Page 220 - Discrimination at Work The Psychological and Organizational Bases

8. UNDERSTANDING HETEROSEXISM
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self-labeling and behavioral reports of sexual orientation, Martin and Knox
(2000) advised that studies provide respondents with a host of options to
describe their sexual identity. In particular, respondents should be allowed
to indicate same-gender attraction, sexual and affectional behaviors, and
to report if they have gay identities.
Measuring Direct and Indirect Discrimination
Another important issue is the distinction between direct and indirect
forms of workplace discrimination (Ragins, 2004). Direct forms of discrim­
ination are overt (i.e., denial of a promotion because an employee is gay
or lesbian). However, because most gay employees do not disclose their
sexual identity to everyone in their workplace (Badgett, 1996), they may
avoid being targets for direct discrimination. Although closeted gay and
lesbian employees may experience less direct discrimination, they may
still experience indirect discrimination by watching negative treatment
of other openly gay and lesbian coworkers or hearing heterosexist com­
ments and jokes. Indirect discrimination is undoubtedly stressful for gay
and lesbian employees, who may retreat further into the closet after hear­
ing heterosexist comments or observing discriminatory treatment of gay
coworkers.
Experiences of indirect discrimination may also affect gay and lesbian
employees' perceptions and attributions about direct discrimination. For
example, a gay employee may be more likely to assume that the loss of
a promotion is due to his sexual identity if he overheard his supervisor
making an anti-gay comment. A key issue here is the degree to which
the gay employee is out at work. Because the supervisor's actions may
in fact be driven by knowledge of the employee's sexual orientation, the
degree of disclosure is an important variable to both study and control for
in investigations of heterosexism in the workplace.

Examining the Relationship Between Disclosure
and Discrimination

Disclosure of sexual identity in the workplace is intricately linked to expe­
riences of heterosexism in the workplace and presents its own quagmire
of methodological challenges. Let us relay a few scenarios that capture
some of these complexities. Consider a lesbian employee who believes
that no one at work knows she is gay, although many of her cowork­
ers have known or suspected for some time. Or, perhaps she disclosed
her sexual identity to a few trusted coworkers, but unbeknownst to her,
word has spread to everyone else in the organization. Finally, consider