title: Exploring Homophobia in Tbilisi, Georgia.
abstract: The purpose of this study is to determine statistical predictors of homophobic attitudes among the residents of Tbilisi, Georgia. We analyze 2013 survey data from a representative sample of the Tbilisi adult population. Residents were asked about their attitudes, beliefs, and political and social values in the context of the May 17, 2013 attack on LGBT activists on the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia (IDAHOT). Findings show that homophobia is significantly predicted by male gender, lower levels of education, acceptance of social inequality, nonliberal attitudes, and perceiving homosexuals as a "threat to national security." However, psychological perceptions and personal experiences also indirectly influence homophobic attitudes: the findings suggest that males report homophobic attitudes more often than females do and tend to be even more homophobic when they believe that homosexuality is inborn rather than acquired. The study also found that people without liberal attitudes tend to be more homophobic when they have personal contacts with homosexuals. This article highlights the need for a more comprehensive approach to education and the promotion of liberal values as well as legal equality for LGBTQ individuals to decrease the level of homophobia in Georgian society and, specifically, in Tbilisi.
authors.affiliation: a Faculty of Psychology and Educational Sciences , Ivane Javakhishvili Tbilisi State University , Tbilisi , Georgia.
authors.forename: Maia
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Mestvirishvili
authors.affiliation: b Caucasus Research Resource Center , Tbilisi , Georgia.
authors.forename: Tinatin
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Zurabishvili
authors.affiliation: c Institution for Development for Freedom of Information (IDFI), Public Policy Department , Tbilisi , Georgia.
authors.forename: Tamar
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Iakobidze
authors.affiliation: d Caucasus Research Resource Centre , Tbilisi , Georgia.
authors.forename: Natia
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Mestvirishvili
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D005846:Georgia (Republic); D063509:Homophobia / Q000523:psychology; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011057:Politics; D011639:Public Opinion; D012071:Religion and Sex; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires
keywords: Education; Georgia; Tbilisi; gender; homophobia; minority rights; tolerance