The literature on bisexual older adult women is reviewed and recommendations are provided for future research on this group.
The older adult population is growing at a rapid rate, and by the year 2030, 20 percent of the American population will be over age 65 (Center for Disease Control and Prevention, 2013). However, the research examining minority populations within the older adult age group is limited. Specifically, literature on the experiences of bisexual women in late life is almost nonexistent. The research that is currently available often groups bisexual older adult women into “LGB” (Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual), even though research shows that bisexual individuals experience their own unique discrimination, even within the LGB population (Barker et al., 2012; Dyar, Feinstein, & London, 2014; Ochs, 2011).
Bisexual individuals often face stigmatization by both heterosexual and lesbian and gay communities alike (Barker et al., 2012; Friedman et al., 2014; Weinberg, Williams, & Pryor, 2001). Furthermore, due to heterosexism in the United States, many bisexual individuals may feel the need to hide their sexuality when seeking mental health and medical services or may even avoid seeking services all together (Butler, 2008). The need to hide one’s sexuality when seeking mental health services is particularly problematic, as bisexual individuals experience significantly higher rates of distress and mental health concerns compared to lesbian, gay and heterosexual individuals (Baker et al., 2012). These higher rates of mental illness may be particularly true for bisexuals in late life as they are less likely to be “out” and more likely to have grown up in a less accepting environment than their younger counterparts (Pew Research, 2013). Additionally, bisexual older adult women make up 48 percent of LGB”T” (Trans) individuals living in poverty (Emlet, 2016). Bisexual older adults also represent a unique group as, although bisexual individuals make up 52 percent of the overall LGB population, only 7 percent of the LGB population ages 65 plus identify as bisexual (Moore, 2015). In this paper, the literature on bisexual women is reviewed. Due to the limited number of studies on this specific population, this paper draws on literature pertaining to LGB older adults in general and bisexual individuals throughout the lifespan. The goal of this paper is to provide recommendations for future research on this frequently ignored marginalized group.
Research on the LGB older adult community often focuses on the unique stressors and coping strategies of this population. Research has shown that this population experiences higher rates of alcoholism and excessive drinking than the general older adult population (Frederikson-Goldsen et al., 2013; Van Wagenem, Driskell, & Bradford, 2013). Furthermore, older LGB adults experience more victimization and discrimination across the lifespan than older adults who identify as heterosexual (Van Wagenem et al., 2013). This experience of victimization and discrimination is often defined as a type of minority stress, which is a unique experience of individuals who identify as part of a minority group. The minority stress hypothesis further posits that holding multiple minority statuses (e.g., bisexual and woman and older adult) creates an additive effect, building on top of one another resulting in greater stressors (Meyer, 2003). These types of stressors (i.e., prejudice events) have been shown to be significant predictors of emotional loneliness among the LGB older adult population (Kuyper & Fokkema, 2010).
The minority stress hypothesis may provide one explanation for why LGB older adults often report higher levels of social and emotional loneliness than their heterosexual peers (Kuyper & Fokkema, 2010) and why LGB older adult women may face even greater levels of loneliness. One factor that has been found to predict emotional loneliness is an individual’s connection with the LGB community. LGB older adults who endorsed less connection to the LGB community reported more emotional loneliness than older LGB individuals who endorsed more connection to the LGB community (Kuyper & Fokkema, 2010). Nevertheless, LGB older adults appear to be resilient with nearly half of the participants in Van Wagenem and colleagues (2013) endorsing successful coping with typical age related stressors.
Although these findings on the LGB older adult population are important, it is critical to note that the majority of the participants in these studies identified as lesbian or gay. As noted, 52 percent of the overall LGB community identify as bisexual (Moore, 2015); thus, these studies are not representative of the LGB community as a whole. Furthermore, grouping these unique populations together may not capture the true experience of a bisexual older adult. As described by Cronin and King (2010), it is vital that researchers consider intersectionality when conducting research within the LGB population. The experience of a bisexual woman is different than that of a gay man, just as the experience of a bisexual older adult woman is different than that of a bisexual younger adult woman.
