Biphobia linked to intimate partner violence

Research conducted by Corey Flanders, assistant professor at ¹ū¶³“«Ć½, links intimate partner violence in the bi community to biphobia.

By Christian Feuerstein

Bisexual people may be more vulnerable to intimate partner violence than gay and straight people, researchers continue to find as they delve deeper into bi experiences.

One of those researchers is Corey Flanders, Mount Holyoke College assistant professor of psychology and education. Mashable published an article on intimate partner violence among the bisexual community in which they pointed to conducted by Flanders and others. 

Negative misbeliefs about bisexuality, such as ā€œbi people are hypersexual,ā€ have been linked to instances of intimate partner violence. 

Other misbeliefs and stereotypes can also contribute. For instance, one key takeaway from Flandersā€™ research is that intimate partner violence can happen within queer relationships. However, the narrative of what abuse looks like within queer relationships isnā€™t as well known as what abuse looks like within heterosexual relationships.

ā€œBiphobia and bisexual stigma is incredibly insidious,ā€ said Flanders. ā€œIt is relentless. It is everywhere, and you donā€™t necessarily need to identify as bisexual to receive those messages.ā€