Authors
Helen Bowes-Catton, Nikki Hayfield
Publication date
2015/4/28
Book
The Palgrave handbook of the psychology of sexuality and gender
Pages
42-59
Publisher
Palgrave Macmillan UK
Description
The term ‘bisexual’ is generally used in minority Western cultures to refer to an individual who experiences sexual attraction to more than one gender - or whose attractions are based on characteristics other than gender (e.g. build or eye colour). As we will show in this chapter, psychology is deeply implicated in the construction of current cultural understandings of bisexuality. Within these understandings, gender and sexuality are most commonly conceptualised as entirely dichotomous: ‘man’ and ‘woman’ and ‘homosexual’ and ‘heterosexual’ are understood to be distinct from, and opposite to, each other. Bisexuality has been particularly problematic for researchers and academics because they have found it challenging to make bisexuality fit this model of sexuality, which has its roots in the work of early sexologists and has since gained scientific and cultural currency (Angelides, 2001; Fire stein, 1996; Storr …
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Scholar articles
H Bowes-Catton, N Hayfield - The Palgrave handbook of the psychology of sexuality …, 2015