# Sexual orientation by occupation **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [August 20, 2014, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexual-orientation-by-occupation/696035 "2014-08-20T20:29:47Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2014, 8:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexual-orientation-by-occupation/696035/1 "2014-08-20T20:29:47Z")
Are there any statistics about breakdown of sexual orientation by occupation? I was recently chastised for saying that the arts self select for gay men. Is that a trope, or do professions actually self select in any meaningful way with respect to sexual orientation? ---
**Author:** ![jayrey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/47e85d/32.png) [@jayrey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayrey)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2014, 9:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexual-orientation-by-occupation/696035/2 "2014-08-20T21:06:18Z")
> [@Snarky\_Kong](#): > > Are there any statistics about breakdown of sexual orientation by occupation? I was recently chastised for saying that the arts self select for gay men. Is that a trope, or do professions actually self select in any meaningful way with respect to sexual orientation? Hmm, I certainly would agree with you about the arts, particularly dance and acting, as self-selecting for gay men. And, based on several years of work experience, I would say that the law appears to self select for lesbians. I’ve met more lesbians in the last 20 years working in a law-related field than I have in the other areas and years of my life. But statistics? Sorry, no. ---
**Author:** ![PorchePine](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/94ad74/32.png) [@PorchePine](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PorchePine)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2014, 9:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexual-orientation-by-occupation/696035/3 "2014-08-20T21:13:26Z")
Most of my friends who are computer programmers/software engineers prefer the company of men. Other careers have a smattering mix. But most of my friends are gay, so YMMV. ---
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2014, 9:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexual-orientation-by-occupation/696035/4 "2014-08-20T21:16:30Z")
Male interior designers I would suspect are a majority gay. A large percentage of male hairdressers are gay as well. I only know a couple of women who build archery bows and both of them are gay. ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2014, 9:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexual-orientation-by-occupation/696035/5 "2014-08-20T21:18:06Z")
Sounds like confirmation bias. ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2014, 9:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexual-orientation-by-occupation/696035/6 "2014-08-20T21:25:22Z")
Yeah, I’m not terribly interested in anecdotes. I was hoping for a survey or study somewhere. ---
**Author:** ![njtt](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/n/ecd19e/32.png) [@njtt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/njtt)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2014, 10:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexual-orientation-by-occupation/696035/7 "2014-08-20T22:33:31Z")
I don’t know about actual occupations, but here are a couple of studies that claim that various cognitive abilities tend to vary not only by sex, but also by sexual orientation: > **[Gender and Sexual Orientation Differences in Cognition Across Adulthood: Age...](https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10508-006-9155-y)** > > Despite some evidence of greater age-related deterioration of the brain in males than in females, gender differences in rates of cognitive aging have proved inconsistent. The present study employed web-based methodology to collect data from people... > **[Sexual Orientation Differences in Cerebral Asymmetry and in the Performance...](https://link.springer.com/article/10.1023/A:1024551704723)** > > With each of the tasks in the present studies we expected to find the reported sex difference between heterosexual women and heterosexual men and we predicted a sexual orientation effect with the performance of homosexual men being similar to that of... They are paywalled, unfortunately, but you can see the abstract, references, and “related content” for free. ---
**Author:** ![Wesley\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wesley_clark/32/20581_2.png) [@Wesley\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wesley_Clark)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2014, 10:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexual-orientation-by-occupation/696035/8 "2014-08-20T22:48:33Z")
Due to [reaction formation](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reaction_formation) I would wonder if the most stereotypically masculine fields (special forces soldier, lumberjack, mechanic, etc) have a higher % of gay men vs the public at large. That is just an assumption. As far as fields that probably attract gay men (seeing how only 4% of men are lgbt on average): gay porn, fashion, interior design, theater, hairdresser, etc. I’m assuming those fields have more than 3-4%. I have no idea about actual statistics. I can’t help. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [August 20, 2014, 11:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexual-orientation-by-occupation/696035/9 "2014-08-20T23:25:12Z")
> [@](#): > > (seeing how only 4% of men are lgbt on average) GBT, maybe, but I expect that the percentage of men who are L is much lower than that. ---
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexual-orientation-by-occupation/696035/10 "2014-08-21T18:02:07Z")
I see no one is comming up with stats so I will mention another field that I would suspect has a slightly higher percentage of gay men. Accounting and controllers. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexual-orientation-by-occupation/696035/11 "2014-08-21T18:11:36Z")
Studies exist, but it looks like you have to pay for them. The abstract is free, though. > **[Gender, sexual orientation, and occupational interests: Evidence of their...](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0191886912000773)** > > This report documents gender and sexual orientation differences in occupational interests for a large sample of North American college students. The s… > [@](#): > > This report documents gender and sexual orientation differences in occupational interests for a large sample of North American college students. The students rated their interests in 26 different occupations. Seventeen of the occupations were of greater interest to males and the remaining nine appealed more to females. Regarding sexual orientation, male homosexuals expressed significantly more interest in all nine female-preferred occupations than did heterosexual males; and, in most cases, bisexual males expressed preferences that were intermediate in this regard. For females, sexual orientation was related to interests in eight occupations. Six of these were in the direction of female homosexuals (or bisexuals) preferring more male-typical occupations. The remaining two occupations – those of accountant and head of a corporation – were actually of greater interest to heterosexual females than to homosexual (or bisexual) females. We conclude that (a) pronounced gender differences exist in people’s interests in many occupations, and (b) there are substantial tendencies for homosexuals (and bisexuals to a lesser degree) to have occupational interests that gravitate toward what is typical of the opposite gender rather than their own gender. These “contra-sex” occupational interests among non-heterosexuals were considerably more pronounced in males than in females. ---
