Trans,gender diverse and non-binary adult experiences of social support: A systematic quantitative literature review

Abstract

Background: Trans, gender diverse and non-binary (TGDNB) adults experience significant health disparities relative to their cisgender peers. While social support is a known health-protective factor within the general population, no systematic reviews of TGDNB experiences of social support exist.

Aim: To systematically review prior research of social support for TGDNB adults. We sought to assess the defining characteristics of the research, the participants and the research findings, mapping emerging trends across disciplines.

Methods: Six electronic databases (PubMed, MEDLINE, CINAHL, Web of Science, LGBT Life and PsycNet) were searched for literature pertaining to TGDNB adults, social support, and health or well-being published in the past decade.

Results: The findings illustrate a predominance of USA-based quantitative research that measures social support of friends, family and a singular intimate partner. The majority of participants were white, binary-identified transgender women and TGDNB people living in metropolitan settings. Social support was commonly reported as a protective factor, with TGDNB peer support the most frequently reported correlate of health and well-being for TGDNB adults.

Discussion: The results suggest standardized inventories do not capture the emic nature of social support for TGDNB adults. A key opportunity lies in an inductive, hypothesis-forming approach to the study of what is socially supportive for TGDNB adults. In turn, this knowledge will enable the appropriate measurement, implementation and interpretation of social support studies.     

Queer ethics and fostering positive mindsets toward non-binary gender,genderqueer, and gender ambiguity

Abstract

Background: Alongside the growth in visibility of gender identities and presentations such as genderqueer, non-binary and gender neutral, there is ridicule and backlash in wider culture, as well as more subtle invisibility and misgendering. While there exists social psychology research about negative and positive attitudes to trans people, this is restricted to those whose gender identity is at odds with their sex assigned at birth, and who identify with binary gender. Social psychology has extended to the more subtle workings of transphobia, but there is little consideration of the distinctiveness of attitudes and responses to those whose genders cannot be attributed in binary ways, and thus how these may be challenged.

Methods: In keeping with the methods of social theory, this article brings together a diverse and complementary range of conceptual fields in new ways to diagnose a novel cause and solution to these negative attitudes. Using queer theory, feminist ethics, and empirical studies in post-tolerance sociology and social psychology, it argues that negative social responses to genderqueerness stem not only from overt prejudice in the form of transphobia but from binary genderism, the conviction that there are only two genders.

Results and conclusion: This article proposes fostering greater diversity-literacy and empathy for difference as a more effective approach than minority identity-based ‘prejudice reduction’ approaches. A norm-critical approach to deconstructing gender norms is proposed, thus fostering positive attitudes to genderqueerness. It is therefore demonstrated how best to foster enabling social contexts for genderqueerness, with positive implications for the physical and social health and wellbeing of gender variant people. This approach can be applied in organizations, institutions, and by service providers who interact with genderqueer individuals, in that it can inform a shift to approaching diversity positively in ways that are not restricted to pre-determined and binary identity categories.     

Social anxiety,disengagement coping,and alcohol-use behaviors among adolescents

Background and Objectives: Although research indicates that social anxiety (SA) is associated with problematic drinking, few studies have examined these relations among adolescents, and all alcohol-related assessments have been retrospective. Socially anxious youth may be at risk to drink in an effort to manage negative affectivity, and a proclivity toward disengagement coping (e.g. avoidance of aversive stimuli) may enhance the desire to drink and learning of coping-related use. Design: Adding to research addressing adolescent SA and alcohol use, the current study examined (1) proportional drinking motives (subscale scores divided by the sum of all subscales), (2) current desire to drink in a socially relevant environment (introduction to research laboratory), and (3) the indirect effect of retrospectively reported disengagement in social stress contexts on proportional coping motives and desire to drink. Method: Participants were 70 community-recruited adolescents who reported recent alcohol use. Level of SA, disengagement coping, drinking motives, and desire to drink following laboratory introduction were assessed. Results: Proclivity toward disengagement in prior socially stressful contexts accounted for significant variance in the positive relations between SA and both proportional coping motives and current desire to drink. Conclusions: These data complement existing work. Continued efforts in building developmentally sensitive models of alcohol use are needed.     

