
:''This page is about the intuition; for the website, see Gaydar (website)'' Gaydar (a portmanteau of ''gay'' and ''radar'') is a slang term for the supposed ability of a gay person to detect if another person is gay, bisexual or otherwise not heterosexual. The idea of gaydar tends to be limited to indirect senses and intuitions rather than direct questions ("Are you gay?") or fact-finding (like researching the identity of previous romantic partners). Its operation is sometimes claimed to depend on sensitivity to a wide variety of clues: anything from flamboyant or overt violations of traditional gender roles (including occupation, grooming habits, and so on) or more subtle clues, like one's style preferences or other personal tastes or habits. It can also be conceived simply as intuition. Some people claim (sometimes tongue-in-cheek) that their gaydar is so finely tuned that they can tell whether or not a person is gay before that person knows himself/herself. Many people feel this notion should not be perpetuated because it reinforces social stereotypes about gay people. In general, the social, biological, and personal attributes of gay people spans the same range as the general human population. (Though for more information about possible biological correlations with sexual orientation, see Genetics and sexual orientation.) The only attributes that the entire class will certainly share is that which defines the class — sexual preference (and even this can be a complex or ambiguous question at times). Of course, some people do employ certain mannerisms or fashions to ''intentionally'' advertise their sexual orientation whether for dating purposes or general social affiliation. This kind of social symbol can be more (or less) subtle than a rainbow flag or other explicit/external paraphernalia. Observers who are aware of these advertisements might be said to have a certain kind of "gaydar". However, the reliability of these signals is confounded by homomasculinity (many gay men prefer masculine mates) and the rise of the straight metrosexual. "Gaydar" is often treated as an ironic joke or cliché, especially in the gay community, where it is often wished for but also often disappoints. Of course, some people continue to engage in serious attempts to divine others' sexual orientations from indirect attributes. According to the BBC a study by the Philadelphia's Monell Chemical Senses Center, published in the Journal of Psychological Science found that "gay men were found to be particularly good at detecting the scent of other gay men." If this proves true, it could provide the beginnings of some level of credibility for the concept of "gaydar." ==See also== * Fruit machine Sexual orientation and society
Is the use of the term ''Gaydar'' in Futurama (TV series) Series 1, Episode 4 (Love's Labours Lost in Space) a coining of this term, or was it around before then? Is the etymology known? User:Andrewferrier 00:15, 2004 Sep 13 (UTC) :I can testify that I heard the term before that episode. As for etymology, I'm unsure. Best, User:Meelar_User_talk:Meelar">User:Meelar|User:Meelar User talk:Meelar 00:18, Sep 13, 2004 (UTC)
The etymology is fairly simple, and it's been a while since I read the article, but I'm pretty sure it's mentioned right at the top: gay + radar. User:Exploding Boy 15:37, Sep 13, 2004 (UTC)
:Is it a spoonerism, though? I would have called it a mot-valise. User:Chewyman
It's definitely not a spoonerism. A mot-valise, yes, though I'm not sure that word is used in English. User:Exploding Boy 15:50, Sep 29, 2004 (UTC)
:In English, it's portmanteau. User:David.Monniaux 21:51, 28 Oct 2004 (UTC)
== Science and gaydar ==
I removed the following text from the article:
:''No scientific study has absolutely verified that popular stereotypes are accurate enough to allow a person to reliably guess the sexual orientation of a stranger, although some studies suggest that one can have a limited ability to distinguish between homosexuals and heterosexuals.''
* [http://www.datalounge.com/datalounge/news/record.html?record=4746 ''"Gaydar" Gets Scientific Boost from Harvard''] - from ''The Data Lounge''
So, I gave a more detailed explanation of why/how gaydar does or does not work in practice, as far as I understand it. I'm not sure I really like the phrasing of the first half of the "scientific study" sentence above, and I couldn't find any documentation for the second half, which I would want to expand into a better explanation if it's kept. The link no longer points to the article referenced, and I couldn't find the Harvard study in the initial results from Google or Google Scholar. If someone wants to track this down so a proper summary can be added to the article, that would be nifty. I suppose the Wayback Machine at archive.org would be the place to start. -- User:Beland 04:39, 18 Feb 2005 (UTC)
See other meanings of words starting from letter:
Words begining with Gaydar:
Gaydar
Gaydar
Gaydar_(PDA_game)
Gaydar_(website)
Gaydar
:''This page is about the intuition; for the website, see Gaydar (website)'' Gaydar (a portmanteau of ''gay'' and ''radar'') is a slang term for the supposed ability of a gay person to detect if another person is gay, bisexual or otherwise not heterosexual. The idea of gaydar tends to be limited to indirect senses and intuitions rather than direct questions ("Are you gay?") or fact-finding (like researching the identity of previous romantic partners). Its operation is sometimes claimed to depend on sensitivity to a wide variety of clues: anything from flamboyant or overt violations of traditional gender roles (including occupation, grooming habits, and so on) or more subtle clues, like one's style preferences or other personal tastes or habits. It can also be conceived simply as intuition. Some people claim (sometimes tongue-in-cheek) that their gaydar is so finely tuned that they can tell whether or not a person is gay before that person knows himself/herself. Many people feel this notion should not be perpetuated because it reinforces social stereotypes about gay people. In general, the social, biological, and personal attributes of gay people spans the same range as the general human population. (Though for more information about possible biological correlations with sexual orientation, see Genetics and sexual orientation.) The only attributes that the entire class will certainly share is that which defines the class — sexual preference (and even this can be a complex or ambiguous question at times). Of course, some people do employ certain mannerisms or fashions to ''intentionally'' advertise their sexual orientation whether for dating purposes or general social affiliation. This kind of social symbol can be more (or less) subtle than a rainbow flag or other explicit/external paraphernalia. Observers who are aware of these advertisements might be said to have a certain kind of "gaydar". However, the reliability of these signals is confounded by homomasculinity (many gay men prefer masculine mates) and the rise of the straight metrosexual. "Gaydar" is often treated as an ironic joke or cliché, especially in the gay community, where it is often wished for but also often disappoints. Of course, some people continue to engage in serious attempts to divine others' sexual orientations from indirect attributes. According to the BBC a study by the Philadelphia's Monell Chemical Senses Center, published in the Journal of Psychological Science found that "gay men were found to be particularly good at detecting the scent of other gay men." If this proves true, it could provide the beginnings of some level of credibility for the concept of "gaydar." ==See also== * Fruit machine Sexual orientation and society
Gaydar
Is the use of the term ''Gaydar'' in Futurama (TV series) Series 1, Episode 4 (Love's Labours Lost in Space) a coining of this term, or was it around before then? Is the etymology known? User:Andrewferrier 00:15, 2004 Sep 13 (UTC) :I can testify that I heard the term before that episode. As for etymology, I'm unsure. Best, User:Meelar_
See other meanings of words starting from letter:
G
GA | GB | GC | GD | GE | GF | GH | GI | GJ | GK | GL | GM | GN | GO | GP | GR | GS | GT | GU | GW | GX | GY | GZ |Words begining with Gaydar:
Gaydar
Gaydar
Gaydar_(PDA_game)
Gaydar_(website)
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