Gender,sexual orientation,and disordered eating

Abstract

While most patients with bulimia nervosa are heterosexual women, a significant number of men with bulimia nervosa are gay males, suggesting that gay men, more than heterosexual men, may be at risk for developing eating disorders. This study compared the food-related attitudes and behaviors of heterosexual men and women in contrast with those of lesbians and gay men, attempting to find whether one's sexual orientation may contribute to differential risk. Two thousand employees were randomly selected from a large health care corporation, of whom 805 returned a completed questionnaire including Stunkard and Messick's (1985) Dietary Restraint and Disinhibition Scales. A stratified random sample was drawn to include demographically comparable groups of 25 lesbians, 50 gay men, 75 heterosexual women, and 75 heterosexual men. Women were less satisfied with their appearance at their present weight and expressed more restraint and more negative feelings after bingeing than did men. Heterosexual women were most dissatisfied with their weight, although heterosexual men were more objectively overweight. Gay men and heterosexual women were similar in disordered eating patterns and disinhibition, contrasting with lesbians and heterosexual men.     

Sexual jealousy in young women and men: Aggressive responsiveness to partner and rival

Two studies compared judgments about aggressive components of jealous reactions to the partner and to the rival, specifically, emotional (anger), cognitive (blame), and behavioral components. The first study randomly assigned 172 young women and men to two questionnaires on jealous reactions to mild (flirting) and serious (cheating) transgressions. One questionnaire assessed standards for appropriate behavior and perceptions of how people usually react. The second questionnaire asked people to report how they had reacted or, if not experienced with a sexual transgression, how they would react. The second study asked 113 people to imagine a situation in which they knew their partner had been sexually unfaithful. There were three major findings that were interpreted in the context of courtship, a time when attention is focused on the qualities of one's potential long-term partner. First, the jealous individual's anger and blame were focused more on the partner than the rival. Second, mean anger and blame scores given the partner were well matched. In contrast, the rival received more anger and blame than deemed appropriate and considerably more anger than blame. These data suggest that, in the context of courtship, a rival is not simply a competitor. Third, men were more inclined to think about aggressive action against the rival but women were more emotionally and behaviorally reactive to the rival. The latter result implies that, in the context of competition for an established romantic partner, a rival is more salient for women than for men. © 1993 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Religious belief,age, and sexual orientation on attributions of younger and older gay and heterosexual men

Using 4 vignettes and 20 response items, this exploratory study investigated attributions about older or younger gay or heterosexual men with a history of multiple sex partners, substance abuse, and legal problems. The character is diagnosed with a terminal illness and two options for care: no treatment or an aggressive treatment protocol with a small chance of recovery. When controlling for respondents’ (N?=?324) religious identification, frequency of attendance at religious services, and ethno-cultural identification, a General Linear Model was significant (F?=?57.014, df?=?20, p?<?.001). Differences in the vignette responses centred on perceptions of quality of life, the character's lifestyle, and suicide.     

Homonegativism and sexual orientation matching in counseling supervision

The present study examined the effects of sexual orientation matching and supervisory role on supervisory style and satisfaction with homonegativism as a covariate. Supervisory style significantly correlated with satisfaction for supervisors when trainees were heterosexual but not when trainees were lesbian, gay, or bisexual. Regardless of supervisor or trainee sexual orientation, the supervisors’ homonegativism significantly negatively correlated with trainees’ satisfaction and ratings of supervisors’ style. No significant differences in supervisory style were found among supervision dyads cross-matched for sexual orientation while controlling for homonegativism.     

Attitude toward Christianity,sexual orientation,and parental religiosity in a sample of Italian adolescents

Literature suggests that several demographic variables are linked with religiosity in adolescence, such as gender, age and parental religiosity. The sample consisted of 910 young people (53% female) between 14 and 19 years of age, attending secular secondary schools in Rome, Italy. They self-identified as heterosexual adolescents (91.6%), and lesbian/gay (LG) adolescents (8.4%). High scores of positive attitudes toward God, Jesus, the Bible, prayer and church were associated with female gender, higher father’s religiosity, and higher mother’s religiosity, but not with age of the participants. As expected, heterosexual orientation was associated with a more positive attitude toward Christianity, controlling for sex, age, and parental religiosity.     

