Gaydar: Visual detection of sexual orientation among gay and straight men

Currently, American gay people believe they have a unique ability to pick each other Out in a crowd (often termed "gaydar" ["gay" + "radar'']). This was established through a nationwide Internet-mediated Survey 460). To test for the presence of this ability in gay men, the researcher. unasked self-identified gay and straight male participants to view a series of familiar men on videotape and determine the sexual orientation of each. The higher overall accuracy of gay men demonstrated a trend level difference from their straight cohorts although falling short (primarily due to small sample size) of the p < 0.05 level. A theory for the emergence of this skill (termed "Adaptive Gaydar" by the author) as a unique perceptual ability/coping mechanism unique among gay people is also presented. (C) 2002 by The Haworth Press, Inc. All rights reserved.