Page 63 - IJPS-9-2

International Journal of
Population Studies Personality traits in homosexual men in Iran

them inflexible to others’ opinions. They can be suspicious, self-worth. This superiority is a substitute for those areas
anxious, and sad people, consistent with the findings of that are not accepted by society. However, such behavior
Qi et al. (2020) that there is a correlation between social — focusing only on success and social status — leads to
mistreatment and paranoid symptoms among sexual more loneliness and stress.
minorities. On the other hand, Matos et al. (2017) showed Higher scores of bottoms in hypomania (Ma) indicate
that homosexual men have less psychological flexibility that members of this group have an exaggerated self-
than their heterosexual counterparts, which worsens their evaluation and overestimate their importance. As a result,
internalized shame and depression. Needham & Austin they are usually unable to acknowledge their limitations.
(2010) also added that inflexibility and excessive sensitivity This finding is consistent with the findings of Gandhi et al.
to criticism in these two groups are due to the internalization (2014), where homosexual men obtained higher scores in
of shame experiences, that is, being criticized, threatened, hypomania compared to their heterosexual counterparts.
and rejected. These events have a deeper influence on Given that setting a high-level standard is known as a
homosexual men than their heterosexual counterparts and
can worsen their depression and sense of worthlessness sign of narcissistic personality disorder in Diagnostic
and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, Fifth Edition,
(Gilbert & Gerlsma, 1999).
(DSM-5), our finding can be considered consistent with
It is worth noting that a large part of the pessimism that of Rubinstein (2010), which showed that homosexual
among Iranian tops and bottoms is attributed to their men have a higher level of narcissistic personality
constant vigilance to protect themselves from potential disorder and lower self-esteem than their heterosexual
dangers they may face in a patriarchal and religious counterparts do. Behaviors such as grandiose fantasy
society, where homosexuality is considered a perversion. and lack of empathy among bottoms can be interpreted
According to Lingiardi & Nardelli (2014), this is rooted in as rising against homophobic norms and a reaction to
“perceived stigma,” that is, intense awareness and fear of years of unintentional internalization of demands in a
being labeled as homosexual. The person’s awareness and homophobic society. Therefore, narcissism in bottoms is
sensitivity to the surrounding environment increase with a best to be considered an approach for better conformity
greater perception of social rejection. with the norms rather than a mental problem because such
High scores of bottom and versatile homosexual behaviors act as a shield, protecting them from problems
men in psychasthenia (Pt) indicate an inability to make while providing them with opportunities for finding sexual
effective decisions and understand the situation, as well partners and surviving through conformity with norms
as being perfectionists. They often aim for a high level of (Rubinstein, 2010).
performance, and their subsequent failure to achieve this The most important strength of this study is the
challenging goal leads to a sense of guilt. These people are collection of psychopathological data on homosexuals
very worried about being accepted and try hard to become in an Islamic country. Nevertheless, there are some
famous. These findings are consistent with Pachankis & limitations that need to be acknowledged. First, the
Hatzenbuehler (2013), who suggests that homosexual men study employed non-random sampling, necessitating
are more concerned about achievements and issues rooted to interpretation these results cautiously. Cultural and
in their self-worth and self-esteem compared to their religious restrictions in relation to sexual minorities make
heterosexual counterparts. it difficult to collect samples randomly. Second, the use
Ashby & Rice (2002) stated that maladaptive of an online questionnaire was a practical approach to
perfectionism has a negative relationship with self- ensure the safety of the participants, given their intense
esteem. Van der Kaap-Deeder et al. (2016) also noted that fear of being identified and punished. However, this may
people with lower self-esteem tend to seek self-worth by have led to a biased sample, as those who responded to
achieving special goals more than others. Crocker and the questionnaire may have had special personal strengths
Wolfe (2001) believed that social environment contributes such as higher education and socioeconomic status
largely to behaviors that result in self-worth, while compared to those who did not participate. Thirdly,
this value can be given by others or achieved through the reliance on online surveys in platforms Hornet and
one’s success in certain areas of life. In the sociocultural Telegram introduces the possibility of false self-reporting
conditions in Iran, since an important part of the sexual regarding sexual orientation and identity, which might
identity of bottom and versatile homosexual men is not have distorted the results. This may apply to those who self-
accepted by their communities and families, members of identify as tops and full tops. A trial study was conducted
these two groups tend to seek more achievements in areas first to identify non-fake profiles to increase the accuracy
such as education, appearance, and competition to prove of results. Using the internet and dating applications for

Volume 9 Issue 2 (2023) 57 https://doi.org/10.36922/ijps.0390