**Author:** ![Omar\_Little](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/omar_little/32/269_2.png) [@Omar\_Little](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Omar_Little)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexual-orientation-by-occupation/696035/12 "2014-08-21T18:19:39Z")
> [@HoneyBadgerDC](#): > > I see no one is comming up with stats so I will mention another field that I would suspect has a slightly higher percentage of gay men. Accounting and controllers. Is there a higher incidence of gay men in the nerd community? ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexual-orientation-by-occupation/696035/13 "2014-08-21T18:21:46Z")
> [@Omar\_Little](#): > > Is there a higher incidence of gay men in the nerd community? Since the nerd community is about 90% male, while society at large is only 50% male, I’d have to say yes. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Hermitian](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hermitian/32/470_2.png) [@Hermitian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hermitian)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 6:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexual-orientation-by-occupation/696035/14 "2014-08-21T18:21:47Z")
Don’t forget [flight attendants](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=691840)! ---
**Author:** ![Buck\_Godot](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/buck_godot/32/6573_2.png) [@Buck\_Godot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Buck_Godot)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 6:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexual-orientation-by-occupation/696035/15 "2014-08-21T18:45:58Z")
> [@Malthus](#): > > Studies exist, but it looks like you have to pay for them. The abstract is free, though. > > [Gender, sexual orientation, and occupational interests: Evidence of their interrelatedness - ScienceDirect](http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0191886912000773) I have access to the full paper through my job. They compare self reported interest in a given occupation vs self reported sexuality for 53 occupations. The results pretty much fit the stereotype, at least on the male side. Male Heterosexual occupations: Athlete, Auto Mechanic, High school coach, Police officer, Electrician Male Homosexual occupations: Actor, Artist, Beautician, Dress designer, Nurse, Novelist Female Heterosexual occupations: Accountant, Beautician, Head of corporation, Female Heterosexual occupations: Auto mechanic, High School Coach, Novelist, Wildlife Photographer. ---
**Author:** ![md2000](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/73ab20/32.png) [@md2000](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/md2000)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexual-orientation-by-occupation/696035/16 "2014-08-21T18:49:16Z")
It was my observation, a while ago, that “mechanical” careers tend to attract more men - engineer, pilot, mechanic, etc. Careers that involve interactions and care tend to attract women - doctor, nurse, teacher, child care. Of course, every generalization lacks precision… but the explanation is that women tend to be more oriented to empathy and care, while men are more oriented to special, mechanical tasks. Whether this is simply sexist woo or roughly correct, I don’t know. It may be more cultural than innate. It certainly seems to apply in hobbies. (I went to a horse show once - because a girl I know was involved- and probably 90% of the riders were female. If you go to a motocross race or auto racetrack, the opposite applies). I guess the other question is - if true - does this generalization apply in some way to gay mindset? To what extent is sexual preference tied to other sex-specific characteristics? Of course, the other argument is that artistic type may tend more likely to be gay because gay people, like straight artists, “think outside the box”; they feel they don’t belong to normal society, reject conformism and “do their own thing”. Someone who recognizes their thoughts and feelings don’ measure up to social norms already has a head start in free expression. ---
**Author:** ![HoneyBadgerDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/honeybadgerdc/32/1033_2.png) [@HoneyBadgerDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoneyBadgerDC)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexual-orientation-by-occupation/696035/17 "2014-08-21T18:56:17Z")
I guess the other question is - if true - does this generalization apply in some way to gay mindset? To what extent is sexual preference tied to other sex-specific characteristics? Of course, the other argument is that artistic type may tend more likely to be gay because gay people, like straight artists, “think outside the box”; they feel they don’t belong to normal society, reject conformism and “do their own thing”. Someone who recognizes their thoughts and feelings don’ measure up to social norms already has a head start in free expression. [/QUOTE] Thats a good observation and when I reflect on it I can think of many examples of straight men in female occupations who share that same mindset. ---
**Author:** ![Surreal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/eada6e/32.png) [@Surreal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Surreal)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 7:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexual-orientation-by-occupation/696035/18 "2014-08-21T19:14:35Z")
> [@Omar\_Little](#): > > Sounds like confirmation bias. This is a meaningless refutation. You could use it to dismiss any observation you don’t wish to acknowledge. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 7:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexual-orientation-by-occupation/696035/19 "2014-08-21T19:26:43Z")
I imagine that it’s not so much that gay people gravitate toward certain professions as much as straight people shy away due to gender role perceptions. I mean, there may be lots of straight men out there who want to be hair dressers or floral designers, but don’t because they’re worried about how they’ll be perceived. Gay men who want to do those things aren’t nearly so stigmatized in that sense- they can do pretty much any “straight” profession, and then do the stereotypically “girly” ones as well, and lesbians are the same way, but flipped for gender. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [August 21, 2014, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexual-orientation-by-occupation/696035/20 "2014-08-21T19:43:29Z")
> [@bump](#): > > I imagine that it’s not so much that gay people gravitate toward certain professions as much as straight people shy away due to gender role perceptions. I mean, there may be lots of straight men out there who want to be hair dressers or floral designers, but don’t because they’re worried about how they’ll be perceived. Gay men who want to do those things aren’t nearly so stigmatized in that sense- they can do pretty much any “straight” profession, and then do the stereotypically “girly” ones as well, and lesbians are the same way, but flipped for gender. The above-noted study looks like it refutes this theory, though. It is based on self-reported “interest”. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/sexual-orientation-by-occupation/696035.md?page=2)