Editing Bi-curious

{{Short description|Person who is attracted to experiencing bisexuality}}
{{sexual orientation}}{{LGBTQ sidebar}}
'''Bi-curious''' (also '''bicurious''') is a term for a person, usually someone who is a self-identified [[heterosexual]], who is curious or open about engaging in [[sexual activity]] with a person whose [[sex]] differs from that of their usual [[sexual partner]]s.<ref name=":0">{{Cite web|url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/bi-curious|title=Definition of BI-CURIOUS|website=www.merriam-webster.com|language=en|access-date=2019-09-21|quote=Characterized by an openness to or curiosity about having sexual relations with a person whose sex differs from that of one's usual sexual partners : curious about exploring or experimenting with bisexuality.}}</ref><ref name="Wilson">{{cite book|vauthors=Wilson G, Rahman Q|title =Born Gay: The Psychobiology of Sex Orientation|isbn =978-1784506636|publisher=[[Peter Owen (publisher)|Peter Owen]]|year=2008|page=15|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IKLuAAAAMAAJ|quote=The term 'bi-curious' refers to that fact that many people who are basically straight might consider an occasional homosexual adventure simply to broaden their horizons.}}</ref><ref name="Holleb">{{cite book|vauthors=Holleb ML|title =The A-Z of Gender and Sexuality: From Ace to Ze|isbn =978-1784506636|publisher=[[Jessica Kingsley Publishers]]|year=2019|page=43|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=44F2DwAAQBAJ&pg=PA43|quote=Someone who considers themselves heterosexual but has a sexual or romantic 'curiosity' toward the same gender.}}</ref> The term is sometimes used to describe a broad continuum of sexual orientation between heterosexuality and [[bisexuality]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Frank |first=Katherine |date=August 2008 |title='Not Gay, but Not Homophobic': Male Sexuality and Homophobia in the 'Lifestyle' |url=http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/1363460708091743 |journal=Sexualities |language=en |volume=11 |issue=4 |pages=435–454 |doi=10.1177/1363460708091743 |issn=1363-4607|url-access=subscription }}</ref> Such continuums include mostly heterosexual or mostly homosexual, but these can be self-identified without identifying as bisexual.<ref name=":1" /><ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Savin-Williams |first1=Ritch C. |last2=Joyner |first2=Kara |last3=Rieger |first3=Gerulf |date=2012-02-01 |title=Prevalence and Stability of Self-Reported Sexual Orientation Identity During Young Adulthood |url=https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-012-9913-y |journal=Archives of Sexual Behavior |language=en |volume=41 |issue=1 |pages=103–110 |doi=10.1007/s10508-012-9913-y |pmid=22302504 |issn=1573-2800|url-access=subscription }}</ref> The terms ''[[Heteroflexibility|heteroflexible]]'' and ''homoflexible'' are mainly applied to bi-curious people, though some authors distinguish heteroflexibility and homoflexibility as lacking the "wish to experiment with sexuality" implied by the bi-curious label. It is important when discussing this continuum to conclude that bisexuality is distinct from heterosexuality and homosexuality rather than simply an extension of said sexualities like the labels ''heteroflexibility'' and ''homoflexibility'' would imply, due to the prominent erasure and assimilation of bisexuality into other identity groups.<ref name=":1">{{Cite journal |last1=Ross |first1=Lori E. |last2=Salway |first2=Travis |last3=Tarasoff |first3=Lesley A. |last4=MacKay |first4=Jenna M. |last5=Hawkins |first5=Blake W. |last6=Fehr |first6=Charles P. |date=2018 |title=Prevalence of Depression and Anxiety Among Bisexual People Compared to Gay, Lesbian, and Heterosexual Individuals:A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis |journal=Journal of Sex Research |volume=55 |issue=4–5 |pages=435–456 |doi=10.1080/00224499.2017.1387755 |issn=1559-8519 |pmid=29099625|doi-access=free }}</ref> To sum it up, the difference between bisexual and bicurious is that bisexual people know that they are sexually attracted to both genders based on personal experience. Bicurious people are still maneuvering their way through their sexuality.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Smorag |first=Pascale |date=14 May 2008 |title=From Closet Talk to PC Terminology: Gay Speech and the Politics of Visibility |journal=Transatlantica |issue=1 |doi=10.4000/transatlantica.3503 |url=http://transatlantica.revues.org/index3503.html |access-date=February 13, 2011|doi-access=free }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=What Is Bicurious? |url=https://www.webmd.com/sex/what-is-bicurious |access-date=2022-02-19 |website=WebMD |language=en}}</ref>

Bi-curious is not to be confused with forms of [[sexual fluidity]], defined as a "capacity for situation-dependent flexibility in sexual responsiveness,"<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Diamond |first=Lisa M. |date=2016-12-01 |title=Sexual Fluidity in Male and Females |url=https://doi.org/10.1007/s11930-016-0092-z |journal=Current Sexual Health Reports |language=en |volume=8 |issue=4 |pages=249–256 |doi=10.1007/s11930-016-0092-z |issn=1548-3592|url-access=subscription }}</ref> as bi-curious implies the existence of one set sexuality for the individual who carries the label, even if it is currently unknown, rather than an acknowledgment that the individual's sexual preference has changed and will continue to change that comes with sexual fluidity.