Men's likelihood of sexual aggression: the influence of alcohol,sexual arousal,and violent pornography

Previous research findings have indicated that both alcohol intoxication and violent pornography exposure may contribute to increased sexual aggression by men. This study used an experimental paradigm to examine the effects of a moderate alcohol dose, alcohol‐related beliefs, and victim response on men's self‐reported likelihood of committing sexual aggression. A community sample of male social drinkers (N=84) participated in an experiment in which they read an eroticized rape depiction after completing an alcohol administration protocol. The stimulus story varied whether the victim, who initially expressed unwillingness to engage in sexual activity, expressed pleasure or distress in response to the man physically forcing her to perform several explicit sex acts. A path analytic model illustrated that participants' self‐reported likelihood of behaving like the sexual aggressor in the story was directly related to their own sexual arousal. Heightened sexual arousal was reported by participants who had consumed alcohol, those who read the victim‐pleasure story, and those who believed that drinking women are sexually vulnerable. Results suggest that sexual arousal to violent pornography, as influenced by acute alcohol intoxication and other factors, may be an important component of men's perceptions of their own sexual aggression likelihood. Aggr. Behav. 32:581–589, 2006. © 2006 Wiley‐Liss, Inc.     

Hostile masculinity,sexual aggresion,and gender-biased domineeringness in conversations

This study assessed the ability of certain variables to predict which men would be more domineering in conversations with a woman and/or with a man. The variables included men's self-reported sexually aggressive behavior and several components comprising a personality profile labeled “Hostile Masculinity.” As expected, these variables successfully predicted domineering behavior toward the female but not toward the male. These findings supported theories hypothesizing that men's desire to control women and men's antisocial behavior toward them are due to specific rather than to general factors (i. e., evolutionary and feminist theorizing). © 1994 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Cognitive and physiological indices of sexual arousal in homosexual,bisexual, and heterosexual males

Cognitive and physiological indices of sexual arousal were investigated utilizing groups of homosexual, bisexual, and heterosexual subjects (ten subjects per group) who were presented both homosexual and heterosexual films and slides. The results indicated that both homosexual and heterosexual subjects were able to estimate accurately their degree of erection to the erotic stimuli. Bisexual subjects, however, showed a large discrepancy between the magnitude of actual erection and verbally reported estimates of penile tumescence. In terms of physiological arousal, the erectile responses of the homosexual and bisexual groups were indistinguishable, a finding which questions the existence of male bisexuality as distinct from homosexuality or as a different sexual orientation in males.     

Risk factors for sexual aggression in young men: an expansion of the confluence model

There are many explanations for high rates of sexual aggression, with no one theory dominating the field. This study extends past research by evaluating an expanded version of the confluence model with a community sample. One-hour audio computer-assisted self-interviews were completed by 470 young single men. Using structural equation analyses, delinquency, hostile masculinity, impersonal sex, and misperception of women's sexual cues were positively and directly associated with the number of sexually aggressive acts committed. There were also indirect effects of childhood victimization, personality traits associated with subclinical levels of psychopathy, and alcohol consumption. These findings demonstrate the usefulness of the confluence model, as well as the importance of broadening this theory to include additional constructs.     

Antecedents of sexual and non-sexual aggression in young Singaporean men

This study investigated factors that have previously been implicated in male sexual aggression towards women, using a structural equation modelling approach to assess their relative influence on sexually coercive behaviours in young Singaporean men. Variables were classified under three major headings: childhood experience, personality, and attitudes facilitating violence. Non-sexual aggression against women was included in order to investigate its relationship to sexual aggression as well as its own causal antecedents. Results suggest that sexual and non-sexual aggression have different antecedents, and confirm the primacy of sexual variables (sexual experience, child sexual abuse) as antecedents to sexual aggression. Contrary to the hypothesis that sexual aggression is primarily aggressive in motivation, belligerence exerted only indirect effects on sexual aggression. Attitudinal variables (e.g. attitudes supportive of sexual aggression) contributed modestly to sexual but not to non-sexual aggression. Antisociality exerted indirect effects on both sexual aggression (via sexual experience and acceptance of interpersonal violence) and on non-sexual aggression (via belligerence). Parental violence contributed exclusively to non-sexual aggression. Finally, some cross-cultural differences in sexually coercive behaviour are highlighted.     

