Body image and eating disorder symptoms in sexual minority men: A test and extension of objectification theory.

On the basis of integrating objectification theory research with research on body image and eating problems among sexual minority men, the present study examined relations among sociocultural and psychological correlates of eating disorder symptoms with a sample of 231 sexual minority men. Results of a path analysis supported tenets of objectification theory with the sample. Specifically, findings were consistent with relations posited in objectification theory among sexual objectification experiences, internalization of cultural standards of attractiveness, body surveillance, body shame, and eating disorder symptoms. Within this set of positive relations, internalization of cultural standards of attractiveness partially mediated the link of sexual objectification experiences with body surveillance; body surveillance partially mediated the relation of internalization with body shame; and body shame partially mediated the relation of body surveillance with eating disorder symptoms. In addition to these relations, internalized homophobia was related to greater eating disorder symptoms through body shame, and recalled childhood harassment for gender nonconformity was linked with eating disorder symptoms through a positive series of relations involving internalization of cultural standards of attractiveness, body surveillance, and body shame. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Stigma, social context, and mental health: Lesbian and gay couples across the transition to adoptive parenthood.

This is the first study to examine change in depression and anxiety across the first year of adoptive parenthood in same-sex couples (90 couples: 52 lesbian, 38 gay male). Given that sexual minorities uniquely contend with sexual orientation-related stigma, this study examined how both internalized and enacted forms of stigma affect the mental health of lesbians and gay men during the transition to parenthood. In addition, the role of contextual support was examined. Higher perceived workplace support, family support, and relationship quality were related to lower depressive and anxious symptoms at the time of the adoption, and higher perceived friend support was related to lower anxiety symptoms. Lower internalized homophobia and higher perceived neighborhood gay-friendliness were related to lower depressive symptoms. Finally, individuals with high internalized homophobia who lived in states with unfavorable legal climates regarding gay adoption experienced the steepest increases in depressive and anxious symptoms. Findings have important implications for counselors working with sexual minorities, especially those experiencing the transition to parenthood. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Family-of-origin maltreatment, posttraumatic stress disorder symptoms, social information processing deficits, and relationship abuse perpetration.

In this study, the authors examined the interrelations among family-of-origin maltreatment variables, posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, social information processing deficits, and male-to-female psychological and physical intimate relationship abuse perpetration in adulthood among a community sample of 164 men and their partners. In bivariate analyses, higher family-of-origin childhood parental rejection was associated with the perpetration of psychological and physical abuse in adulthood, and childhood exposure to interparental violence was also associated with adult psychological abuse perpetration. Structural equation modeling analyses indicated that when childhood variables and other study variables were considered together, only childhood parental rejection was associated with the abuse perpetration outcomes, and these effects were indirect through PTSD symptoms and social information processing deficits. Results indicate a need for further investigation into the mechanisms accounting for the impact of early maltreatment on the development of abusive intimate relationship behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Internalized homophobia and relationship quality among lesbians, gay men, and bisexuals.

The authors examined the associations between internalized homophobia, outness, community connectedness, depressive symptoms, and relationship quality among a diverse community sample of 396 lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals. Structural equation models showed that internalized homophobia was associated with greater relationship problems both generally and among coupled participants independent of outness and community connectedness. Depressive symptoms mediated the association between internalized homophobia and relationship problems. This study improves present understandings of the association between internalized homophobia and relationship quality by distinguishing between the effects of the core construct of internalized homophobia and its correlates and outcomes. The findings are useful for counselors interested in interventions and treatment approaches to help LGB individuals cope with internalized homophobia and relationship problems. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Intimate partner abuse and PTSD symptomatology: Examining mediators and moderators of the abuse-trauma link.

Posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) has been linked to intimate partner abuse, physiological reactivity, and social support. The authors used structural equation modeling to test social support as a moderator and psychophysiological reactivity and anger as mediators of the relation between abuse and traumatic symptoms among a sample of women reporting psychological abuse, including women reporting both physical violence and no physical violence. Both physical and psychological abuse were related to PTSD symptoms. Whereas physical and psychological abuse were highly correlated, psychological abuse did not predict PTSD symptomatology over and above the effect due to physical assault. Psychophysiological reactivity and anger and fear displayed during an argument with the partner did not mediate the abuse?trauma link. Social support moderated the relation between psychological abuse and PTSD symptomatology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Posttraumatic stress symptoms mediate the relation between childhood sexual abuse and nonsuicidal self-injury.

Prior research consistently has shown a strong relation between childhood abuse and nonsuicidal self-injury (NSSI), yet it is unclear why this relation exists. The authors examined 2 specific posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptom clusters as potential mechanisms through which childhood abuse may be related to NSSI. Participants were 86 adolescents (78% female, 22% male; 73% Caucasian, 27% other races/ethnicities; mean age = 17.03 years, range = 12-19 years) who completed measures of childhood abuse, Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (4th ed.) PTSD symptoms, and NSSI. Analyses revealed a significant relation between childhood sexual abuse in particular and the presence and frequency of NSSI. Moreover, data supported a theoretical model in which PTSD reexperiencing and avoidance/numbing symptoms independently mediate this relation. Future research must test the temporal relation between childhood sexual abuse, PTSD symptoms, and NSSI and identify additional pathways to engagement in NSSI. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of disengagement coping with HIV risk on unprotected sex among HIV-negative gay men in New York City.

Objective: This study examined how disengagement coping with HIV risk mediated the association between internalized homophobia and unprotected anal intercourse (UAI) and how sexual encounters in public venues (public sex) and drug use moderated the association between disengagement coping and UAI among HIV-negative gay men. Disengagement coping included fatalistic beliefs about maintaining HIV-negative seronegative serostatus (fatalism), optimistic attitudes toward medical seriousness of HIV infection and reduced concern about HIV risk due to highly active anti-retroviral therapies (optimism), and negative affective states associated with sexual risk (anxiety). Design: A survey was conducted among 285 HIV-negative gay men at an HIV prevention counseling program in New York City. Main Outcome Measures: Sexual risk was defined as having had UAI with nonprimary partners in the past 6 months. Results: In addition to the positive association between internalized homophobia, disengagement coping, and UAI, fatalism mediated the association between internalized homophobia and UAI; and optimism mediated the association between anxiety and UAI. A significant moderation effect of public sex was found between fatalism and UAI. Conclusions: The findings highlight the importance of understanding disengagement coping as it affects sexual risk practices among HIV-negative gay men in the continuing epidemic. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Essential issues in working with lesbian and gay male youths.

Psychologists working with young gay men and lesbians may experience public and agency resistance based primarily on the confusion of moral and rational thinking and on homophobia. To work effectively with young lesbians and gay men, psychologists need to be relatively free of homophobia and knowledgeable about gay male and lesbian life-styles. Provision of developmental process information to the client is very useful. Internal and external homophobia, a lack of healthful role models, coming out to oneself and others, and AIDS (acquired immune deficiency syndrome) are among the most critical problems faced by young gay men and lesbians. Although a discussion of intervention techniques is beyond the scope of this article, bibliotherapy is briefly described as one effective intervention in that it provides necessary information to the client and it serves as a springboard for therapy. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Psychological trauma and schizotypal personality disorder.

Two studies examined the relation between psychological trauma and schizotypal symptoms. In Study 1, in which 1,510 adults completed telephone interviews, both childhood maltreatment and the experience of an injury or life-threatening event were significantly associated with schizotypal symptoms. In Study 2, in which 303 adults (oversampled for having elevated levels of schizotypal symptoms) completed extensive in-person assessments, both childhood maltreatment and meeting posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) Criterion A were significantly associated with schizotypal symptoms. The links between schizotypal symptoms and at least some forms of psychological trauma could not be fully accounted for by shared variance with antisocial and borderline personality disorders, absorption/dissociation, PTSD symptom severity, family history of psychotic disorder, or signs of neurodevelopmental disturbance (as indexed by minor physical anomalies and inconsistent hand use). Schizotypal symptoms were more strongly associated with childhood maltreatment among men than among women, whereas schizotypal symptoms were more strongly associated with PTSD Criterion A among women than among men. Finally, among men, the association between childhood maltreatment and schizotypal symptoms was moderated by signs of neurodevelopmental disturbance. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Posttraumatic stress disorder and physical health symptoms among women seeking help for relationship aggression.

This study examined associations between intimate partner aggression and physical health symptoms among a sample of help-seeking women experiencing relationship aggression (N = 388). Using a structural equation modeling framework, the authors found posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms to fully mediate the associations of both physical and psychological aggression with physical health symptoms. The influence of PTSD symptoms on physical health symptoms was partially mediated by anger/irritability. Results were consistent with studies from other trauma groups suggesting that PTSD is pivotal with respect to explaining the effects of trauma on health. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Relationship of childhood sexual, physical, and combined sexual and physical abuse to adult victimization and posttraumatic stress disorder

OBJECTIVE: Prior research has suggested that women who experience childhood sexual abuse are at increased risk for sexual victimization and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) in adulthood. However, previous studies have paid insufficient attention to the overlap of childhood sexual and physical abuse. In the present study we disentangled the separate and combined effects of childhood sexual and physical abuse by comparing groups of participants who reported contact childhood sexual abuse only (SA), sequelae of childhood physical abuse only (PA), combined childhood sexual and physical abuse (CA), or no child abuse (NA). METHOD: A sample of 475 female college students completed measures of sexual and physical abuse in childhood (before age 15) and adulthood (after age 15), PTSD and trauma symptoms, and demographic variables. Of these participants, 27 were assigned to the SA group, 53 to the PA group, 31 to the CA group, and 211 to the NA group. RESULTS: The highest rate of adult sexual and/or physical victimization was reported by the CA group, followed by the PA group, with lower rates reported by the SA and NA groups. Using adult victimization as a covariate, the analyses revealed that the CA group reported significantly higher rates of PTSD and trauma symptoms compared to the NA group. CONCLUSIONS: The results suggest that prior reports of differences in rates of adult victimization and PTSD between women who experienced childhood sexual abuse and women who did not may be attributable to the inclusion of participants with a history of combined childhood sexual and physical abuse in childhood sexual abuse groups. The importance of separating physical and combined forms of victimization from sexual abuse is discussed.     

Examining the relationship between multiple internalized oppressions and African American lesbian, gay, bisexual, and questioning persons' self-esteem and psychological distress.

[Correction Notice: An erratum for this article was reported in Vol 56(2) of Journal of Counseling Psychology (see record 2009-04542-008). The DOI was incorrect. The correct DOI is 10.1037/a0013317.] Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and questioning (LGBQ) persons come from diverse cultural groups with diverse racial and ethnic identities. However, most research on LGBQ persons has used primarily White samples, and most research on African Americans has used largely heterosexual samples. Thus, research has largely failed to attend to and investigate the complexity of African American LGBQ persons' experiences. This study examined the relations between multiple internalized oppressions and African American sexual minority persons' self-esteem and psychological distress. Results indicated that when examined together, internalized racism and internalized heterosexism (also known as internalized homophobia) were both significant negative predictors of self-esteem, but only internalized heterosexism was a unique positive predictor of psychological distress. The interaction of internalized racism and internalized heterosexism was not a significant predictor of self-esteem or psychological distress. Finally, the authors' findings indicate that self-esteem partially mediates the relationship between internalized heterosexism and psychological distress. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Victimization Over the Life Span: A Comparison of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Heterosexual Siblings.

Lifetime victimization was examined in a primarily European American sample that comprised 557 lesbian/gay, 163 bisexual, and 525 heterosexual adults. Lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) participants were recruited via LGB e-mail lists, periodicals, and organizations; these participants recruited 1 or more siblings for participation in the study (81% heterosexual, 19% LGB). In hierarchical linear modeling analyses, sexual orientation was a significant predictor of most of the victimization variables. Compared with heterosexual participants, LGB participants reported more childhood psychological and physical abuse by parents or caretakers, more childhood sexual abuse, more partner psychological and physical victimization in adulthood, and more sexual assault experiences in adulthood. Sexual orientation differences in sexual victimization were greater among men than among women. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Self-esteem, social support, internalized homophobia, and coping strategies of HIV+ gay men.

The relationship was examined between self-esteem, social support, internalized homophobia, and coping strategies used by gay men (N?=?89) who were positive for human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) and between the use of coping strategies and mood state. Multiple regressions were conducted with avoidant (escape avoidance, accepting responsibility) and proactive (seeking social support, planful problem solving) coping serving as criterion variables. Greater homophobia and less self-esteem predicted avoidant coping, whereas less homophobia and less time since diagnosis predicted proactive coping. Greater time since diagnosis, less avoidant coping, less homophobia, and greater self-esteem predicted better mood state and accounted for 50% of the total variance. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of parents' experiential avoidance and PTSD on adolescent disaster-related posttraumatic stress symptomatology.

Despite the importance of family context to adolescents' reactions following disaster, little research has examined the role of parents' functioning on adolescents' disaster-related posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms. Using data from 288 adolescents (ages 12 to 19 years) and 288 parents exposed to a series of severe tornadoes in a rural Midwestern community, this study tested a conceptual model of the interrelationships between individual and parental risk factors on adolescents' disaster-related PTSD symptoms using structural equation modeling. Results showed that the psychological process of experiential avoidance mediated the relationship between family disaster exposure and PTSD for both adolescents and their parents. Parents' PTSD symptoms independently predicted adolescents' PTSD symptoms. Further, parents' postdisaster functioning amplified the effects of adolescent experiential avoidance on adolescents' disaster-related PTSD symptoms. Findings highlight the importance of family context in understanding adolescents' postdisaster reactions. Clinical implications are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Machismo and Mexican American men: An empirical understanding using a gay sample.

Machismo continues to be a defining aspect of Mexican American men that informs a wide array of psychological and behavioral dimensions. Although strides have been made in this area of research, understanding of the role of this construct in the lives of gay men remains incomplete. Our purpose in this study was to gain a deeper understanding of machismo using a sample of Mexican American gay men. This study examined for the first time whether a 2-factor model of machismo previously validated with heterosexual, Mexican American men generalized to a sample of 152 gay men of similar ethnic background. Relations between machismo, sexual risk, and internalized homophobia were also explored. Confirmatory factor analysis supported the 2-factor model with the current sample. Results also indicated machismo as predicting internalized homophobia and as an index of risky sex. Limitations are presented and implications are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2011 APA, all rights reserved)     

Prior interpersonal trauma: The contribution to current PTSD symptoms in female rape victims.

The purpose of the current study was to disentangle the relationship of childhood sexual abuse and childhood physical abuse from prior adult sexual and physical victimization in predicting current posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms in recent rape victims. The participants were a community sample of 117 adult rape victims assessed within 1 month of a recent index rape for a history of child sexual abuse, child physical abuse, other adult sexual and physical victimization, and current PTSD symptoms. Results from path analyses showed that a history of child sexual abuse seems to increase vulnerability for adult sexual and physical victimization and appears to contribute to current PTSD symptoms within the cumulative context of other adult trauma. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Predicting PTSD symptoms in victims of violent crime: The role of shame, anger, and childhood abuse.

To examine the role of cognitive-affective appraisals and childhood abuse as predictors of crime-related posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, 157 victims of violent crime were interviewed within 1 month postcrime and 6 months later. Measures within 1 month postcrime included previous physical and sexual abuse in childhood and responses to the current crime, including shame and anger with self and others. When all variables were considered together, shame and anger with others were the only independent predictors of PTSD symptoms at 1 month, and shame was the only independent predictor of PTSD symptoms at 6 months when 1-month symptoms were controlled. The results suggest that both shame and anger play an important role in the phenomenology of crime-related PTSD and that shame makes a contribution to the subsequent course of symptoms. The findings are also consistent with previous evidence for the role of shame as a mediator between childhood abuse and adult psychopathology. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Symptomatology Among Partners of Men in Treatment for Relationship Abuse.

This longitudinal study examined posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms among current and former female partners (N=96) of men participating in a group treatment program for partner abuse perpetrators. Female partner probable PTSD rates, obtained during time points corresponding with pretreatment, posttreatment, and 6-month follow-up for the male clients, were 52%, 34%, and 29%, respectively. Psychological abuse exposure was more strongly and uniquely associated with PTSD symptoms than was physical abuse exposure. Among psychological abuse ratings, denigration, restrictive engulfment, and dominance/intimidation behaviors evidenced the strongest associations with PTSD symptoms. Findings from this study suggest the association between psychological abuse and PTSD is complex and multidetermined. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"Examining the relationship between multiple internalized oppressions and African American lesbian, gay, bisexual, and questioning persons’ self-esteem and psychological distress”: Correction.

Reports an error in "Examining the relationship between multiple internalized oppressions and African American lesbian, gay, bisexual, and questioning persons' self-esteem and psychological distress" by Dawn M. Szymanski and Arpana Gupta (Journal of Counseling Psychology, 2009[Jan], Vol 56[1], 110-118). The DOI was incorrect. The correct DOI is 10.1037/a0013317. (The following abstract of the original article appeared in record 2009-00624-002.) Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and questioning (LGBQ) persons come from diverse cultural groups with diverse racial and ethnic identities. However, most research on LGBQ persons has used primarily White samples, and most research on African Americans has used largely heterosexual samples. Thus, research has largely failed to attend to and investigate the complexity of African American LGBQ persons' experiences. This study examined the relations between multiple internalized oppressions and African American sexual minority persons' self-esteem and psychological distress. Results indicated that when examined together, internalized racism and internalized heterosexism (also known as internalized homophobia) were both significant negative predictors of self-esteem, but only internalized heterosexism was a unique positive predictor of psychological distress. The interaction of internalized racism and internalized heterosexism was not a significant predictor of self-esteem or psychological distress. Finally, the authors' findings indicate that self-esteem partially mediates the relationship between internalized heterosexism and psychological distress. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)