Sexual Prejudice

Sexual prejudice refers to negative attitudes and behaviors toward an individual based on his or her sexual orientation identity. Practitioners engaged in marriage, family, and couples counseling may encounter or display sexual prejudice when providing services. Although sexual minorities are more often affected by sexual prejudice than heterosexuals, targets of sexual prejudice may be of any sexual orientation. The purpose of this entry is to give an overview of the history of sexual prejudice, to discuss practice interventions that address sexual prejudice, and to outline the empirical evidence about the highly contextual nature of sexual prejudice.