Pride and Prejudice
The Dynamic Association Between Same-Sex Contact and Educational Attainment
Koji Ueno, Teresa Roach & Abráham Peña-Talamantes
Advances in Life Course Research, forthcoming
Abstract:
Previous studies have shown that sexual minorities and heterosexuals differ in the level of success in educational attainment. Because these studies treated sexual orientation as a static trait, they could not address how the dynamic aspect of sexual orientation impacts educational attainment. This study seeks to answer this question while focusing on sexual contact as an indicator of sexual orientation and highest educational degree obtained by young adulthood as an attainment outcome. Ordered logistic regression analysis was conducted using US data (the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health or "Add Health," Waves 1 through 4). Among women, those who report same-sex contact obtain lower educational degrees than those without such contact regardless of its timing and continuity. Among men, those who report their first same-sex contact in young adulthood obtain higher degrees than others. These associations are explained by self-exploratory attitudes, depressive symptoms, and academic performance and expectations. These results help understand how same-sex sexual development creates opportunities and constraints in the educational attainment process, thereby extending the existing attainment literature, which concentrates on implications of heterosexual development.
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Is Homophobia Associated with an Implicit Same-Sex Attraction?
Cara MacInnis & Gordon Hodson
Journal of Sex Research, forthcoming
Abstract:
Some theorists propose that homophobia stems from underlying same-sex attraction. A few studies have tested this hypothesis, yet without a clear measure of implicit sexual attraction, producing mixed results. For the first time, we test this attraction-based account of homophobia among both men and women using an implicit measure of sexual attraction. No evidence of an attraction-based account of homophobia emerged. Instead, implicit same-sex attraction was related to positive evaluations of gay men and lesbians among female participants. Even in targeted analyses examining the relation between implicit same-sex attraction and homosexual evaluations among only those theoretically most likely to demonstrate an attraction-based homophobic effect, implicit same-sex attraction was not associated with evaluations of homosexuals or was associated with more positive evaluations of homosexuals. In addition, explicit same-sex attraction was related to positive evaluations of gay men and lesbians for male participants. These results are more in keeping with the attitude-similarity effect (i.e., people like, rather than dislike, similar others).
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Wen-Bin Chiou, Wen-Hsiung Wu & King-The Lee
Psychology of Men & Masculinity, forthcoming
Abstract:
We used self-completion theory to examine whether exposure to concepts of masculinity increased the desire for energy drinks and whether the use of energy drinks contributed to the achievement of a masculine sense of self. In Experiment 1, participants were randomly assigned to receive either a masculine or a neutral prime via a scrambled-sentence task. The results showed that participants exposed to concepts related to masculinity were more likely than controls to choose an energy drink as a reward for participation. In Experiment 2, participants were randomly assigned to groups differing with respect to bogus feedback provided about masculinity: low (threatened), high (affirmed), or no feedback (control). The second experiment found that participants whose masculinity was threatened consumed more of the energy drinks in a taste test than the controls, whereas those whose masculinity was affirmed consumed less of the energy drinks than the controls. The current research suggests that reminders of masculinity may increase the desire for energy drinks, and energy-drink consumption seems to enable men to regulate their personal sense of masculinity. The notion of masculine self-completion may provide a useful framework for explaining the popularity of energy drinks among men and the use of other addictive substances related to the symbolic self-completion of masculinity.
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The Stability of Same-Sex Cohabitation, Different-Sex Cohabitation, and Marriage
Charles Lau
Journal of Marriage and Family, October 2012, Pages 973-988
Abstract:
This study contributes to the emerging demographic literature on same-sex couples by comparing the level and correlates of union stability among 4 types of couples: (a) male same-sex cohabitation, (b) female same-sex cohabitation, (c) different-sex cohabitation, and (d) different-sex marriage. The author analyzed data from 2 British birth cohort studies: the National Child Development Study (N = 11,469) and the 1970 British Cohort Study (N = 11,924). These data contain retrospective histories of same-sex and different-sex unions throughout young adulthood (age 16-34) from 1974 through 2004. Event-history analyses showed that same-sex cohabitations have higher rates of dissolution than do different-sex cohabiting and marital unions. Among same-sex couples, male couples had slightly higher dissolution rates than did female couples. In addition, same-sex couples from the 1958 and 1970 birth cohorts had similar levels of union stability. The demographic correlates of union stability are generally similar for same-sex and different-sex unions.
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Frame Spillover: Media Framing and Public Opinion of a Multifaceted LGBT Rights Agenda
Stephen Engel
Law & Social Inquiry, forthcoming
Abstract:
Between May and July 2003, a shift in how the US public viewed the legality of consensual homosexual sex occurred. While in May the largest percentage of respondents to date supported decriminalizing such activity, that percentage dropped eleven points two months later. Similar declines in support were evident in the same period over a range of gay and lesbian rights claims. The ruling in Lawrence v. Texas (2003) decriminalizing homosexual sex is the obvious intervening event. To explain this pattern, coding of print and televised news coverage of the ruling throughout 2003 was undertaken. Coverage was not overtly negative in terms of antigay rhetoric or hostility toward the judiciary; rather, the dominant media frame focused on the implications of Lawrence for an entirely separate rights issue: marriage equality. This article examines the dynamic of frame "spillover," or the idea that media focus on a distinct and not widely supported rights claim in a multifaceted rights agenda might depress support across the entire rights agenda. The findings call for further research, and they have implications for scholarship on public opinion, social movement framing, and ideational development and policy debate as studied within the broader field of American political development.
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Sexy Dolls, Sexy Grade-Schoolers? Media & Maternal Influences on Young Girls' Self-Sexualization
Christine Starr & Gail Ferguson
Sex Roles, October 2012, Pages 463-476
Abstract:
Concern is often expressed that mass media contribute to the early sexualization of young girls; however, few empirical studies have explored the topic. Using paper dolls, we examined self-sexualization among sixty 6-9 year-old girls from the Midwestern United States; specifically self-identification, preference, and attributions regarding sexualized dress. Based on simultaneous maternal reports, we also investigated potential risk factors (media consumption hours, maternal self-objectification) and potential protective factors (maternal television mediation, maternal religiosity) for young girls' sexualization. Findings support social cognitive theory/social learning theory and reveal nuanced moderated effects in addition to linear main effects. Girls overwhelmingly chose the sexualized doll over the non-sexualized doll for their ideal self and as popular; however, dance studio enrollment, maternal instructive TV mediation, and maternal religiosity reduced those odds. Surprisingly, the mere quantity of girls' media consumption (tv and movies) was unrelated to their self-sexualization for the most part; rather, maternal self-objectification and maternal personal religiosity moderated its effects.
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Jennifer Bremser & Gordon Gallup
Evolutionary Psychology, August 2012, Pages 457-486
Abstract:
Simon Baron-Cohen pioneered the idea that different brain types evolved to process information in gender specific ways. Here we expand this approach to looking at eating disorders as a byproduct of the extreme female brain. The incidence of eating disorders is higher among females, and recent findings show that hormones may play a role in eating disorders. We present new evidence from four studies that both an empathizing bias and hyper-mentalizing (as measures of the extreme female brain; EFB) are related to disordered eating and negative evaluation anxiety in women. We also advance the novel hypothesis that concerns about animal welfare (a unique expression of the EFB) may account for the relationship between vegetarianism and eating disorders.
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Midwest or Lesbian? Gender, Rurality, and Sexuality
Emily Kazyak
Gender & Society, forthcoming
Abstract:
Research suggests a gendered dimension to the geography of sexual minorities, as gay couples are more likely to live in cities than are lesbian couples. Using data from 60 interviews with rural gays and lesbians, this article employs an intersectional analysis of the mutually constitutive relationships among place, gender, and sexuality in order to assess how acceptance of gays and lesbians in small towns is gendered. Findings indicate that femininity aligns with gay sexuality but not rurality. In contrast, masculinity underpins both the categories "rural" and "lesbian." Furthermore, both lesbian women and gay men gain acceptance in rural areas by doing masculinity. This analysis indicates that masculinity is not something to which only male bodies are privy. In contrast to prior work, it shows one form of female masculinity that is normative rather than transgressive. The analysis also reveals that the meanings of gender presentations vary by geographical context.
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Katie McLaughlin et al.
Child Abuse & Neglect, September 2012, Pages 645-655
Objectives: Lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) populations exhibit elevated rates of psychiatric disorders compared to heterosexuals, and these disparities emerge early in the life course. We examined the role of exposure to early-life victimization and adversity-including physical and sexual abuse, homelessness, and intimate partner violence-in explaining sexual orientation disparities in mental health among adolescents and young adults.
Methods: Data were drawn from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, Wave 3 (2001-2002), a nationally representative survey of adolescents. Participants included gay/lesbian (n = 227), bisexual (n = 245), and heterosexual (n = 13,490) youths, ages 18-27. We examined differences in the prevalence of exposure to child physical or sexual abuse, homelessness or expulsion from one's home by caregivers, and physical and sexual intimate partner violence according to sexual orientation. Next we examined the associations of these exposures with symptoms of psychopathology including suicidal ideation and attempts, depression, binge drinking, illicit drug use, tobacco use, alcohol abuse, and drug abuse. Finally, we determined whether exposure to victimization and adversity explained the association between sexual orientation and psychopathology.
Results: Gay/lesbian and bisexual respondents had higher levels of psychopathology than heterosexuals across all outcomes. Gay/lesbian respondents had higher odds of exposure to child abuse and housing adversity, and bisexual respondents had higher odds of exposure to child abuse, housing adversity, and intimate partner violence, than heterosexuals. Greater exposure to these adversities explained between 10 and 20% of the relative excess of suicidality, depression, tobacco use, and symptoms of alcohol and drug abuse among LGB youths compared to heterosexuals. Exposure to victimization and adversity experiences in childhood and adolescence significantly mediated the association of both gay/lesbian and bisexual orientation with suicidality, depressive symptoms, tobacco use, and alcohol abuse.
Conclusions: Exposure to victimization in early-life family and romantic relationships explains, in part, sexual orientation disparities in a wide range of mental health and substance use outcomes, highlighting novel targets for preventive interventions aimed at reducing these disparities.
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Children's Gender-Typed Activity Choices Across Preschool Social Contexts
Priscilla Goble et al.
Sex Roles, October 2012, Pages 435-451
Abstract:
Variability in children's gender-typed activity preferences was examined across several preschool social contexts--solitary play, interactions with female peers, male peers, and both, and interactions with teachers. Participants were preschool children (N = 264; 49 % girls, M age = 52 months, range 37-60) attending Head Start classes in the Southwest United States. Seventy-three percent were Mexican/Mexican-American, and 82 % of families earned less than $30,000 per year. Children's preferences for gender-typed activities varied as a function of their own gender and the identity of their interactional partners. Girls and boys preferred gender-typed activities (e.g., girls preferred feminine activities) when in solitary play but activity preferences changed across social contexts. Specifically, girls played significantly more with masculine activities when with male peers and boys played significantly more with feminine activities during interactions with teachers. Findings suggest that through social interactions with peers and teachers, children are exposed to a greater range of activities than what they experience when they play by themselves.
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Early androgens, activity levels and Toy choices of children in the second year of life
Gerianne Alexander & Janet Saenz
Hormones and Behavior, forthcoming
Abstract:
The hypothesis that stronger preferences for active play styles contribute to stronger preferences for male-typical toys was examined in 47 boys and 37 girls at 19-months of age using ambulatory monitoring technology (i.e., actigraphy) to measure activity levels during contact with male-typical, female-typical, and gender-neutral toys. Digit ratios and salivary testosterone levels were measured earlier in children at 3-4 months of age. There were no significant sex differences in digit ratios, salivary testosterone levels, or overall activity levels during toy play. In contrast, contact times showed large sex differences in infants' toy preferences. The within-sex comparisons showed that infant girls had significant preferences for female-typical toys over male-typical toys, whereas infant boys showed only a small preference for male-typical toys over female-typical toys. More male-typical digit ratios in early infancy predicted higher activity counts during toy play and less female-typical toy preferences in girls. However, in both sexes, activity levels were unrelated to toy preferences suggesting factors other than activity level preferences contribute to the early emergence of gender-linked toy preferences.
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2D:4D ratios predict hand grip strength (but not hand grip endurance) in men (but not in women)
Liana Hone & Michael McCullough
Evolution and Human Behavior, forthcoming
Abstract:
In humans, the ratio of the second digit to the fourth digit - the 2D:4D ratio - is a sexually dimorphic trait (men, on average, exhibit lower 2D:4D ratios than do women) that is influenced by prenatal testosterone exposure, but not by circulating testosterone levels in adulthood. Consequently, 2D:4D ratios are commonly used as indirect measures of prenatal testosterone exposure. Many studies have examined the associations of 2D:4D ratios with sexually dimorphic adaptations that are thought to be influenced by such exposure, including physical prowess. The existing literature, however, remains unclear as to (1) whether 2D:4D ratios are more closely linked to strength or to endurance; and (2) whether 2D:4D ratios are linked with physical prowess for both men and women. In 100 men and 122 women, the relationship of 2D:4D ratios with maximum voluntary contraction (MVC) scores (hand grip strength) and maximum endurance time (MET) scores (local muscular endurance) using a hand dynamometer was examined. Controlling for age, height, weight, and average digit length, we found that 2D:4D ratios significantly predicted MVC scores in men, but not in women. 2D:4D ratios did not significantly predict MET scores for either sex. These results suggest that prenatal testosterone exposure in this sample is significantly related to hand grip strength in men, but not in women (and to local muscular endurance in neither sex), and, therefore, that strength, rather than local muscular endurance, potentially drives the relationship between 2D:4D ratios and physical prowess.
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Gender differences in the incentive salience of adult and infant faces
Amanda Hahn et al.
Quarterly Journal of Experimental Psychology, forthcoming
Abstract:
Facial appearance can motivate behaviour and elicit activation of brain circuits putatively involved in reward. Gender differences have been observed for motivation to view beauty in adult faces - heterosexual women are motivated by beauty in general, while heterosexual men are motivated to view opposite-sex beauty alone. Although gender differences have been observed in sensitivity to infant cuteness, infant faces appear to hold equal incentive salience among men and women. In the present study, we investigated the incentive salience of attractiveness and cuteness in adult and infant faces, respectively. We predicted that, given alternative viewing options, gender differences would emerge for motivation to view infant faces. Heterosexual participants completed a "pay-per-view" key-press task, which allowed them to control stimulus duration. Gender differences were found such that infants held greater incentive salience among women, although both sexes differentiated infant faces based on cuteness. Among adult faces, men exerted more effort than women to view opposite-sex faces. These findings suggest that, contrary to previous reports, gender differences do exist in the incentive salience of infant faces as well as opposite-sex faces.
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Russell Toomey & Stephen Russell
Journal of Research on Adolescence, forthcoming
Abstract:
Sexual minority youth are at risk for negative school-based experiences and poor academic outcomes. Yet, little is known about their experiences in positive school-based contexts. Using the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health (1,214 sexual minority and 11,427 heterosexual participants), this study compared participation rates in, predictors of, and outcomes associated with three types of school-based extracurricular activities-sports, arts, and school clubs-by sexual orientation and gender. Findings revealed several significant sexual orientation and gender differences in participation rates in school-based sports, clubs, and arts activities. Furthermore, findings suggested that the outcomes associated with extracurricular activity involvement do not differ by sexual orientation and gender; however, predictors of participation in these domains varied across groups.
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The Gender Marketing of Toys: An Analysis of Color and Type of Toy on the Disney Store Website
Carol Auster & Claire Mansbach
Sex Roles, October 2012, Pages 375-388
Abstract:
The purpose of this study was to examine 1) the extent to which the gender marketing of toys on the Internet replicates findings of previous studies of the gendering of toys, and 2) the extent to which toys for "both boys and girls", a previously overlooked category of toys, share characteristics, such as color and type of toy, with toys marketed for "boys only" or for "girls only". The sample consisted of the 410 toys listed for boys and the 208 toys listed for girls, including 91 toys that appeared on both lists, on the English language U.S. Disney Store website. The marketing of toys on the Disney Store website is important not only because of the growth in e-commerce, but also because of this company's global domination of the children's entertainment industry. Tabular analysis and chi-square revealed that bold colored toys, predominantly red, black, brown, or gray toys, and those that were action figures, building toys, weapons, or small vehicles typified toys for "boys only" on this U.S. website. Pastel colored toys, predominantly pink or purple toys, and those that were dolls, beauty, cosmetics, jewelry, or domestic-oriented typified toys for "girls only". A majority of toys for "both boys and girls" were mostly "gender-neutral" in type, but they resembled toys for "boys only" in terms of their color palette, presumably to appeal to boys, who are less likely to cross gender lines than girls. The potential impact of the gendering of toys on individuals as well as limitations of this research and suggestions for future research are discussed.