HAVE ATTITUDES TOWARD HOMOSEXUALS BEEN SHAPED BY NATURAL-SELECTION

In a series of four surveys administered either to college students or adults, reactions toward homosexuals were found to vary as a function of (1) the homosexual's likelihood of having contact with children and (2) the reproductive status (either real or imagined) of the respondent. These results are consistent with the hypothesis advanced by Gallup and Suarez (1983) that because parents have a reproductive interest in the sexual orientation of their offspring, reactions to homosexuals might be expected to vary as a function of their likelihood of having contact with children. The strong form of this hypothesis holds that the expression of homophobia should be context specific and that most people (including homosexuals) should exhibit homophobic reactions under certain conditions.