Compulsory heterosexuality (often shortened to comphet) is the theory that heterosexuality is assumed and enforced upon people by a patriarchal and heteronormative society. The term was popularized by Adrienne Rich in her 1980 essay titled "Compulsory Heterosexuality and Lesbian Existence". According to Rich's theory, women in every culture are believed to have an innate preference for relationships with men and this leads women to devalue and minimize the importance of their relationships with other women; she suggests that women are socialized to identify with males and to cast their "social, political, andintellectual allegiances" with them, and are discouraged from identifying with other females.