Why
is Pop Science of late interested in �gaydar�? And do
ovulating women have better �gaydar�?
What
was once considered a myth or anecdotal knowledge is now
being lauded as a scientific fact. Gaydar is real!
What
is �gaydar�?
If
you�re reading this in an LGBTQ zine it�s likely you know
what �gaydar� is. But for those who don�t, �gaydar,� a
portmanteau of �gay� and �radar,� is a person�s innate
ability to instinctively know from mere observation that
someone�s sexual orientation is heterosexual, gay, lesbian,
bisexual or transgender.
How
would you rate your gaydar?
(Caveat:
being in a gay pride parade is not the best time to assess
if you have an acumen for gaydar.)
Average
to good. Exceptional. Overzealous. Wildly unreliable.
Or, spot on.
Two
social scientists assert that they�re spot on when it
comes to assessing gaydar.
This
month in the peer-reviewed science journal �PLoS ONE,�
Joshua A. Tabak and Vivian Zayas published their research
findings on the validity of gaydar in a paper titled,
�The Roles of Featural and Configural Face Processing
in Snap Judgments of Sexual Orientation.� And their findings
are novel but spurious, in my opinion.
We’re basing these assumptions
on socially constructed signifiers that are also used
to discriminate against us.
Devoid
of cultural markers many of us employ in honing in on
our gaydar - hairstyles, clothing, walk, body movements,
talk, makeup, piercings, eyeglasses or tattoos - Tabak
and Zayas state that the accuracy in detecting gaydar
is driven by a sensitivity to individual facial features
and the spatial relationships among facial features.
For
example, viewing the facial photographs of men and women,
and then categorizing each face as either heterosexual
or homosexual, Tabak and Zayas subjects demonstrated an
ability to identify sexual orientation with a 60 percent
accuracy, which is quite impressive since change guessing
would yield 50 percent accuracy.
To
further prove their research thesis that sexual orientation
can be discern by merely facial observation Tabak and
Zayas had their subjects look at photos of men and women
presented upside down. And again, the subjects were able
to pinpoint sexual orientation. And to no surprise, accuracy
in pinpointing sexual orientation increased when the faces
were presented right side up.
Tabak
and Zayas�s gaydar research is built on the work of the
social psychologist Nicholas Rule.
Gaydar
studies are problematic, and Rule�s research, if Tabak
and Zayas�s haven�t already, might give you a hint.
Nicholas
Rule, Assistant Professor of psychology at the University
of Toronto and Canada Research
Chair in Social Perception and Cognition, research teases
out the question: is your face your fate? In other words,
what can you tell about someone just by looking at them?
Hmm?
And
therein lies the problem with �gaydar studies � More often than not
gaydar studies are predicated on LGBTQ discriminatory
stereotypes, even when based on good intentions.
For
example, while I could find photos of neither Tabak nor
Zayas, I did find several online of Rule. And as one whose
�gaydar� misses more often than it hits, I would guess
that Rule�s gay. Why? Just based on my good intentions,
that�s meant to be a compliment but it�s a stereotype
nonetheless that Rule�s just too cute and polished looking
to be straight.
Is your face your fate?
Another
example, ovulating women are said to have the best gaydar
of us all. In a study conducted with 40 Tuft University female
undergraduates, the study concluded that the
closer the subjects were to peak ovulation, the better
their gaydar. Why? �They just gravitated to the cute ones,
and then immediately tossed them into a �probably gay�
discard pile - just like they do in real life,� Gawker.com wrote.
While
many of us LGBTQ people use our gaydar in a tongue-and-cheek
way to poke fun at each other, or to brag about our accuracy
in spotting each other, we�re basing these assumptions
on socially constructed signifiers
that are also used to discriminate against us.
Using
one�s gaydar is no longer the province of the LGBTQ community.
Its wide-spread appeal is also used by heterosexuals.
How
often have we heard of someone gay bashed because a heterosexual
homophobe thought the person he or she targeted looked
gay?
�Banking
on gaydar is problematic because it lets us assume gender
and sexual identity of people,� said Allison, a queer
woman on Jezebel.com. �BUT it�s many of us in the queer communities
who are just as guilty of buying into gaydar. As much
as I could criticize someone outside of the LGBT community
for bragging about having accurate gaydar, it�s probably
my queer friends who are most adamant about being able
to tell who�s gay.�
At
Pride parades this month, but careful with your gaydar.
And
here�s why:
Attending
my very first Boston Pride Parade I spotted a sister I
thought was a lesbian, and unattached. By Brooklyn,
my home town, standards she had all the social markers.
Why was she there with her gorgeous self all alone along
the parade route I asked myself?
When I mustered up enough courage to cross the street
to where she was suddenly her husband and two children
came running out of Old
South Church.
She was watching the parade just momentarily while they
used the bathroom. My bad!
BlackCommentator.com
Editorial
Board member, the Rev. Irene Monroe, is a religion columnist,
theologian, and public speaker. She is the Coordinator of
the African-American Roundtable of the Center for Lesbian and
Gay Studies in Religion and Ministry (CLGS) at the Pacific
School of Religion. A native of Brooklyn, Rev. Monroe is a
graduate from Wellesley College and Union Theological
Seminary at Columbia University, and served as a pastor
at an African-American church before coming to Harvard
Divinity School for her doctorate as a Ford Fellow. She
was recently named to MSNBC�s list of 10 Black Women You Should Know. Reverend Monroe is the author
of Let Your Light Shine Like a Rainbow Always: Meditations on Bible Prayers
for Not�So�Everyday Moments.
As an African-American feminist theologian, she speaks
for a sector of society that is frequently invisible.
Her website
is irenemonroe.com.
Click here to contact
the Rev. Monroe.