Jealousy in response to online and offline infidelity: the role of sex and sexual orientation

The goal of the present study was to examine the emotional content and intensity of jealousy in response to different types of infidelity (both online and offline unfaithful partner behaviors) among Dutch heterosexuals (n = 191) and homosexuals (n = 121). Based on previous research (Dijkstra, Barelds & Groothof, 2010), participants were presented with ten jealousy‐evoking situations following which the intensity of two different emotional aspects of jealousy was assessed (betrayal/anger and threat). Results showed that scenarios describing a partner having sex with someone else or falling in love with someone else primarily evoked betrayal/anger‐related jealousy, whereas scenarios describing an emotional connection between a partner and someone else primarily evoked threat‐related jealousy. In addition, women experienced more jealousy than men in response to scenarios in which a partner engaged in potentially extra‐dyadic online (but not offline) behaviors. Finally, compared to same‐sex heterosexuals, homosexuals, both male and female, responded with less intense jealousy to scenarios describing a partner having sex with someone else. Implications for the treatment of (internet) infidelity are discussed.     

Coming out in community psychology: personal narrative and disciplinary change

Community psychology as a discipline has not focused its attention on the lives of lesbians, gay men, and bisexual (LGB) people, despite the field's potential to collaborate with this population in dealing with the many psychosocial challenges they face. Professional and personal barriers that community psychologists must confront conducting research and developing interventions with the LGB community are described. Community psychology work with LGB communities is often a coming out experience for LGB community psychologists, and a questioning of sexual orientation fot heterosexual community psychologists. Conceptual analyses and empirical reports are presented that exemplify how community psychologist can contribute to decreasing the pervasive stigma LGB people face. The use of an ecological model, a focus on the development and evaluation of preventive interventions, and a recognition of the diversity within the LGB population are core perspectives that can direct future work by community psychologists. Issues ranging from testing ways to empower young LGB people to analyses of the impact of the sociopolitical climate on LGB lives demonstrate the rich range of contributions community psychologists can make.     

The effects of alcohol intoxication and sexual interest on men's sexual persistence and hostility in a dating simulation

Perpetrators of sexual assault are often intoxicated; however, few experimental studies evaluate alcohol's “in the moment” effects on sexual aggression. This study extends past theory and research by examining the acute effects of alcohol on men's decisions about how to respond to sexual refusals in a dating simulation. Men (N = 62) ages 21–29 were randomly assigned to consume alcohol (target breath alcohol level 0.080%) or no alcohol. Participants were encouraged to talk to a simulated woman and act as they would on an actual date. They made choices from a list which included nonsexual and sexual options. The female agent was programmed to engage in some sexual activities but refuse others. Refusals became more intense if participants persisted. Negative binomial regression analysis was used to test a path analytic model. As predicted, participants' self‐reported desire to have sex was positively associated with choosing more consensual sexual activities during the simulation (i.e., activities in which the woman willingly engaged). Consensual sexual activities were positively associated with the number of times participants persisted after the woman refused. Alcohol moderated this relationship such that it was stronger for intoxicated men than sober men. The more sexual refusals participants received, the more hostile verbal comments they made to the woman. Contrary to our predictions, this relationship was not moderated by alcohol condition. Because participants had multiple opportunities to escalate their aggression or desist, this paradigm provides new insights into the mechanisms through which intoxication enhances the likelihood of sexual aggression in dating situations.

     

Inverse gender gap in Germany: social dominance orientation among men and women

Across cultures studies show that men score higher on social dominance orientation than women. This gender gap is considered invariant, but conflicting explanations are discussed: Some authors refer to evolutionary psychology and perceive the gender gap to be driven by sociobiological factors. Other authors argue that social roles or gender-stereotypical self-construals encouraged by intergroup comparisons are responsible for attitudinal gender difference. In Study 1 we analyzed sex differences in social dominance orientation in three German probability surveys (each n > 2300). Unexpectedly, the analyses yielded an inverse gender gap with higher values for social dominance orientation in women than in men. Interactions with age, education, political conservatism, and perceived inequity indicated that the inverse gender gap can be mainly attributed to older, conservative, (and less educated) respondents, and those who feel they get their deserved share. In Study 2 we replicated the well-known gender gap with men scoring higher than women in social dominance orientation among German students. Results are interpreted on the basis of biocultural interaction, which integrates the sociobiological, social role, and self-construal perspectives. Our unusual findings seem to reflect a struggle for status by members of low-status groups who consider group-based hierarchy the most promising option to improve their status. While younger women take advantage of a relational, feminine self-construal that leads to lower social dominance orientation in young women than in young men, older women are supposed to profit from an agentic self-construal that results in stronger social dominance orientation values. Specific characteristics of the culture in Germany seem to promote this strategy. Here, we discuss the female ideal of the national socialist period and the agentic female social role in the post-war era necessitated by the absence of men.     