Prepubertal social gender transitions: What we know; what we can learn—A view from a gender affirmative lens

ABSTRACT

?Background: This article provides a review and commentary on social transition of gender-expansive prepubertal youth, analyzing risks, and benefits based on a synthesis of research and clinical observation, highlighting controversies, and setting forth recommendations, including the importance of continued clinical research.

Methods: This article involved: (1) a review and critique of the WPATH Standards of Care 7th edition guidelines on social transition; (2) a review and synthesis of empirical research on social transition in prepubertal children; (3) a discussion of clinical practice observations; (4) a discussion of continuing controversies and complexities involving early social transition; (5) a discussion of risks and benefits of social transition; and (6) conclusions and recommendations based upon the above.

Results: Results suggest that at this point research is limited and that some of the earliest research on young gender-expansive youth is methodologically questionable and has not been replicated. Newer research suggests that socially transitioned prepubertal children are often well adjusted, a finding consistent with clinical practice observations. Analysis of both emerging research and clinical reports reveal evidence of a stable transgender identity surfacing in early childhood.

Discussion: The authors make recommendations to support social transitions in prepubertal gender-expansive children, when appropriate, as a facilitator of gender health, defined as a child's opportunity to live in the gender that feels most authentic, acknowledging that there are limitations to our knowledge, and ongoing research is essential.     

The influence of parents,older siblings,and non-parental care on infant development at nine months of age

BackgroundThe majority of research examining the influence of social environment on early child development suggests benefits to two-parent households, but contradictory evidence for the effects of siblings. The aims of the present study were to examine the influence of the child's proximal social environment, and the effects of interactions between socioeconomic status and social environment on developmental outcomes.MethodsPrimary caregivers of a representative sample of 10,748 nine-month-old infants in Ireland completed the Ages and Stages Questionnaire and provided information on social environment. Adjustment was made for infant and maternal characteristics, household income, and area where the child was living at the time of the study. Further analyses tested for interactions between social environment and household income.ResultsBinary logistic regressions indicated no effects for number of parents in the household. However, the presence of siblings in the household was a consistent predictor of failing to reach milestones in communication, gross motor, problem-solving, and personal-social development. Furthermore, there was a gradient of increasing likelihood of failing in gross motor, problem-solving, and personal-social development with increasing numbers of siblings. Care by a grandparent decreased the likelihood of failing in communication and personal-social development.ConclusionsThese findings do not support the majority of research that finds positive benefits for two-parent households. Similarly, the findings suggest limited effects for non-parental care. However, the observed negative effects of siblings support both the confluence and resource dilution models of sibling effect. Examination of follow-up data may elucidate current findings.     

The utility of modern theories of intergroup bias for research on antecedents to team identification

ObjectivesMuch of the literature on team identification has focused on assessing outcomes to the construct rather than on motives for its development and maintenance. This article comments on research and theorising in social psychology that can contribute to an understanding of motives for team identification.DesignA review and comment on the application of theories of intergroup bias to the study of team identification.MethodFour modern theories of intergroup bias—social identity theory, optimal distinctiveness theory, uncertainty-identity theory, and terror management theory—are overviewed. Potential applications of these theories to future research on motives for team identification are also offered.ResultsIt is argued that the four theories share similar tenets with reference to motives for social identity. A programme of research that evaluates these motives in the context of sport team identification is offered.ConclusionsIt is hoped that this paper will stimulate research into precursors of team identification and that the findings from such research will help sport teams and governing bodies to promote or control certain types of spectator behaviour.     

Direct and interactive effects of parent,friend and schoolmate drinking on alcohol use trajectories

Objective: This study considered the unique and interactive roles of social norms from parents, friends and schools in predicting developmental trajectories of adolescent drinking and intoxication.

Design and outcome measures: Using data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health, which followed adolescents (N = 18,921) for 13 years, we used discrete mixture modelling to identify unique developmental trajectories of drinking and of intoxication. Next, multilevel multinomial regression models examined the role of alcohol-related social norms from parents, friends and schoolmates in the prediction of youths’ trajectory group membership.

