Attitude Toward Homosexuality

What it measures

A four-item subset of the Attitudes Toward Lesbians and Gay Men (ATLG) scale, measuring individual attitudes toward male homosexuality. Items span affective responses (disgust, disapproval) and cognitive evaluations (naturalness, moral character), with two reverse-scored items reflecting positive or accepting orientations. Used in advertising and consumer research to examine how audience attitudes toward homosexuality moderate reactions to LGBTQI+-inclusive marketing communications.

Response format

7-point Likert

Scale items

• Sex between two men is just plain wrong. (r)
• I think male homosexuals are disgusting. (r)
• Male homosexuality is a natural expression of sexuality in men.
• A man who is homosexual is just as likely to be a good person as anyone else.

Full scale items shown. Always cite the original source when using this scale in research.

Usage notes & scoring

Single consumer research reliability estimate: α = .82 — Puntoni, Vanhamme & Visscher (2011, Journal of Advertising 50(1), 85–102). VALIDITY: EFA confirmed single-factor structure in the Puntoni et al. application. Two items are reverse-scored (items 1 and 2). SCALE ADAPTATION NOTE: Items as used here are specific to attitudes toward gay men; the ATLG scale can be rephrased for attitudes toward lesbians by substituting 'women' and 'lesbian' in relevant items. Original ATLG instrument (Herek 1994; Herek & Capitanio 1999) is a longer scale; this four-item version represents a subset as applied in consumer research. Researchers studying LGBTQI+-inclusive advertising may use this scale to measure audience attitudes as a moderator variable.

Citation

Herek, Gregory M. (1994). Assessing attitudes toward lesbians and gay men: A review of empirical research with the ATLG scale. In B. Greene and G. M. Herek (Eds.), Lesbian and Gay Psychology (pp. 206–228). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage.

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