'I never realised that sex between two women was not safe': narratives of lesbian safer sex.

This paper explores the way in which some lesbians rely on culturally circulated narratives about identity to assess safer sex and their potential risk of sexually transmitted infection (STI) and HIV. A well-established narrative within the literature about lesbian safer sex is that STI risk is non-existent. The implications of this are important because they demonstrate the perception of lesbian identity and notions of safety. This study focuses on how gender and sexuality contextualise an assessment of risk and safety for lesbians. This is vital to understand because there is still a lack of language about lesbian safer sex practices and techniques. Lesbians narrate their assessments of STI and HIV risk through the lenses of gender and sexuality - locating 'risk' in gay men and bisexual women. Using narrative analysis, I find that lesbians assess their risk by constructing characters from culturally circulated narratives steeped in homophobia and biphobia of the sensible lesbian, the risky gay man and the uncertain bisexual.

Outness, discrimination, and depressive symptoms among bi+ women: The roles of partner gender and sexual identity.

Bisexual and other non-monosexual (bi+) women are at higher risk than monosexual women for mental health problems. While being in a relationship is typically associated with better health outcomes, research suggests an inverse association for bisexual women. Despite emerging evidence of differences in bisexual women's experiences based on the gender of their partner, few studies have considered partner sexual identity. To address this gap, the current study examined influences of partner gender and sexual identity on outness, discrimination, and depressive symptoms in a cross-sectional study of 608 bi+ cisgender women. Adjusting for other demographics, being in a relationship with a bisexual cisgender woman, a lesbian cisgender woman, or a bisexual cisgender man was positively associated with outness and discrimination compared to being in a relationship with a heterosexual cisgender man. Findings highlight the importance of accounting for partner gender and sexual identity in order to understand bi+ women's experiences.

Older bisexual people: Implications for social work from the 'Looking Both Ways' study.

There is a growing social work literature about lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) older people. However, research and guidance are predominantly based on the experiences of older gay men and, to a lesser extent, older lesbians. There is little to help practitioners work with older bisexual people. The Looking Both Ways study aimed to contribute to this gap in knowledge. We undertook in-depth purposely sampled qualitative interviews with 12 people aged over 50, all of whom have bisexual relationship histories and half of whom also currently identify as bisexual. There were three main findings. First, biphobia (prejudice against bisexual people) impacts on older people with bisexual histories in ways that may affect their well-being in later life. Second, concerns around receiving care are similar in some ways and different in others from the concerns of lesbians and gay men. Third, people with bisexual relationship histories may have developed strong support networks and resilience, factors that may be very beneficial in later life. Three recommendations for social work professionals were identified: 1) understand biphobia, 2) recognize the legitimacy of concerns about receiving care, and 3) ask about support networks rather than assuming family support.

Stability of Bisexual Behavior and Extent of Viral Bridging Behavior Among Men Who Have Sex with Men and Women.

Bisexual men experience significant health disparities likely related to biphobia. Biphobia presents via several preconceptions, including that bisexuality is transitory, and that bisexual men act as viral bridges between men who have sex with men and heterosexual populations. We analyzed data from a prospective cohort of gay and bisexual men, the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study, to test these preconceptions. Men reporting both male and female sexual partners (MSMW) between 2002 and 2009 (n = 111) were classified as behaviorally bisexual. We assessed five hypotheses over two domains (transience of bisexual behavior and viral bridging). No evidence was found supporting the transitory nature of bisexuality. Trajectories of bisexual behavior were not transient over time. We found little evidence to support substantial viral bridging behavior. Notably, HIV-positive MSMW reported lower proportions of female partners than HIV-negative MSMW. Our results provide no empirical support for bisexual transience and scant support for viral bridging hypotheses. Our results provide key data showing that male bisexual behavior may be stable over long time periods and that behaviorally bisexual men's risk to female sexual partners may be lower than expected.

Correlates of Attitudes Toward Bisexuality: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.

This paper presents a systematic review of factors that correlate with attitudes toward bisexuals, and a meta-analysis to estimate the effect size of these relationships. A search strategy was designed to identify studies that had a measure of attitudes toward bisexuals and assessed the relationship between these attitudes and at least one attitude-relevant correlate. The strategy was then applied to PsycINFO, PsycEXTRA, Proquest Psychology Collection, EBSCO Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection and SociINDEX databases, and calls for unpublished data were circulated through relevant professional bodies. Effect size data were extracted from the articles, and meta-analyses were conducted on each of the applicable correlates. The meta-analyses revealed that age, contact (quality and quantity), income, political orientation, religion, sexual orientation, education, ethnicity, gender, and population density were related to negative attitudes toward bisexual individuals (Fisher's Zs = 0.108, -0.418, -0.209, 0.221, 0.231, 0.346, & 0.831, and Hedges' g's = 0.365, 0.344, 0.278, & 0.193, respectively). In addition, a sub-group moderation analysis revealed these effect sizes for participant gender differed as a function of target gender (i.e., bisexual men vs. bisexual women).

