Rough Draft 1

Eveleen Chung

College!

3/25/2014

Rough Draft

Homosexuals in fraternities, though not common, are slowly rising in number and support. Some fraternities were even known to be particularly accepting of gays. One openly homosexual male described his fellow brothers’ attitude about his sexuality: “The thing that was the best…I knew going into it they weren’t going to have an issue, and that was helpful” (Hussey, Heather D., and Toni L. Bisconti). Though not the case for all fraternities or even the majority of them, it is still comforting to know that there are parts of Greek life who’re embracing differences in sexuality. Alas, that positive attitude doesn’t seem to carry over to homosexual women in sororities. In comparison to male homosexuals, lesbians in sororities suffer more open hostility and negative stereotypes. As a result, they have a more diminished presence on campus. One Greek-affiliated male from a small, private Midwestern university with an active LGBTQ community confessed, “When [the interviewer] mentioned it, I don’t know a single girl in any house that [is homosexual.]”A girl from the same university stated that her housemates’ attitudes and snide comments about other lesbians put off her coming-out until her senior year (Hussey 129). Why would lesbians have a more negative reaction in Greek life than a gay male? Part of this difference in treatment lies in the dominant perception of women, specifically sorority women. Even for heterosexual, white girls with blonde hair and good looks, the rushing process is incredibly intimidating. Mara, a pledge for a top tier sorority in her school, described the peer dynamics of the house as “heavily… based on appearance, and looks, and materialistic things” (Armstrong). The other part lies in lack of media attention. Both parts tie into the fact that while “gays” are more “mainstream” than are either lesbians or women bisexuals. 

Literature Review #3

Hussey, Heather D., and Toni L. Bisconti. "Interventions to reduce sexual minority stigma in sororities." Journal of homosexuality 57.4 (2010): 566-587.

Key Terms: 

Stereotype: positive or negative beliefs and attitudes held by the majority about the stigmatized group

Stigma: can be analyzed through three factors: cognition, affect, and behavior

Authors: Heather D. Hussey is part of the Department of Psychology at the University of Hampshire. Toni L. Bisconti holds a PhD in psychology and is part of the Department of Psychology at the University of Akron. 

The project was basically taking two sororities and then using two different methods to reduce the stigma against homosexuals. While both were effective, the researchers concluded that neither was more effective than the other. They also concluded that stigma against homosexuals can be reduced but it will take both time and effort and both parties. 

Bibliography

Armstrong, Elizabeth A., and Laura T. Hamilton. Paying for the Party: How College Maintains Inequality. Harvard University Press, 2013.

Hussey, Heather D., and Toni L. Bisconti. "Interventions to reduce sexual minority stigma in sororities." Journal of homosexuality 57.4 (2010): 566-587.

Leinfelt, Fredrik H., and Kevin M. Thompson. "College-student drinking-related arrests in a college town." Journal of Substance Use 9.2 (2004): 57-67.

Nichter, Mimi, et al. "Smoking and drinking among college students:“It's a package deal”." Drug and alcohol dependence 106.1 (2010): 16-20.

WELTER, EMILY. "College Greek Life: Perceptions and Lived Experiences of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Questioning, and Queer (LGBTQ) Students." Journal of the Indiana Academy of the Social Sciences 15 (2012).

Literature Review #2: LGBTQ Greek Life

WELTER, EMILY. "College Greek Life: Perceptions and Lived Experiences of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Questioning, and Queer (LGBTQ) Students." Journal of the Indiana Academy of the Social Sciences 15 (2012).

Author: Emily Welter; student at Butler University 

Summary: A look into how LGBTQ students at a small private Midwestern university view Greek life and reversely how they fell they're perceived by Greek communities. 

Key Terms: 
Stereotyping - Many homosexual students, including those who are part of a Greek community and those who aren't, let their preconceptions of sororities and fraternities to influence their decision to join one or not. Most agreed that the more negative stereotypes stuck. 
Heterosexism: the convenience of being a heterosexual male in a social setting


There're a lot of rumors and gossip surrounding Greek organizations, especially about what they do or how they think of others. This would obviously influence how potential members would decided to rush or not. Interestingly enough, in a small Midwestern university, the general consensus around campus is that male homosexuality is not considered detrimental to his rush process. The interviewees would repeatedly make references to "a specific homosexual Greek fraternity president," describing him as "the best poster gay [they] have [at the university]... [who] was great for the school" (128). On the other hand, female homosexuality was much less known, to the point "the majority of the male respondents... could not think of one female lesbian or bisexual in any sorority n campus" (126). Females tend to be stuck with more latent stereotypes while male homosexuality is somehow becoming more "normative," thus making them more acceptable to the majority of Greek life which seems to thrive off normalcy. In the terms of a lesbian interviewee, "in society... gay men are looked at like every girl wants to be their best friend... nobody wants a lesbian best friend" (127). 
This article wasn't so much about what about type of "people" join which type of Greek organization but more along the lines of what about Greek life attracts and repels a specific (albeit general) group of students. Greek life brings about a sense of normalcy to many people, giving them a concrete social group as well as a regulated life. But that normalcy depends on how much that person fits in with the majority of, if not the actual fraternity or sorority, but the outside social demographic. According to this article, it would seem that male homosexuality is on the rise while female lesbians are still struggling with general acceptance and approval from their peers.