Backlash or a Positive Response

Public Opinion of LGB Issues After Obergefell v. Hodges

Bibliographic Data

ID7315449
AuthorsEmily Kazyak (0000-0002-3488-5914, University of Nebraska–Lincoln, Lincoln, Nebraska, USA, corresponding author), Mathew Stange (0000-0003-3193-0238, Sociology and Women's and Gender Studies, Mathematica Policy Research, Lincoln, Nebraska, USA)
Year2018
Volume65
Issue14
Pages2028-2052
Publication date2018-01-10
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Homosexuality (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0091-8369 • E-ISSN: 1540-3602
PublisherTaylor & Francis (PUBLISHER • GB)
DOI10.1080/00918369.2017.1423216
PMID29319437
OpenAlexW2784244754
LanguageEN
Citations received26
References cited59

Following Obergefell v. Hodges, same-sex marriage remains controversial and anti-LGBT state legislation has been passed, which raises questions about whether the Supreme Court's ruling may have created a backlash. We use data from two waves of a general population survey of Nebraskans conducted before and after the decision to answer three questions. First, we test three theories of how the court decision influenced public opinion. We find that support for same-sex marriage was significantly higher following the ruling, suggesting that there was not a backlash to it. Second, we assess whether people perceive that the court accurately reflects the public's opinion. We find that people who favor same-sex marriage are more likely to think that the ruling refects public opinion very well; those who oppose same-sex marriage are more likely to think that the ruling does not at all reflect public opinion. Third, we examine the association between discussing gay rights and support for same-sex marriage, finding that those who talk about LGB issues very often are more likely to favor same-sex marriage. We discuss the implications of these findings in relation to two of the themes of this special issue: the influence of marriage equality on Americans' understandings of marriage and the impact of marriage equality on future LGBT activism

Backlash · Homosexuality · Judicial opinion · Legislation · Majority opinion · Political science · Politics · Population · Public opinion · Sociology · Supreme court · Demography · Electoral Systems and Political Participation · Law · Legal and Constitutional Studies · LGBTQ Health, Identity, and Policy · Psychology

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