What’s the connection between sexual orientation and education?

.

Completing college doubled the likelihood that a man identified as gay or bisexual and was associated with a 900% increase in the chance of women identifying as lesbian or bisexual.

A college education is associated with more liberal sexual attitudes and behavior, but this effect is greater for women than for men. Even more striking is the association between college education and sexual orientation shown in a recent national survey (Laumann, Gagnon, Michael, & Michaels, 1994). Completing college doubled the likelihood that a man identified as gay or bi-sexual (1.7% among high school graduates vs. 3.3% among college graduates). However, college was associated with a 900% increase in the percentage of women identifying as lesbian or bisexual (0.4% vs. 3.6%).

Source: “Human Sexuality: How Do Men and Women Differ?” from CURRENT DIRECTIONS IN PSYCHOLOGICAL SCIENCE, VOLUME 12, NUMBER 2, APRIL 2003

Join 25K+ readers. Get a free weekly update via email here.

Related posts:

Does high sex drive mean a woman might be bisexual?

Can economic variables affect sexual preference?

Can you tell a man is gay by his hair? By the number of brothers he has? By whether he’s left-handed?

Share

Subscribe to the newsletter