Drive for leanness: assessment and relationship to gender, gender role and objectification

Three components of body image – drive for thinness (DT), drive for muscularity (DM), and drive for leanness (DL) – were assessed in 232 college students. A new measure of DL was developed. Data suggested that the new scale yielded valid and reliable scores. The relationships of gender, gender norm endorsement, and self-objectification to DT, DM, and DL were examined. The surveillance subscale of the OBC Scale was related to DL, DT, and DM in men and to DL and DT in women. Gender norm endorsement, specifically romantic relationships, moderated the relationship of surveillance to DT in women. Gender norm endorsement was directly related to DM and DT in men. DLS appeared to measure a distinct component of body image. Feminine gender role was only related to DT while masculine gender role was related to DL, DT, and DM, raising important questions about the gender differences in body image.     

Variation in hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis activity among bullied and non-bullied children

We examined the relationship between being bullied during childhood and activity of the hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal (HPA) axis as assessed through repeated measures of salivary cortisol. A non-clinical sample of 154 (74 boys) predominantly Caucasian middle-class 12-year-olds each provided detailed information about their experiences with bullying and six saliva samples were standardized across time and day. Children with a history of child maltreatment, diagnosed psychiatric illness, foster care placement, medication use (psychotropic and oral contraception) and aggression directed toward peers and/or family members were excluded. Using multilevel regression and applying orthogonal polynomial contrasts to model the observed circadian pattern in the data, we found that occasional and frequent verbal peer victimization was associated with hyposecretion of cortisol when controlling for sex, pubertal status, age, depression and anxiety. This relation, however, was moderated by sex. For boys, occasional exposure was associated with higher cortisol levels, whereas for girls exposure was associated with lower cortisol levels. The present study highlights the need to consider the plight of peer-victimized children seriously, as it is associated with alterations to the HPA axis that affect males and females differently, and likely diminishes a person's ability to cope with stress, possibly placing them at risk for psychopathology and ill health.     

An exploration of lived religion in same-sex couples from Judeo-Christian traditions

Religious involvement has been found to be associated with higher levels of commitment and relationship satisfaction among heterosexually married individuals (Mahoney et al., 1999). Little is known, however, about the religiosity of gay, lesbian, bisexual (GLB) individuals, and virtually nothing is known about religious involvement in same-sex couples. The purpose of this qualitative interview study was to examine couples' experiences of incorporating religious involvement into their committed relationships. In a sample of 14 same-sex couples, we found that couples used their spiritual/religious values to understand and undergird their relationships. In this process, they negotiated intra-couple differences in religious practices, involved themselves in activities that have religious or spiritual meaning to them, created religious social support for their relationships, and experienced some non-supportive or rejecting interpersonal interactions with religious family members, congregants, and strangers. These findings are instructive to therapists who work with same-sex couples and the family members of GLB individuals. We conclude with specific suggestions for practitioners.     

大学生性别角色调查研究

目的:探讨不同性别比例的高校大学生的性别角色分布等相关情况。方法:2007年10月份,汉市两所性别比例不同的高校分层随机抽取了大学生共计1451人,采用钱铭怡等人编制的大学性角色量表(CSRI)进行问卷调查。结果:(1)大学生性别角色存在显著的性别差异。(2)大学期间是性别角色发展的重要时期,大学生具有传统性别角色的发展趋势,其中女生的性别角色化明显而男生的性别角色发展相对平稳。(3)性别角色存在显著的专业差异。(4)性别比例不的高校其性别角色没有显著的差异。     

Gender Differences in Children’s Hero Attributions: Personal Hero Choices and Evaluations of Typical Male and Female Heroes

The current study investigated gender differences in the personal hero choices, hero attributions, and characteristics attributed to “typical” male and female heroes of children living in the Midwestern United States (N = 103; mean age = 10 years). Questionnaires were completed in a school setting. The majority of girls chose heroes personally known to them; boys chose personal and public figures equally often. Most boys chose same gender heroes; girls’ nominations were mixed. Gender differences were also seen in the characteristics children attributed to their own heroes and in their conceptions of “typical” male and female heroes. Children rated same-gender “typical” heroes more positively on many attributes, except for stereotypically masculine characteristics. Gender socialization, stereotypes, and in-group favoritism were used to explain these findings. Portions of this project were presented at the 2003 Society for Research on Child Development Biennial Meeting. We wish to thank Anna V. Persson and Sara E. Goldstein for their assistance on the early development of this study. We also appreciate the children, teachers, guidance counselors and principals at Leipsic Local School and Pandora-Gilboa Elementary School for making this study possible. Inquiries about this study should be addressed to Shayla Holub, .     

