Group%20Rates%20Gay-Friendly%20Firms.htm, retrieved 11/8/2012)
Gwartney, Patricia A. (1986) The institutionalization of premarital cohabitation: Estimates from marriage license applications, 1970 and 1980. Journal of Marriage and the Family, 48 (2), pp. 423–434.
Haider-Markelt, Donald P. (2000) Lesbian and gay politics in the states: Interest groups, electoral politics, and policy. In: Rimmerman, C. A., K. D. Wald, and C. Wilcox (eds.) The Politics of Gay Rights. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, pp. 290–346.
Herek, Gregory M. (1988) Heterosexuals’ attitudes toward lesbians and gay men: Correlates and gender differences. Journal of Sex Research, 25 (4), pp. 451–477.
Hooker, Evelyn. (1957) The adjustment of the male overt homosexual. The Journal of Projective Techniques, 21 (1), pp. 18–31.
Jelen, Ted G. (1993) The political consequences of religious group attitudes. Journal of Politics, 55 (1), pp. 178–190.
Jones, Robert P., Daniel Cox, and Juhern Navarro-Rivera. (2013) A Shifting Landscape: A Decade of Change in American Attitudes about Same-Sex Marriage and LGBT Issues. Public Religion Research Institute. (http://publicreligion.org/site/wp-content/uploads/2014/02/2014.LGBT_REPORT.pdf, retrieved 8/12/2014)
Kaufmann, Karen M. (2002) Culture wars, secular realignment, and the gender gap in party identification. Political Behavior, 24: 283–307.
Kosmin, B. A. and A. Keysar. (2009) American Religious Identification Survey (ARIS 2008): Summary Report. (http://b27.cc.trincoll.edu/weblogs/AmericanReligionSurvey-ARIS/reports/ARIS_Report_2008.pdf, retrieved 5/19/2015)
Laythe, Brian, Deborah G. Finkel, Robert G. Bringle, and Lee A. Kirkpatrick. (2002) Religious fundamentalism as predictor of prejudice: A two component model. Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, 41 (4), pp. 623–35.
Lewis, Gregary and Charles W. Gossett. (2008) Changing public opinion on same sex marriage: The case of California. Politics & Policy, 36 (1), pp. 4–30.
LGBTQ Nation. (2012) History of the Mattachine Society. February 7. (www.lgbtnation.wordpress.com/2012/02/07/history-of-the-mattachine-society, retrieved 12/2/2012)
Loftus, Jeni. (2001) America’s liberalization in attitudes toward homosexuality, 1973 to 1998. American Sociological Review, 66 (5), pp. 762–782.
Loughery, John. (1998) The Other Side of Silence: Men’s Lives and Gay Identities: A Twentieth Century History. New York: H. Holt.
Marcus, Eric. (2002) Making Gay History: The Half-Century Fight for Lesbian and Gay Equal Rights. New York: HarperCollins Publishers.
Mayer, William G. (1992. The Changing American Mind: How and Why Public Opinion Changed Between 1960 and 1988. Ann Arbor: University of Michigan Press.
Morales, Lymari. (2009) Gay/lesbian affects views on gay issues. (http://www.gallup.com/poll/118931/knowing-someone-gay-lesbian-affects-views-gay-issues.aspx, retrieved 5/19/2015)
New York Times (2015) Timeline of the American transgender movement. (http://www.nytimes.com/interactive/2015/05/15/opinion/editorial-transgender-time-line.html, retrieved 6/6/2015)
Newport, Frank. (2012) Half of Americans support legal gay marriage: Democrats and independents in favor; Republicans opposed. Gallup Politics, May 8. (http://www.gallup.com/poll/154529/half-americans-support-legal-gay-marriage.aspx, retrieved 8/12/2014)
NORC. (2015) General Social Survey. (http://www.norc.org/Research/Projects/Pages/general-social-survey.aspx, retrieved 5/19/2015)
Ohlander, Juliana, Jeanne Batalova, and Judith Treas. (2005) Explaining education influences on attitudes toward homosexual relations. Social Science Research, 34 (4), pp. 781–799.
Olson, Laura R., Wendy Cadge, and James T. Harrison. (2006) Religion and public opinion about same-sex marriage. Social Science Quarterly, 87 (2), pp. 341–60.
Perry, Kathryn. (2009) The cost of gay marriage in dollars and cents. Christian Science Monitor, May 27. (http://www.csmonitor.com/USA/Society/2009/0527/p02s07-ussc.html, retrieved 8/12/2014)
Pew Research Center. (2009) A religious portrait of African-Americans. The Pew Forum on religion and public life. (http://www.pewforum.org/A-Religious-Portrait-of-African-Americans.aspx, retrieved 5/7/2013)
Pew Research Center. (2013a) Section 1: Same-Sex Marriage, Civil Unions and Inevitability. (http://www.people-press.org/2013/06/06/section-1-same-sex-marriage-civil-unions-and-inevitability, retrieved 5/21/2015).
