Non-Monosex Research Publication in Social Work Journals between 2008 and 2016: Systematic Review and Content Analysis

Background and Purpose: An estimated 4% of men and 9% of women identify as non-monosex, a term for sexual identities outside of the heterosexual/homosexual binary such as bisexual, pansexual, polysexual and asexual. In addition to experiences of oppression shared with all sexual minorities, non-monosex-identifying persons face additional issues of monosex bias in their personal lives, in mass media, and in research. Despite social work’s commitment to issues of social justice and inclusion, prior reviews of the literature have indicated a gap in research on this population, which can lead to inappropriate clinical practices and continued stigmatization. The authors examined the state of social work literature on non-monosex-identifying persons through a systematic review and content analysis of primary-study data-based publications from 2008 to 2016 in 24 social work journals based in the United States.

Methods: For the purposes of this review, non-monosex identity was conceptualized as the sexual identities of: bisexual, polysexual, polyamory, pansexual, demisexual, asexual, queer, questioning and omnisexual. The inclusion criteria were: studies that use qualitative and/or quantitative empirical research methodology, English language, peer-reviewed articles in the selected social work journals, and directly concerned one or more of the non-monosex identities specified above. Articles were excluded if they were a commentary, book review, letter to the editor, notice to readers, editorial, news in brief, or the like. This study excluded articles that included only monosex identities (heterosexual and homosexual) as the populations of interest. Studies using secondary data analysis were excluded as the focus of this review is on primary empirical studies. The following terms were utilized to search the full text of the articles to identify possibly relevant studies for inclusion: “bisexual” OR “polysexual” OR “polyamory” OR “pansexual” OR “demisexual” OR “asexual” OR “queer” OR “sexual minority” OR “non monosex” OR “fluid sexuality” OR “omnisexual” OR “non-monosex” OR “nonmonosex” OR “polyamorous” OR “questioning”.

A content analysis was undertaken to explore how non-monosex groups are discussed in the research articles identified for this systematic review, particularly information regarding how findings specific to non-monosex groups are presented and the amount of space devoted to the discussion of non-monosex group(s) compared to monosex groups.

Results: 677 articles were retrieved from the journals to be reviewed for possible inclusion, but only 4 articles were found that met the inclusion criteria. While 31% of the 357 total study participants identified as non-monosex, a content analysis showed subtle forms of monosex bias in the reporting of study results, such as collapsing of gay/lesbian participants with non-monosex participants.

Implications: The findings show there continues to be a lack of articles concerning the non-monosex population in social work journals, while research on non-monosex identities outside of bisexuality, such as asexuality or polyamory, is completely absent. To address monosex bias in research and practice, social workers should make a conscious effort toward identifying and countering biased practices and assumptions, keeping in mind that most are subtle, unconscious, and unintentional. Social work should increase research specific to non-monosex groups to ensure well-informed treatment and accurate, appropriate group description.