Findings obtained in the Australian Study of Health and Relationships, conducted in 2001/2002, show that both homosexuals’ and bisexuals’ in Australia have had more partners than their heterosexual counterparts. However, the reliability of this fact is debatable due to the high prevalence of same-sex attraction and/or experience among those respondents who identified as heterosexual.
Identifying as bisexual
Only 0.9% of male respondents and 1.4% of female respondents identified themselves as bisexual for the purposes of the survey, whereas 8.6% of male respondents and 15.1% of female respondents reported either being attracted to the same sex or having had a sexual experience with the same sex.
As shown above, there is a lack of reliable information about the relationships and sexual behaviours of bisexual people, exacerbated by stereotypes reinforced by the media.
Stereotypes of bisexuals
For years the media has portrayed bisexuals’ as promiscuous. For the purpose of sensationalising, they choose to only talk about bisexuals’ who are living quite liberally, further reinforcing the public image of what bisexuals are like. It is true that there are bisexuals that do not live monogamous lives, that are swingers and who do not practice safe sex. But couldn’t that be said about all of the sexualities?
In ‘Bisexuality, The Psychology and Politics of an Invisible Minority’ the media's role in creating an image of bisexuals as promiscuous and non-monogamous is discussed; “ Talk show staff are routinely interested in the most sensational images of bisexuality – the married man with a male lover, the ménage a trios, swingers who swing both ways and so on. Far from educating the public about bisexuality, these shows reinforce stereotypical images of bisexuality.”
Possibly caused by the negative stereotypes about bisexuals’ in society is the reluctance of many bisexuals’ to admit to their bisexuality. This is evident in the results of the survey shown above, where the percentage of identified bisexuals for both males and females in the survey differed greatly from the number that admitted to same sex attraction and/or experience.
Bisexuality under-reported
The irony in the fact that bisexuality is severely under-reported is that bisexuality is the primary sexuality, meaning that bisexuality is present in all humans before any other sexuality arises.
John Money explains bisexuality in ‘Gay, Straight and In-Between; The Sexology of Erotic Orientation’; “Monosexuality, whether homosexual or heterosexual, is secondary and a derivative of the primary bisexual or ambisexual potential.”
The fact that bisexuality is not only a ‘true’ sexuality, but the primary one, raises some fundamental questions about socialisation and humankind.
Has religion had an enormous impact on the way we socialise our children?
Is the media simply mirroring the fear that is in society of something that is seen as threatening to our way of life?
Sources:
Firestein B, 1996, Bisexuality, the psychology and politics of an invisible minority, Sage Publications, California.
Money J, 1988, Gay, Straight and In-Between - The Sexology of Erotic Orientation, Oxford University Press, New York.
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