Results: Results demonstrated that social norms from parents, friends and schoolmates that were favourable towards alcohol use uniquely predicted drinking and intoxication trajectory group membership. Interactions between social norms revealed that schoolmate drinking played an important moderating role, frequently augmenting social norms from parents and friends. The current findings suggest that social norms from multiple sources (parents, friends and schools) work both independently and interactively to predict longitudinal trajectories of adolescent alcohol use.

Conclusions: Results highlight the need to identify and understand social messages from multiple developmental contexts in efforts to reduce adolescent alcohol consumption and alcohol-related risk-taking.     

Interpreting coronary-prone behaviour: Relationships among type a behaviour,hopelessness, anger management and social contact

Abstract

Two approaches to interpreting relationships among psychosocial risk factors for coronary heart disease are contrasted: the profile approach which focuses on predictive validity and confounding; and the theoretical approach which emphasises internal validity. These approaches are explored by applying them to a set of correlations found among Type A behaviour, hopelessness, anger management and social contact in a female sample. Type A behaviour was positively correlated with hopelessness and with anger expression, whilst anger management was related to the availability of social contact. The relationships between Type A, anger expression and hopelessness also appeared to be moderated by degree of social contact. These results are interpreted from the profile perspective and from that of Price's cognitive social learning theory. The relative merits of the two approaches are considered and a case is made for encouraging more theoretically based research on coronary-prone behaviour.     

A qualitative investigation exploring the motivational climate in early career sports participants: Coach,parent and peer influences on sport motivation

ObjectivesThe objectives of this research were a) to explore the applicability of ‘motivational climate’ research to early career athletes under the age of twelve, b) to re-examine the concept of ‘motivational climate’ in the light of recent scientific developments, and c) to concurrently study the influences of coaches, parents and peers on athletic motivation.Design and MethodUsing a qualitative design, 40 participants (7–11 years of age) from various sports were interviewed in focus groups, using a semi-structured format to investigate the roles played by coaches, parents, and peers in influencing athlete motivation. An inductive content analysis was conducted to determine which behaviours among these social agents influenced key motivational outcomes.FindingsThe analysis indicated that young athletes experience a motivational climate which shows consistencies with existing models of motivation; suggesting this population is worthy of further study. The influences of coaches related most strongly to the manner in which they perform their roles of instruction and assessment, whereas parents' influences were most salient in terms of the way they support the child's participation and learning. Both parents and coaches exerted influences through their leadership styles, affective responses and pre-performance behaviours. Peers influenced participants' motivation through competitive behaviours, collaborative behaviours, evaluative communications and through their social relationships.ConclusionsThis study provides an insight into the motivational climate experienced by young athletes and helps to delineate the different roles of social agents in influencing their motivation at this early stage of development.     

Attribution in sport psychology: seeking congruence between theory,research and practice

ObjectivesThis paper urges revision of the way attributions are conceptualised, investigated, and applied in sport psychology. There has been a recent decline in attribution research in sport psychology, despite the generally accepted relevance of attributions in applied settings. In seeking closer links between attribution theory, research, and practice, we argue that there is a mismatch between research and practice in sport psychology.MethodsRelevant literature is reviewed and theoretical arguments offered within seven sub-headings: attribution theory in practice; linking consistency, distinctiveness, and consensus information to attribution dimensions; controllability as the primary attribution dimension; the generalisability of controllability; assessing attributions; implications for practice; and the social context.Results and conclusionsResearch within sport psychology should focus on the central issue of how controllability attributions generalise across time, situations, and people. Measurement should reflect this approach to research within the field of attributions and, to this end, researchers might consider using a variety of quantitative and qualitative methods of inquiry. Practitioners should use consistency, distinctiveness, and consensus information to challenge clients' attributional thinking and help them attain adaptive perceptions of controllability. Practitioners should also help clients to be their own psychologist. Future research and practice should include a consideration of the social context in which attributions are shaped.     

Fear-then-relief,legitimizing a paltry contribution,and charity

IntroductionThe compliance literature describes multiple techniques of social influence. Some of them have proven effective at inducing compliance in the charity domain. One such technique is referred to as legitimizing a paltry contribution (LPC). There are theoretical grounds on which it can be assumed that this technique will be particularly effective in conditions in which a person feels relief from fear.ObjectiveThe aim of the study was to examine whether people who experience fear-relief sequences are more susceptible to the LPC technique than those in a neutral emotional state.MethodIn two field studies, some people experienced relief from fear, while others remained in a neutral emotional state. The participants were then asked to donate to a worthy cause. A request was formulated either in a standard way, or with the phrase “even a penny will help”.ResultsThe two experiments yielded consistent results. It turned out that the LPC technique was particularly effective when participants had experienced relief from fear.ConclusionsThe aforementioned pattern of results is important for the development of theoretical knowledge about techniques of social influence, and has direct practical implications.     

