Race, gender, and sexuality: An empirical investigation of intersectionality

This study investigates the linkages between primary identities such as race and gender and their effects on the relationship between sexual desire and behavior. Previous research has relied heavily on qualitative methodologies to explore the relationship between sexual desire and behavior, thus failing to conceptualize sexual desire in a way that theory could be quantitatively tested. Using binary logistic regression models, this study explores the connection between sexual desire and non-heterosexual history. Results replicate previous work in this understudied field and coincide with established assumptions regarding the association between desire and behavior. Regression models are also developed within the context of race and gender. While sexual desire is significantly associated with sexual behavior, this association is not statistically significant in non-white groups. Where strong sociocultural sanctions occur, the association between sexual desire and behavior varies considerably across racial and gender groups.