Recently, additional research has examined attitudes towards bisexual adults in both LGB and heterosexual populations. One such study found that heterosexual-identified individuals viewed bisexual-identified individuals as more likely to acquire sexually transmitted diseases, more promiscuous and less capable of maintaining long-term romantic relationships (Casazza, Ludwin, & Cohn, 2015). Furthermore, as previously discussed, bisexual individuals often face discrimination within the LGBT community. A recent study found that bisexual women endorsed a significant amount of exclusion/rejection from the LGBT community especially when they were in a relationship with a male-identified partner (Dyar et al., 2014). Conversely, they experienced less exclusion/rejection from the LGBT community when in a same-sex relationship, which was also associated with misidentification of their sexual orientation as lesbian. This misidentification is a frequent experience for bisexual individuals within same-sex (assumed lesbian/gay) or other-sex (assumed heterosexual) relationships, which is often termed bisexual invisibility (Baker et al., 2012). Further, even when bisexual individuals are allowed their identity, their identity is frequently disputed as temporary or merely confusion, a phenomenon referred to as bisexual denial (Baker et al., 2012). Bisexual individuals may also be rejected by the LGBT community given their ability to “hide their marginalized identity” by being in a heterosexual relationship (Mohr & Rochlen, 1999).
As is apparent, the experience of a bisexual individual can be different than that of a lesbian or gay individual, with potentially greater stigma and negative consequences given the potential rejection from both LGBT and heterosexual communities. This stigma may be greater for bisexual older adults and even greater for bisexual older adult women given the aforementioned additive effect of multiple minority statuses (Meyer, 2003). Although bisexual older adult women may be a particularly vulnerable group, our literature review found essentially no research on the unique experiences of this group.
The very limited research on bisexual older adults shows they face unique discrimination and setbacks. For example, 18 percent of bisexual older adults reported that the most important people in their life knew that they were bisexual compared to 32 percent of bisexual individuals who are under 45 years of age (Pew Research, 2013). Conversely, about 70 percent of older and younger lesbian and gay adults reported that the important people in their life knew their sexual orientation. Furthermore, bisexual individuals with the same educational attainment as their gay and lesbian counterparts have significantly lower income levels; 48 percent of bisexual women live at or below 200 percent of the federal poverty level (Movement Advancement Project [MAP], 2017. These rates are similar for transgender older adults. In terms of health, bisexual older adults have significantly poorer physical and mental health than gay, lesbian and heterosexual adults (MAP, 2017). For instance, a study conducted by Brennaning, Seidel, Larsen and Karpiak (2013) found that one-third of bisexual older adults reported moderate to severe depression. These types of stressors have been found to be related to emotional loneliness and poorer quality of life (Kuyper & Fokkema, 2010; Van Wagenem et al., 2013).
In conclusion, the studies on bisexual adults and LGB older adults clearly demonstrate the unique stresses these marginalized populations face. However, it is problematic that researchers continue to group these populations together, in age group, sexual orientation, and gender. It is recommended, considering how much our society ignores and invalidates the experiences of both older adults and bisexual women, that more research be conducted to further understand the unique needs and experiences of this forgotten population. As our aging population grows, so will the population of older bisexual women. As individuals who serve the older adult population, it is vital that we better understand the needs of this specific population competently.
About the Authors
Hannah M. Bashian, MEd, is currently a third year counseling psychology doctoral student at Lehigh University. Her research interests include ageism among middle age adults, late life depression and LGBTQ experiences in late life.
Anastasia E. Canell, BA, is in her first year of Lehigh University’s Counseling Psychology doctoral program. Her research interests focus on the resilience and wellbeing of older adults. She is also interested in the psychosocial effects that Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias have on individuals, caregivers and families.
Nicole L. Johnson, PhD, is an assistant professor in the Department of Education and Human Services at Lehigh University. Her research is dedicated to the exploration and implementation of prevention programming (primary, secondary and tertiary) for gender-based violence (e.g., rape, intimate partner violence, violence against gender and sexual minorities).
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