On the meaning of respect for sexual minorities: the case of gays and lesbians

The article reports empirical research investigating what respect means for gays and lesbians. Drawing on Honneth's social philosophical recognition theory, it was predicted and found that gays' and lesbians' experiences of being respected were primarily related to (perceived) social recognition as an equal as opposed to social recognition of needs or achievements. This finding was replicated across the contexts of family, friends and work. Also as expected, equality recognition figured less prominently in experiences of love and social esteem, which underlines that it plays a dominant role specifically in the meaning of respect. Need recognition consistently played a dominant role in the experience of love, while achievement recognition was dominant in the experience of social esteem, except in the context of family. Finally, the dominant role of equality recognition also held with regard to respect experienced at the level of society at large and across time. The relevance of broader discourses of social justice and rights is discussed.