Salivary testosterone and self-report aggressive and pro-social personality characteristics in men and women

Measures of salivary testosterone and the personality dimensions of aggression and pro-social behavior were obtained in 306 (155 male and 151 female) university students. Each participant provided two samples of saliva and completed ten self-report personality scales from multiple inventories. A factor analysis of the personality scales produced two factors, an aggression factor and a pro-social behavior factor. Men averaged five times the amount of salivary testosterone as women (99 pg/ml vs. 18.5 pg/ml) and rated themselves as more aggressive and less nurturant. Within each sex, testosterone was positively correlated with aggression and negatively correlated with pro-social personality. Structural equation modelling analyses suggested that a direct effect model best described the relationship between salivary testosterone and the latent personality dimensions of aggression and pro-social behavior. © 1996 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Relative contributions of aggression and reproduction to behavioral endocrinology

Reproductive activity has been the behavior of choice for research in behavioral endocrinology. Why this is so and the consequences to the study of aggression and to behavioral endocrinology in general are explored.     

Hormonal regulation of aggression: Evidence for a relationship among genotype,receptor binding,and behavioral sensitivity to androgen and estrogen

Gonadectomized male mice from the CF-1, CFW, and CD-1 strains were exposed to different androgens (testosterone, dihydrotestosterone, methyltrienolone) or estrogens (estradiol, diethylstilbestrol) and tested for aggressive behavior. Genetic differences in sensitivity to the aggression-promoting property of the various treatments were found. CF-1 mice responded to either androgenic or estrogenic stimulation, CFW males were most sensitive to the estrogen treatments, while CD-1 males responded to androgen but were relatively insensitive to the aggression-promoting property of estrogens. These data suggest that there may be multiple aggression-activating systems and that the functional pathway varies with genotype. Additional experiments examined whether receptor binding in the hypothalamic-preoptic-septal region was related to the genetic differences in behavioral responsiveness. The binding data suggested that sensitivity to the aggression-promoting property of estrogens was related to either a higher concentration of binding sites or to higher affinity binding between estrogen and its receptor. A systematic relationship between dihydrotestosterone binding and behavioral responsiveness to androgen was not found.     

Aggressive disposition,alcohol, and aggression

This study investigated the effect of aggressive disposition on intoxicated and non-intoxicated aggressive behavior. Prior aggressiveness was measured with a structured questionnaire. Based on a bipartite split of scores, 28 subjects were assigned to the high aggressor group, and 29 to the low aggressor group. Subjects in both disposition groups were then randomly assigned to either a drunk or sober condition, and participated in a competitive reaction time task involving the administering and receiving of electric shocks to/from a fictitious opponent under conditions of high and low provocation. Aggression was defined as shock level intensity delivered to the sham opponent. When highly provoked, sober high aggressors were significantly more aggressive than low aggressors, thus validating the measure of aggressive disposition. When intoxicated, highly provoked individuals in both the high and low aggressive disposition groups attained equal levels of aggression. It was low aggressors who responded to escalated provocation with a significant increase in aggression responding when intoxicated. These results lend support to the notion that a pharmacological effect of alcohol can increase aggressive behaviour. Aggr. Behav. 23:11–18, 1997. © 1997 Wiley-Liss, Inc.     

Prenatal sex hormones and human aggression: A review,and new data on progestogen effects

We review data on aggression from psychological studies of offspring from two categories of abnormal prenatal sex hormone conditions: 1) endocrine disorders, and 2) hormone treatment during pregnancy. Both sources yield trends and some significant findings that are in line with the animal research based expectations of a positive androgen effect on the development of aggressive behavior. However, the available studies have many methodological weaknesses, and the results are not strong and open to interpretations by factors other than prenatal hormones. Potential modes of prenatal sex hormone effects are also discussed. In the second part, we present data on 13 boys and 15 girls who had been exposed to medroxyprogesterone acetate (MPA) in utero and on 28 closely pair-matched controls. The double-blind follow-up examination at age 9 to 14 years included questionnaires, half-structured interviews with mother and child separately, and a battery of psychological tests. Interviews were tape-recorded and rated by two independent raters. The results show weak but consistent differences, with the MPA-exposed subjects being lower in self- or mother-reported aggression than the controls. The results cannot be accounted for by differences in aggression-related rearing styles. However, the influence of pregnancy pathology cannot be totally excluded. We conclude that the available data are compatible with the hypothesis that prenatal sex hormones influence the development of human aggressive behavior. More sophisticated research studies are needed, however, to demonstrate hormonal effects and their mechanism of action in a reliable and valid fashion.