Towards Bi-Inclusive Policies: Suggestions Based on Research on Dutch Same-Sex Attracted Young People.

Dutch national LGBT policies are not bi-inclusive and this study provides suggestions for improvement, based on empirical research. Attention for bisexuality in policy appears simply to pay lip service and to endorse the construction of sexual orientation as a hetero/homo binary. The outcomes of our survey (n = 1449) and in-depth interviews (n = 38) of Dutch same-sex attracted young people suggest that special attention for bisexual people is warranted. Compared to exclusively same-sex attracted participants, the equally both-sex attracted participants scored worse on openness about their sexual attraction, visibility discomfort, perceived acceptance, and suicide attempts. Unique issues for bisexual-identified young people were identified as follows: marginalization of bisexuality; difficulty expressing bisexuality, particularly in relationships; and a lack of bisexual or bi-inclusive communities. These issues were all related to the hetero/homo binary and mononormativity. Suggested implications for more bi-inclusive policies focus on awareness of marginalization and invisibility of bisexuality, biphobia, community and capacity building, and comprehensive sexuality and gender education. Furthermore, rather than policies focusing on sameness, a comprehensive diversity perspective on sexuality and gender offers more space for bisexuality. This may be particularly relevant for young people who are exploring their sexuality and developing a sense of their sexual self.

Faces da bifobia dentro (e fora) da comunidade LGBTQIAP+: reflexões a partir de narrativas de pessoas bissexuais / Faces of biphobia inside (and outside) the LGBTQIAP+ community: reflections from bisexual people's narratives / Rostros de bifobia dentro (y fuera) de la comunidad LGBTQIAP+: reflexiones desde las narrativas de personas bisexuales

Resumo: O objetivo do presente artigo é investigar as diferentes manifestações da bifobia, sobretudo no interior da comunidade LGBTQIAP+. Para tanto, foi realizada pesquisa com seis pessoas bissexuais, cujos relatos foram submetidos à análise de conteúdo. Os resultados apontam que a bifobia se manifesta em aspectos como a hipersexualização de bissexuais e a pressão para que escolham uma orientação sexual "definitiva". Argumentamos que pessoas bissexuais enfrentam dificuldades para inserir-se na comunidade LGBTQIAP+, já que suas práticas afetivo/sexuais são consideradas pouco legítimas e suas experiências tendem a ser invalidadas. Esse contexto de exclusão agrava sentimentos como solidão e confusão identitária. Dessa forma, pessoas bissexuais estão sujeitas a uma dinâmica particular de violência que produz efeitos relevantes à sua saúde mental.

Abstract: The aim of this article is to investigate the different manifestations of biphobia, especially within the LGBTQIAP+ community. For this purpose, a survey was carried out with six bisexual people, whose reports were submitted to content analysis. The results show that biphobia manifests itself in aspects such as the hypersexualization of bisexuals and the pressure to choose a "definitive" sexual orientation. We argue that bisexual people face difficulties to be embraced by the LGBTQIAP+ community, as their affective/sexual practices are considered illegitimate and their experiences tend to be invalidated. This context of exclusion aggravates feelings such as loneliness and identity confusion. Thus, the bisexual people face a particular dynamic of violence that produces relevant effects on their mental health.

Resumen: El objetivo de este artículo es investigar las diferentes manifestaciones de la bifobia, especialmente dentro de la comunidad LGBTQIAP+. Para eso, se realizó una investigación con seis personas bisexuales, cuyos relatos fueron sometidos a análisis de contenido. Los resultados muestran que la bifobia se manifiesta en aspectos como la hipersexualización de los bisexuales y la presión para elegir una orientación sexual "definitiva". Argumentamos que las personas bisexuales enfrentan dificultades para ingresar a la comunidad LGBTQIAP+, ya que sus prácticas afectivo/sexuales son consideradas poco legítimas y sus vivencias tienden a ser invalidadas. Este contexto de exclusión agrava sentimientos como la soledad y la confusión de identidad. Así, la población bisexual y las personas bisexuales están sujetas a una particular dinámica de violencia que produce efectos relevantes en su salud mental.