== Bi-curiosity and other non-monosexual identities ==
Standard theories of bi-sexuality make use of the term [[bisexual umbrella]] to encompass multiple other [[non-monosexual]] identities (sexual identities that allow for multiple gender identity possibilities in partners)<ref>{{Cite web |title=LGBTQ Plus Glossary |url=https://health.ucdavis.edu/diversity-inclusion/LGBTQI/LGBTQ-Plus.html |access-date=2023-11-29 |website=health.ucdavis.edu |archive-date=2020-09-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200919161657/https://health.ucdavis.edu/diversity-inclusion/LGBTQI/LGBTQ-Plus.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> that are possible outcomes of exploration for bi-curious people. However, similar on the surface, bisexuality and the subsequent elements of its umbrella are distinct, thus leading to the possibility that a currently bi-curious person may end up as neither bisexual, homosexual, or heterosexual, but another non-monosexual identity altogether.<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Flanders |first1=Corey E. |last2=LeBreton |first2=Marianne E. |last3=Robinson |first3=Margaret |last4=Bian |first4=Jing |last5=Caravaca-Morera |first5=Jaime Alonso |date=2017-01-02 |title=Defining Bisexuality: Young Bisexual and Pansexual People's Voices |url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/15299716.2016.1227016 |journal=Journal of Bisexuality |language=en |volume=17 |issue=1 |pages=39–57 |doi=10.1080/15299716.2016.1227016 |issn=1529-9716|url-access=subscription }}</ref> This umbrella can be better broken into binary and non-binary sexual identities, with bisexuality being a 'binary' sexual identity, meaning it is an attraction to men conventionally and women conventionally (a combination of the binary sexual attractions of homosexual and heterosexual). At the same time, [[pansexuality]] is a non-binary sexual identity because it is an attraction to an individual regardless of what gender identity they label themselves, including men, women, [[Non-binary gender|non-binary]] people, [[Gender fluidity|gender-fluid]] people, and more.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Sprott |first=R. A. |title=Bisexuality, pansexuality, queer identity, and kink identity |url=https://doi.org/10.1080/14681994.2017.1347616 |access-date=2023-11-29 |journal=Sexual and Relationship Therapy |date=2018 |volume=33 |issue=1–2 |pages=214–232 |doi=10.1080/14681994.2017.1347616 |language=en|url-access=subscription }}</ref> The relevance to a bi-curious person is at what range does their exploration end; have they found that their sexual attraction ends with both men and women (binary sexual attraction), or do they find themselves attracted to individuals regardless of their gender identity (non-binary sexual attraction).<ref>{{Cite thesis |last=McShane |first=Hannah |date=December 11, 2019 |title=The Bisexual To Be Corrected: Interrogating The Threat And Recuperation Of Women's Femme Bisexuality |s2cid=203065136 |publisher=Georgia State University}}</ref>

== Etymology ==
The term started becoming popular after 1984, according to [[Merriam-Webster]], but ''[[A Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English|The New Partridge Dictionary of Slang and Unconventional English]]'' and ''Oxford Dictionaries' Lexico'' claim that the term was coined in 1990.<ref>{{Cite web|title=What Does It Mean To Be "Bi-Curious"?|url=https://www.refinery29.com/en-us/what-is-bi-curious-meaning|website=[[Refinery29]]}}</ref> According to [[Dictionary.com]], the term was first used between 1980 and 1985.<ref>{{Cite web |title=bi-curious |url=https://www.dictionary.com/browse/bi-curious |access-date=2022-04-02 |website=[[Dictionary.com]] |language=en}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[Bambi effect (slang)|Bambi effect]]
*[[Sexual fluidity]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

{{Bisexuality topics}}
{{LGBTQ}}
{{Sexual slang}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bi-Curious}}
[[Category:Bisexuality]]
[[Category:LGBTQ slang]]
[[Category:Pornography terminology]]
[[Category:Sexual fluidity]]
[[Category:Plurisexuality]]