How Undergraduate Engineering Students Perceive Women’s (and Men’s) Problems in Science, Math and Engineering

This paper compares perceptions of problems for women and men in the fields of science, math, and engineering among undergraduate engineering students surveyed at a mid-Atlantic American university over a period of 5 years. Gender differences in these perceptions are analyzed, as are changes in these perceptions over the course of the undergraduate years. Undergraduate exposure to female role models in these fields has little impact on these perceptions, but exposure to professional engineering experiences reduces the seriousness with which some problems are perceived, especially by women. While perceived problems do not seem to be related to engineering self-confidence, they are related to men’s satisfaction with engineering, and to women’s intentions to persist in the engineering field after graduation.     

中国人的人格特点(VI):人际关系

人际关系人格维度包括宽和与热情两个次级因素,反映的是对待人际关系的基本态度。该研究依据本土化的中国人人格量表对中国人的人际关系人格维度及其两个次级因素的特点进行了分析,发现个体的性别、年龄、职业和婚姻状况均对人际关系产生不同程度的影响。总体上看,女性比男性对人更宽和,男性比女性对人更热情;年龄越大,人际关系分数越高;行政管理者比工人农民与和教科文卫人员人际关系分数更高,而婚姻状况也与年龄和性别一起影响个体的人际关系倾向。     

From great commission to inclusive education: a tangible illustration of missionaries’ legacy

This article analysed missionaries’ roles in the development of general and special education by examining the relationship between the Great Commission and education and the biblical perspective on disabilities as the foundational links between their work and inclusive education. While missionaries have not been directly involved in the practices of inclusive education today, their work in initiating and formalising special education services has facilitated a more welcoming attitude toward individuals with disabilities, and propelled governments around the globe to make special and inclusive education a public responsibility when socio-political environments demand it. To provide a concrete illustration, this article used Hong Kong as an example by examining missionaries’ key involvements and impact in its development of public education from the early colonial era to today’s inclusive education. The missionaries’ legacy in Hong Kong’s inclusive education development lay in their nurturing of Christian educators as supported by a high number of public Christian schools and Christian educators advocated for inclusive education, and in their efforts to formalise special education during the early colonial era (175).     

Improving Young Male Couples’ Sexual and Relationship Health in the 2GETHER Program: Intervention Techniques,Environments of Care,and Societal Considerations

Young male couples are at high risk for acquiring human immunodeficiency virus (HIV). However, few HIV prevention programs meet the needs of young male couples that express an interest in how to maintain healthy relationships. As such, we developed 2GETHER, a couple-based program that integrates HIV risk reduction and sexual health information into a relationship education program specific to young male couples. 2GETHER was guided by cognitive-behavioral theories of HIV risk reduction and relationship functioning and was informed by a social–ecological perspective to address factors within and outside the couple that can impact sexual and relationship health. As a micro-level intervention, 2GETHER intervenes directly with couples via psychoeducation and cognitive-behavioral strategies to change couples’ communication patterns, sexual health behaviors, and relationship satisfaction. Successful implementation of 2GETHER requires mezzo-level interventions that create an affirming environment of care for sexual minority individuals and facilitators who are culturally competent in working with young male couples. Although macro-level interventions to change societal acceptance of and policies germane to sexual minority couples are beyond the scope of 2GETHER, we discuss how clinicians can advocate for systemic changes to improve sexual minority couples’ health, and how 2GETHER addresses the impact of such macro-level factors on the couple’s relationship. Our experience developing and testing 2GETHER indicates that HIV prevention programs for young male couples should reflect the unique contexts shaping sexual minority individuals’ relationships and lives, and that programs should intervene within and across multiple levels when possible to improve health for sexual minority men.     

Scandalous: Christian identification,sex guilt,and the mediated demonization of the participants in the AshleyMadison scandal

In 2015, AshleyMadison.com (AshleyMadison) was hacked, leading to the release of site members’ personal information. The exposed members faced public scrutiny, judgment, and other negative outcomes. In this study, we examined predictors of the demonization of the AshleyMadison participants (i.e., AshleyMadison members, owners, hackers) to help explain victim derogation. We attempted to discern the role religiosity and sexual guilt played in the demonization of the AshleyMadison hacking participants. We predicted sexual guilt would mediate between religiosity and demonization of the AshleyMadison hacking participants. Our findings indicate that religiosity alone does not predict demonization. Instead, sex guilt was a necessary part of the equation and mediated between participants’ religiosity and the amount they demonized the different groups.