Normative Perceptions of Sexual Behavior and Alcohol Use among Bisexual Women

Abstract

Background: As compared to heterosexual and lesbian women, bisexual women report higher rates of alcohol, other substance use, and risky sexual behavior, and they experience more negative outcomes from these behaviors. Descriptive norms (i.e., perceptions of others’ behavior) are an important predictor of risky behaviors, but scant research has examined whether bisexual women’s perceptions of other bisexual women’s alcohol use and sexual behavior are associated with their own alcohol or drug use during sex. Objectives: Consequently, the present study examined (1) whether perceived sex norms were related to engagement in sex and (2) the relative influence of drinking and sex norms on engaging in sex while drinking among bisexual women. Method: Data were collected from 225 self-identified bisexual women who completed an online survey about their typical weekly alcohol use, engagement in alcohol or drug use during sex in the past 30 days, and normative perceptions of drinking and sexual behavior. Results: Regression models demonstrated both sexual norms and drinking frequency norms were positively associated with alcohol or drug use during sex. In addition, only perceived norms of other bisexual women, compared to perceived norms of lesbian and heterosexual women, predicted engagement in sex. Conclusions: Bisexual women may be susceptible to normative perceptions, given their connectedness to a marginalized social group. Thus, alcohol prevention and intervention efforts aimed at reducing risky consequences among bisexual women should specifically consider drinking and sexual norms of other bisexual women.

Keywords:

• alcohol
• sexual behavior
• norms
• bisexual women

Acknowledgments

Amy Stamates was supported by award K01 AA029399-01A1 from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA). The NIAAA did not have any role in study design, collection, analysis, and interpretation of the data; writing the report; and the decision to submit the report for publication.

Declaration of interest statement

The authors have no conflicts of interest to report. These data have not been presented or published elsewhere. This study was not pre-registered.

Data availability statement

Data can be made available upon request to the corresponding author.

Notes

1 Relationship status was also tested as a covariate in each of the regression models, however, significant findings did not change. Findings presented are those without relationship status included for parsimony. Results from these analyses are available upon request.

Additional information

Funding

Amy L. Stamates is supported by award K01 AA029399-01A1 from the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA).