title: Anti-gay sentiment among adolescents in Belgium and Canada: a comparative investigation into the role of gender and religion.
abstract: Previous research has indicated that opposition toward lesbian, gay, bisexual, and trangender (LGBT) rights remains prevalent among Western populations. In this article, we investigate the determinants of anti-gay attitudes among adolescents in two liberal democracies, Belgium (n = 6,330) and Canada (n = 3,334). The analysis indicates that hostile feelings toward LGBT rights are particularly widespread among boys, while the effects of socioeconomic status and parental education remain limited. Various religious denominations proved to have a strong and significant negative impact on tolerance, with especially high scores for Islam. Religious practice, too, contributes to a negative attitude toward LGBT rights. The consequences of these findings with regard to tolerance for gay rights among Islamic youth in Western democracies are discussed.
authors.affiliation: Department of Political Science, Catholic University of Leuven, Leuven, Belgium.
authors.forename: Marc
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Hooghe
authors.forename: Ellen
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Claes
authors.forename: Allison
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Harell
authors.forename: Ellen
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Quintelier
authors.forename: Yves
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Dejaeghere
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000367:Age Factors; D001290:Attitude; D001530:Belgium; D002170:Canada; D002961:Civil Rights; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D003709:Democracy; D005260:Female; D018452:Homosexuality, Female; D018451:Homosexuality, Male; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011287:Prejudice; D012067:Religion; D012737:Sex Factors