Social game theory: Preferences,perceptions, and choices

ABSTRACT

Building on classic game theory, psychologists have explored the effects of social preferences and expectations on strategic behaviour. Ordinary social perceivers are sensitive to additional contextual factors not addressed by game theory and its recent psychological extensions. We review the results of a research programme exploring how observers judge “players” (i.e., individuals making strategic decisions in social dilemmas) on the dimensions of competence and morality. We explore social perception in several well-known dilemmas, including the prisoner’s dilemma, the volunteer’s dilemma, and the trust dilemma. We also introduce a novel self-presentational dilemma. In research conducted over a decade and a half, we have found that judgements of competence are sensitive to both players’ choices and the dilemma’s (expected and actual) outcomes. In contrast, judgements of morality respond strongly to players’ behaviour and little else. We discuss how these social-perceptual patterns might affect expectations, preferences, and strategic choices.     

Testing attitudes,social desirability and behavioral regulations as moderators of implicit-explicit exercise discrepancies: A replication study in Iranian students

IntroductionThere is mixed evidence regarding moderators of the relationship between implicitly and explicitly measured constructs. This study examined this issue with evaluations of exercise relative to health or appearance in a sample of Iranian adolescents. Investigaing automatic associations and reflective constructs might provide important implications for developing interventions targeting exercise behavior in a population with different cultural, social, and economic barriers to exercise than European or North American adolescents.MethodsParticipants were 471 students enrolled in grades 9 to 12, of whom 269 (54.9%) were female. Behavioral regulations, explicit attitudes, and social desirability were investigated as possible moderators. All students completed questionnaire measures of physical activity behavior, attitudes, social desieality and behavioral regulation. They also completed two Go/No Go Association tasks to measure automatic associations of exercise with health and apperarance.ResultsAttitude was a significant moderator of discrepancies between automatic associations of exercise with health and health motives. Interjected regulation moderated implicit-explicit appearance discrepancies. Participants with low social desirability and negative automatic appearance associations had the highest appearance motivation.ConclusionsParticipants focused on the potential of achieving positive health outcomes of exercise rather than physical appearance outcomes, which differs from research from other countries. It is possible that, health was strongly linked with exercise by the pervasive societal pressures in Iran to have a healthy body.     

Self-efficacy,motivation, and performance

Abstract

This article discusses the relation of self-efficacy to motivation and performance in cognitive and sport domains. Self-efficacy refers to one's beliefs about accomplishing a task and can influence choice of activities. effort, persistence. and achievement. People enter activities with varying levels of self-efficacy derived from prior experience, personal qualities, and social support. As they work on tasks they acquire information about how well they are doing. This information influences their self-efficacy for continued learning and performance. Research is described in which interventions involving models, goal setting, and feedback, were employed to affect self-efficacy. Regardless of domain, research shows that self-efficacy helps to predict motivation and performance. and studies testing causal models highlight the important role played by self-efficacy. Suggestions for future research are given, along with implications of theory and research for education and training.     

Self-compassion,social rank,and psychological distress in athletes of varying competitive levels

BackgroundSelf-Compassion may be seen as a concept contrary to the aims of athletes engaged in competitive sport. This could be accentuated at more elite levels, where athletes may view concepts like self-criticism and self-judgement as more important for improvement.ObjectivesThe current study aimed to better understand how athletes of different competitive levels (from social to international) relate to concepts of self-compassion. Further, we aimed to explore how factors relating to social rank and self-compassion contribute to psychological distress.DesignCross-sectional online survey.MethodAn online survey was distributed, including the following validated questionnaires: Depression Anxiety and Stress Scales, the Self-Compassion Scale, Fears of Compassion Scales, Social Comparison Scale, Forms of Self-Criticising/Attacking & Self-Reassuring Scale, and the Striving to Avoid Inferiority Scale.ResultsTwo hundred and fifty-three participants responded to the survey, including 115 recreational and 79 competitive athletes. There were no differences between groups on any measure of compassion or social rank. In a multiple linear regression model, lower self-compassion, higher fears of compassion (for self), and higher feelings of inadequacy predicted more pronounced psychological distress in athletes.ConclusionsContrary to expectation, the results suggest that even highly elite athletes may be open to using self-compassion. Given that reduced self-compassion and sense of social rank contributed to psychological distress in athletes, the results suggest that compassion-based approaches to treating psychological distress in this population may be valid.     