Pew Research Center. (2013b) Section 2: Views of Gay Men and Lesbians, Roots of Homosexuality, Personal Contact with Gays. (http://www.people-press.org/2013/06/06/section-2-views-of-gay-men-and-lesbians-roots-of-homosexuality-personal-contact-with-gays, retrieved 5/21/2015)
Pew Research Center. (2014) Changing Attitudes on Gay Marriage. (http://www.pewforum.org/2014/09/24/graphics-slideshow-changing-attitudes-on-gay-marriage, retrieved 5/19/2015)
rimmerman, craig. (2002) From Identity to Politics: The Lesbian and Gay Movements in the United States. Philadelphia: Temple University Press.
Ryan, Camille L. and Julie Siebens, (2009) Educational attainment in the United States: 2009. Current Population Reports, P20–566, U. S. Census Bureau, Washington DC.
Saad, Lydia. (2012) Conservatives remain the largest ideological group in U. S. Gallup Politics, January 12. (www.gallup.com/poll/152021/conservatives-remain-largest-ideological-group.aspx, retrieved 12/2/2012)
Sherkat, Darren, Melissa Powell-Williams, Gregory Maddox, and Kylan Mattias De Vries. (2011) Religion politics, and support for same-sex marriage in the United States, 1988–2008. Social Science Research, 40 (1), pp. 167–180.
Shilts, Randy. (1987) And the Band Played On: Politics, People, and the AIDS Epidemic. New York: St Martin’s Press.
Sigelman, Lee And Susan Welch. (1993) The contact hypothesis revisited: Black-white interaction and positive racial attitudes. Social Forces, 71 (3), pp. 781–795.
Slovacek, Randy. (2011) Survey: More Americans support than oppose same-sex marriage. LGBTQ Nation. (www.lgbtqnation.com/2011/03/survey-more-americans-support-than-oppose-same-sex-marriage, retrieved 11/18/2012)
Smith, Christian, ed. (1996) Disruptive Religion: The Force of Faith in Social Movement Activism. New York: Routledge.
Smith, Tom W. (2011) Public attitudes toward homosexuality. NORC/University of Chicago. (http://www.norc.org/PDFs/2011%20GSS%20Reports/GSS_Public%20Attitudes%20Toward%20Homosexuality_Sept2011.pdf, retrieved 8/8/2014)
Summers, Claude J. (2004) Marches on Washington. GLBTQ Encyclopedia, April 27. (www.glbtq.com/social-sciences/marches_washington.html, retrieved 12/2/2012)
Tarrow, Sidney. (1998) Power in Movement: Social Movement and Contentious Politics. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Treas, Judith. (2002) How cohorts, education, and ideology shaped a new sexual revolution on American attitudes toward nonmarital sex, 1972–1998. Sociological Perspectives, 45 (3), pp. 267–283.
Vespa, Jonathan, Jamie M. Lewis, and Rose M. Kreider, (2013) America’s families and living arrangements: 2012. Current Population Reports, P20-570, U. S. Census Bureau, Washington DC.
Waite, Linda and Maggie Gallagher. (2001) The Case for Marriage: Why Married People are Happier, Healthier and Better Off Financially. New York: Broadway Books
White, Hilary. (2007) Mother of the homosexual movement – Evelyn Hooker PhD. LifeSiteNews.com, July 16. (www.lifesitenews.com/news/archive//ldn/2007/jul/07071603, retrieved 10/30/2012)
Winston, Kimberly. (2012) Atheism rises, religiosity declines in America. Huffington Post, August 14. (www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/08/14/atheism-rise-religiosity-decline-in-america_n_1777031.html, retrieved 12/2/2012)
Wright, Lionel. (1999) The Stonewall Riots 1969: A turning point in the struggle for gay and lesbian liberation. Socialism Today, July 1. (www.socialistalternative.org/literature/stonewall.html, retrieved 12/3/2012)
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2016 Springer Fachmedien Wiesbaden
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Gwartney, P.A., Schwartz, D.S. (2016). You May Kiss the Groom: Americans’ Attitudes Toward Same-Sex Marriage. In: Machin, A., Stehr, N. (eds) Understanding Inequality: Social Costs and Benefits. zu | schriften der Zeppelin Universität. zwischen Wirtschaft, Kultur und Politik. Springer VS, Wiesbaden. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-658-11663-7_7
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-658-11663-7_7
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer VS, Wiesbaden
Print ISBN: 978-3-658-11662-0
Online ISBN: 978-3-658-11663-7
eBook Packages: Social SciencesSocial Sciences (R0)