Semester

Summer

Date of Graduation

2024

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Type

PhD

College

Eberly College of Arts and Sciences

Department

Sociology and Anthropology

Committee Chair

Katie E. Corcoran

Committee Co-Chair

S. Melissa Latimer

Committee Member

James J. Nolan

Committee Member

Ellen Rodrigues

Abstract

This dissertation investigates the role of sexual identity on homophily, and its effects on romantic partner selection. The principle of homophily states that individuals tend to befriend and seek romantic partners who are most similar to themselves based on certain social characteristics (i.e., birds of a feather flock together). The majority of the homophily literature focuses on heterosexual friendships and coupling. Recently, homophily research has included sexual identity in their analyses. However, recent studies have only investigated friendship formation/bonds for lesbians and describing certain racial coupling types for individuals based on their sexual identity. I fill the lacuna in research by exploring LGBTQ+ individuals decision-making processes when determining who to date. I incorporate queer theories (queer theory, queer of color critique, and queer sociology) to understand how sexual identity may alter homophily patterns. After interviewing twenty-seven LGBTQ+-identified individuals, I explain how sexual identity has affected the following types of homophily: racial/ethnic, social class, education, age, sexual identity, political, and religious. Additionally, I look at the effect of an individual’s geography and social location on their potential to meet romantic partners. The dissertation, then, concludes with a review of the findings, limitations of the research, and proffers future directions for homophily research.

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