Media representations of environmental issues: From scientific to political discourse

IntroductionThe media is considered to be a social agent that intervenes in the elaboration of social representations of environmental issues.ObjectiveThis research analyses media representations of environmental issues and how they have been constructed and transformed from the Rio Summit in 1992 to 2006. The authors adopted a constructionist approach based on the theory of social representations (Moscovici, 1961/1976) to describe the generation of information by the mass media.MethodA sample of 1039 news articles from two Spanish newspapers (La Vanguardia and El País) was analysed. The period of study ranged from the Rio Earth Summit to several years after the Johannesburg Summit (1992–2006), and the study analyses both the content and form of the environmental news.ResultsThis longitudinal study shows not only an increase in environmental news during the period of analysis but also an increased variety of themes addressed and represented. The results evidence significant urban problems in recent years. The environment has shifted from being associated with nature to being predominately associated with the urban environment.ConclusionThe results suggest that there has been a movement from scientific to political discourse and a change towards greater reflection and social recognition of the relevance of environmental issues.     

Stuttering,alcohol consumption and smoking

PurposeLimited research has been published regarding the association between stuttering and substance use. An earlier study provided no evidence for such an association, but the authors called for further research to be conducted using a community sample. The present study used data from a community sample to investigate whether an association between stuttering and alcohol consumption or regular smoking exists in late adolescence and adulthood.MethodsRegression analyses were carried out on data from a birth cohort study, the National Child Development Study (NCDS), whose initial cohort included 18,558 participants who have since been followed up until age 55. In the analyses, the main predictor variable was parent-reported stuttering at age 16. Parental socio-economic group, cohort member's sex and childhood behavioural problems were also included. The outcome variables related to alcohol consumption and smoking habits at ages 16, 23, 33, 41, 46, 50 and 55.ResultsNo significant association was found between stuttering and alcohol consumption or stuttering and smoking at any of the ages. It was speculated that the absence of significant associations might be due to avoidance of social situations on the part of many of the participants who stutter, or adoption of alternative coping strategies.ConclusionBecause of the association between anxiety and substance use, individuals who stutter and are anxious might be found to drink or smoke excessively, but as a group, people who stutter are not more likely than those who do not to have high levels of consumption of alcohol or nicotine.     

Comorbid interpretation and expectancy bias in social anxiety and alcohol use

Background: In two studies, the present research examined whether being high in both social anxiety and alcohol use disorder symptoms is associated with a comorbid interpretation and expectancy bias that reflects their bidirectional relationship.

Design: Cross-sectional, quantitative surveys.

Methods: Measures of social anxiety and alcohol use disorder symptoms, as well as an interpretation and expectancy bias task assessing biases for social anxiety, drinking, and comorbid social anxiety and drinking.

Results: In Study 1 (N?=?447), individuals high (vs. low) in social anxiety had stronger social threat bias and individuals high (vs. low) in alcohol use disorder symptoms had stronger drinking bias. Those high in both social anxiety and alcohol use disorder symptoms endorsed interpretations and expectancies linking social interaction with alcohol use. Comorbid bias predicted membership into the high social anxiety/drinking group, even after taking into account single-disorder biases. In Study 2 (N?=?325), alcohol use disorder symptoms predicted drinking bias and social anxiety symptoms predicted social anxiety bias. Alcohol use disorder symptoms, social anxiety symptoms, and their interaction predicted comorbid interpretation and expectancy bias.

Conclusion: Results indicate unique cognitive vulnerability markers for persons with comorbid social anxiety and alcohol use disorder symptoms, which may improve detection and treatment of this serious comorbidity.