Is the percentage of lesbians that are LPGA members measurably greater than the percentage of lesbians in the US’s general population?
Why?
In the past, I’ve explored the question of why gay men seem more drawn to the theatre; the consensus, to the extent there was one, was that there was a certain parallel – an actor has to live a role that may be completely separate from his true self, and obviously a closeted gay man may feel a certain affinity and kinship for that necessity.
That reasoning doesn’t seem to apply to women’s golf, though.
I supsect the answer to #1 is “yes”, but I don’t know how we’d confirm that. As for #2, perhaps it might be more meaningful to ask if the % of lesbians in the LPGA is greater than in other women’s sports, and then ask why is that?
I should point out that (obviously) if you contend the answer to #1 is ‘no’ then #2 becomes rather trivial.
John Mace – fair point. I guess I picked the LPGA because the lesbian population thereof is at somewhat well-documented. I know WNBA fans tend to be more lesbian than the general population, but I don’t know of any look at whether the player population is similarly distributed.
But if “women’s sports” in general have more lesbian participants, on average, than are present in the population… why?
#2) Because the same biological processes that guide sexual orientation are closely linked to secondary sexual characteristics. The percentage of women that can bench-press 200 pounds, fix cars, and like to drink beer and watch football is also higher in lesbians than the general population.
You’re not serious, are you? If yes, then can we see a cite? I mean, it’s not like we even understand the “biological processes that guide sexual orientation”.
This was kinda my first thought. It only stands to reason – after all, if there is some factor P that makes women seem sexually desirable, then lesbians have it like straight men do, and therefore liking sports, being aggressive, etc, would all be lesbian traits.
But as the years went by this theory seemed to get weaker and weaker. Not only does it not address the many women who don’t fit the profile but still like women… but it suffers from a distinct lack of rigor in reasoning.
So if it’s true, I think we need some more evidence than… “it only stands to reason.”
I read too quickly; I missed the “but” and thought, “Ooh, you’re gonna get it now!”
One possible explanation, although we’re in WAG territory: you got a critical mass of fans. Just like there’s no reason why Ukranians ought to be specially drawn to Asheville or Serbians to Greensboro, there may be no reason at all why lesbians would be drawn to golf. Once you get some folks in a location (or sport), if those folks look like you and you’re trying to decide what you’re gonna do with yourself, you might go where the likeminded people are.
Yes.
No, you can’t see a cite, for the reason you give. But it’s my best guess, and just because we don’t know the biological processes doesn’t mean it’s not the reason. If you have this debate and don’t give that common sense reason as one to be considered, the debate is lacking. I am unwilling to say it’s because of some other reason simply because we can’t yet demonstrably prove this one.
Thanks. Now you’ve got me thinking about a romance between Michelle Wie and Natalie Gulbis. I can tell I’m not gonna be getting a whole heck of a lot of work done this afternoon!
Homosexuals are gender outlaws. By preferring the same sex, they’re already flouting society’s expectations towards their gender (even if they are closetted). So, why not go a bit further?
Atheleticism is still a masculine trait in our society, despite some progress towards equality in recent years. Thus, a homosexual woman, already “mannish” by some social metrics, may be more willing to give athletics a shot than her heterosexual sisters that went for the cheerleading squad. (In men, this means feminine behavior even to the point of cross dressing)
Conversely, stereotypes can become something of a self-fulfilling prophecy. If we expect lesbian golfers and gay male thespians, then that’s where they’ll go.
Of course, this predicts that lesbians should be in all sports more or less equally, and that their relative number should decrese if and when society becomes more supportive of women’s athletics.
Not sure about all sports or any stats, but in addition to golf I seem to recall there has long been talk of significant lesbian representation in tennis and hoops.
It’s probably misleading to limit the discussion to golf. Women’s basketball has the same image. Here is Sheryl Swoopes, former WNBA MVP and still the league’s only out player:
And vice versa, presumably.
There’s been at least one case I’m aware of in which a college women’s basketball coach was sued for discriminating against her straight players.
No stats quickly Googlable on tennis, but there have been several top players out already. I recall reading an interview with Billie Jean King in which she attributed the sports world’s attractiveness to lesbians, its comfort as an environment for them, its effectively providing more of an incentive to lesbians than to straights to excel so they can stay in that environment, to athletes’ and homosexuals’ shared above-average interest in their bodies and their functioning (don’t jump on me, that was her saying it).
