¿Me hace sonar gay esta voz? Does this voice make me sound gay? An intercultural study on the perception of speaker sexuality in Spanish

Abstract

Recently, the idea of a “gayccent” has become a pop-culture phenomenon. However, studies have shown that an “accent” is not enough to clue listeners into a speaker’s supposed sexuality. So, if not the voice, what allows people to evaluate a speaker’s sexuality? To test what characteristics Spanish speakers associate with gay men, often proximity to femininity, a survey in Spanish was utilized. Ten participants for the survey watched selected portrayals of gay men and their speech in media and responded to open-answer questions about what they saw. Using participant responses, a qualitative analysis of how gay male speech is portrayed in Spanish language media was done to illustrate how accepted stereotypes of gay men are constructed and reinforced and how these notions are detrimental to minority communities in the Spanish-speaking world. This research will lead to a more profound understanding of stereotypes that Spanish-speaking gay men face in their respective cultures. Furthermore, knowing what stereotypes and assumptions lead people to judge sexuality will help combat discrimination gay men face in real life, as well as change their portrayal in media, which will then lessen the impact of stereotypes