Half of bisexual people have experienced biphobia when accessing services
A new study has found that nearly half of bisexual people have experienced biphobia when accessing essential services.
The study, by the Scottish Equality Network, found that 48% of bisexual people had experienced biphobic comments.
The ‘Complicated?’ study, launched today, also found that biphobia was most common within LGBT services and NHS services.
Nearly a third (28%) of respondents said they would not feel comfortable telling their GP about their sexuality.
The study is being hailed as the first UK-wide research report on bisexual people’s experiences when accessing services.
515 bisexual people took part in the study which was said to have found “clear evidence of biphobic discrimination”, and that for many bisexual people it “simply reflects the realities they have been painfully aware of for a long time”.
38% of bisexual people found that bisexual people have experienced sexual harassment, and that the results suggested that it was because bisexual people were often falsely labelled as promiscuous or unfaithful.
Tim Hopkins, director of the Equality Network, the Scottish lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex equality charity, said: “Unfortunately, as the report findings show, bisexual people are often misunderstood and discriminated against by many services.
“This leaves them at high risk of not getting appropriate information and support. We hope that this report will help services to better understand and assist bisexual people.”
As well as reporting issues faced by bisexual people in the UK, it also provided a roadmap to make services more inclusive for bisexual people, and highlights good practices in services.
