Bipositivity: Bisexual Persons’ Narratives of Acceptance and Support from Significant Others

ABSTRACT

Bisexual individuals often face binegativity in relationships with intimate partners and the health disparities associated with discrimination. The present study sought to explore the little known aspect of identity-based partner acceptance of bisexual individuals. Through the eyes of the bisexual person identified by a snow-ball sampling method of bisexual persons living in the United States, 197 participants completed an open-ended question on positive experiences with partners, with 96 of them emphasizing acceptance and understanding. Findings suggest there are multiple ways bisexual individuals encounter acceptance from their partner—some more neutral expressions and some more overt. Neutral messages were twice as likely to occur compared to overt forms of acceptance. Participants reported themes of: (1) didn’t try to change me, (2) ambivalence, (3) proud/rooting, (4) asked me about my experiences, and (5) feeling loved. The paper concludes by discussing the implications for reducing stigma and increasing acceptance by partners.

KEYWORDS:

• Intimate relationships
• bisexual
• acceptance
• binegativity
• relationship satisfaction
• bipositivity
• identity affirmation

Disclosure statement

The authors declare they have no conflict of interest.