Attitudes Toward Lesbians, Gay Men, and Their Rights in a Sample of Ecuadorian Cisgender Men and Women

ABSTRACT

Since 1997, Ecuador has undergone a series of changes to ensure family rights to sexual minorities. However, there is still limited research regarding attitudes toward them. This study focused on the attitudes toward lesbians (L), gay men (G), and their rights. A sample of 318 cisgender Ecuadorians who responded to an online survey was recruited. Analyses indicated that men, heterosexuals, who practice their religion, attend more frequently to religious services, and identify as conservative showed higher levels of prejudice against LG as well as less support toward their rights. Further, participants who did not have LG acquaintances, friends, family members, and those who did not know any LG parented family showed less support toward these populations. Multiple regression analyses indicated that believing that a person’s sexual orientation is learned significantly predicted the attitudes measured in our study. Implications of these findings to help reduce prejudice against LG individuals are discussed.

KEYWORDS:

• Homosexuality
• sexual stigma
• sexual prejudice
• attitudes
• gay and lesbian rights
• etiology
• homonegativity

Acknowledgments

We would like to thank César Parra for his technical assistance during data analyses. We would also like to thank Dr. Olimpo José García Beltrán, Director of Research at University of Ibagué for his support in the approval of this study. The international study received no specific grant from any funding agency in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors. The study in Ecuador was approved by the General Research Department from Universidad de Las Américas, Quito (Ecuador). We would like to thank Dr. Tannya Lozada, Head of Research, and professor Édgar Zúñiga Salazar.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1. We recognize the importance of studying attitudes toward bisexual, transgender, intersexual, and other sexual and gender minority populations. However, we acknowledge that researching attitudes toward these populations requires a sensitive and detailed approach attuned to the complexities and particular aspects of these populations (e.g., beliefs about the nature of bisexuality, beliefs about gender identity, and transitioning processes). Due to the lack of research on attitudes toward sexual minorities in the country, we decided to limit our study to attitudes toward lesbians and gay populations.