846
submitted 1 week ago by not_IO to c/science_memes@mander.xyz

doi: 10.1037//0021-843x.105.3.440

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[-] underscores@lemmy.dbzer0.com 82 points 1 week ago

I really don't like the idea of citing this study. It's always this same one from the 90s, and if it were acurate I expect the results would have been reproduced more. It's also not clear that the results indicate what the paper says. There's other reasons than sexual arousal that could explain the results. It could be they're imagining the scenario and are axious or disgusted by it. There's this paper that indicates homophobia is usually caused by fear or hate.

I don't like the idea of putting the blame for homophobia on closeted queer people. It's seems extremely likely to me that most homophobic people are straight, since most people are straight. Also we should respect other people's own identification instead of trying to force labels on people, even if they're bigots.

[-] faythofdragons@slrpnk.net 25 points 1 week ago

I always felt like that study from the 90s is missing part of the picture. Like, it's less 'closeted gay people' that are the problem, and it's more the people who are closeted because it was beaten into them at a young age that being gay means they deserve the worst of the worst.

I think you're spot on with fear being the root cause, and we really have done a good job at making people afraid of their own sexuality.

[-] captainlezbian@lemmy.world 1 points 1 week ago

Yeah I prefer to think of it as that the most violent enforcers of homophobia are often queer. Gay people operate the conversion camps, straight people send their kids to them at the behest of a straight preacher. The straight people in this scenario have other things on their mind, homophobia isn't their primary concern, but it is one of their concerns.

[-] faythofdragons@slrpnk.net 1 points 1 week ago

Eh, yes and no. I wouldn't say that they're operating the camps, but kapos are an unfortunate reality.

I'd agree that homophobia isn't the primary concern for most straight people, but with the caveat that it is the primary concern for the families who are worried enough to enter the conversion camp pipeline. I'd also argue that homophobia was a primary method of control via fear by specifically the preachers in the camp pipeline, though that stick is getting worn out and they're starting to swap to transphobia for fresh fear. There are many roads to hell though, so you're right about it not being their only concern.

[-] Sidhean@lemmy.world 7 points 1 week ago

I was hoping someone else articulated this better than me. When I read OP's screenshot, I heard "Your dick got hard when we showed you sex. What are you, gay? You're gay, aren't you?" Which doesn't really follow. Thats just bullying, I think. The scientists were bullying the homophobes lmao.

And, like, they're probably sometimes correct. I conject homophobia is a mask worn by homos to blend in around homophobes, and then the paper you linked hits me with

These findings confirm the importance of considering the variability in impulsive processes to understand why some (but not all) men high in homophobia have homosexual interest.

and wow, this really does confirm my bias! Thank you for sharing

[-] the_mighty_kracken@lemmy.world 1 points 1 week ago

If you disagree with the science, perhaps you should do your own study?

[-] zalgotext@sh.itjust.works 41 points 1 week ago

Nah, nope, nuh-uh, that's not how science works. A person's concerns about the methodology or conclusions of a particular study are not invalid just because they haven't run their own experiments.

It's pretty easy for even a layperson to question this particular study, for a few reasons:

  • The sample sizes are very small
  • Some men can get erections/aroused if the wind blows the wrong way, or even for no reason at all - putting porn in front of someone and expecting them not to become aroused is a dubious assumption at best
  • Using some external test to determine someone's sexuality, instead of using the person's self-identification, goes against the last 30 years of progress we've made in gender and sexuality studies
  • The conclusion of the study may indicate some level of homophobic or anti-homosexual bias

Don't gatekeep good critical thinking. Good critical thinking is the only thing you ever need to question any scientific study.

[-] zea_64 6 points 1 week ago

Point 2 is covered by having a control group and point 3 seems to be missing the point: well yeah, don't take the conclusion too far, but that doesn't mean measuring arousal is bad science.

Bigger issues are low sample size (as you mentioned) and the fact that it's a correlational study that hasn't done any work to causally link them.

[-] the_mighty_kracken@lemmy.world 4 points 1 week ago

Someone should repeat the study. That's all I'm saying. If the criticism is that the study was too small or done too long ago, or whatever. The anti-science crowd are the ones who reason away the results of science with no basis of fact. If you disagree with the facts, it is your responsibility to disprove them.

[-] zalgotext@sh.itjust.works 9 points 1 week ago

No, what you said was "if you disagree with the science, perhaps you should do your own study".

"Disagree with the science" is a disingenuous oversimplification bordering on nonsensical. People are calling into question the methods of the study, and the conclusions reached by the scientists interpreting the data. All of which can be accomplished with good critical thinking, and all of which is part of the scientific process. We're not "disagreeing with the science". We don't need to repeat this experiment or run our own to be able to point out that it looks like there are flaws in this study - we just need to have good critical thinking skills.

If you disagree with the facts, it is your responsibility to disprove them.

What facts? Are you implying that the content of a scientific study becomes "fact" simply because a scientist publishes it? Because that's wrong, and any published scientist will tell you as much.

[-] the_mighty_kracken@lemmy.world 1 points 1 week ago

Ah, thank you for quoting my words back to me. Now kindly fuck off.

[-] rikudou@lemmings.world 3 points 1 week ago

I can think of multiple reasons a straight man could get aroused by seeing a dick.

First, erections don't occur only because of arousal, they can happen from adrenaline as well. I guess if you're a homophobe and are about to watch gay porn as part of research, you might get a bit of adrenaline.

Another reason I can think of is that most straight men see a dick when they watch porn, meaning their brain may make the association of "dick on screen = some hot nude lady is gonna show up".

[-] southsamurai@sh.itjust.works 26 points 1 week ago

Critique and analysis of a study or experiment is the default. It isn't a religion; science thrives on repeat analysis.

[-] the_mighty_kracken@lemmy.world 1 points 1 week ago

Which is why someone should repeat the study to confirm or contradict it.

[-] howrar@lemmy.ca 6 points 1 week ago* (last edited 1 week ago)

This whole discussion you see above is part of the process of repeating a study. You can't just do exactly what the previous study did and expect all the flaws to magically disappear. You need to first uncover the flaws, and more eyes and collaboration means a higher likelihood that the flaws get found, hence the importance of these discussions. Then you redesign the experiment to fix those flaws, and then you can run it again.

[-] the_mighty_kracken@lemmy.world 1 points 1 week ago

I agree with you.

[-] twice_hatch@midwest.social 11 points 1 week ago

Yeah gimme a bunch of money lol

[-] the_mighty_kracken@lemmy.world 1 points 1 week ago

Lemme just reach into my giant money bag ... Hey, who took my giant money bag!?

[-] absGeekNZ@lemmy.nz 5 points 1 week ago
[-] the_mighty_kracken@lemmy.world 3 points 1 week ago

That explains why the butler was looking shifty when he announced brunch ...

[-] absGeekNZ@lemmy.nz 3 points 1 week ago
[-] the_mighty_kracken@lemmy.world 3 points 1 week ago

I discovered Fly My Pretties when I was trying to come up with a name for my band. I thought of "Fly My Pretties," Googled it to see if it was taken, and up pops this wonderful band that has been active for years.

[-] Tiger666@lemmy.ca 7 points 1 week ago

Do you know what peer review means?

[-] the_mighty_kracken@lemmy.world 1 points 1 week ago

Are you a scientist?

this post was submitted on 07 Jul 2025
846 points (100.0% liked)

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