| dc.description.abstract | Reliable data are the key for studying LGBT population, and U.S. census data provides the largest and most geographically representative sample of gay and lesbian families available in the United States. By using census data, this dissertation offers a better understanding of the location and segregation patterns of same-sex couples in metropolitan areas in the U.S. It also fills an important information gap by providing an empirical perspective to the vibrant policy and intellectual debates affecting the lives of gay men and lesbians.
This dissertation seeks to examine the extent to which same-sex partnered households are residentially segregated from heterosexual partnered households in 100 U.S. metropolitan areas. It also answers: Which factors are related to the homosexual-heterosexual segregation in the U.S.? Do gay and lesbian couples voluntarily or involuntarily segregate from heterosexual couples? How might metropolitan areas be expected to vary in their levels of homosexual-heterosexual segregation?
I calculated the segregation index, D-index (conventional version and unbiased version) for 100 U.S. metropolitan areas by using the 2010 census data. Interesting findings emerged from the results: Over all, there was a higher level of homosexual-heterosexual segregation in the 100 U.S. metropolitan areas in 2010. However, the level of homosexual-heterosexual segregation decreased after changing the D-index from the conventional version to the unbiased version. That is to say, within the metropolitan areas, residential segregation between same-sex couples and heterosexual couples might be partially caused by random segregation, but the levels of segregation were still significant even after controlling for the biases of the conventional D-index.
Results of this dissertation also showed that same-sex male couples tended to be more segregated from heterosexual couples than same-sex female couples; “Gayborhood” and “Lesbianville” might not always be located at the same place, and partnered gays and lesbians did not necessarily follow the same patterns of segregation; Lastly, both gay and lesbian couples tended to be more residentially segregated from married heterosexual partners than they were from unmarried heterosexual partners.
In order to provide explanations for homosexual-heterosexual segregation, I raised my research questions and developed my hypotheses by applying ethnic enclave models in the literature. Three models were developed to test the hypotheses: Voluntary Model, Involuntary Model, and Welcome Model. Finally, the hypotheses were highly confirmed by the multiple regression results, and I had evidence to conclude that the segregation between same-sex couples and heterosexual couples was voluntary, and gay and lesbian couples settled down more often in places that were liberal and friendly. | en |
