Can heterosexual counsellors or generic agencies help same‐sex couples? An exploratory study

Gay men and women were interviewed in single‐sex focus groups in order to learn more about the therapeutic help that could be offered to people in same‐sex relationships. Interviews were analysed using the constant comparative method. Among the various themes that emerged was the need to have their relationships valued and accepted and the damaging effects of living in a heterosexist and homophobic society. The need for men, in particular, to identify a set of developmental stages for gay relationships was important. Difficulties in seeking help from mainstream organisations are discussed and recommendations made for both counsellors and agencies.     

Effects of Type of Coping Response,Setting, and Social Context on Reactions to Sexual Harassment

Male and female undergraduates from a multicultural university (MU) and an historically Black University (HBU) read a scenario in which a student was sexually harassed either by a professor or a workplace supervisor. The student victim's coping response was also varied. Participants rated the victim's behavior as most effective and appropriate when she confronted the harasser directly or reported the harasser's behavior. HBU students judged the harasser as not guilty significantly more often than MU students, but believed that the harasser was less trustworthy than multicultural students did. Women responded significantly more negatively to the blatant sexual harassment scenario than men did. Implications for prevention and interventions are discussed.     

Pornography,preference for porn‐like sex,masturbation, and men's sexual and relationship satisfaction

Pornography use, preference for “porn‐like” sex, masturbation, and sexual and relationship satisfaction were assessed among two samples of men (N_{Study 1} = 326, N_{Study 2} = 335). Frequent pornography use was associated with sexual dissatisfaction, greater preference for porn‐like sex, and more frequent masturbation in both studies. Pornography use was associated with relationship dissatisfaction in Study 2 only. The data did not support the notion that pornography negatively impacts sexual or relationship satisfaction via preference for porn‐like sex. In fact, it may bolster sexual satisfaction by promoting sexual variety. The data were consistent with a model in which pornography negatively, indirectly affects sexual and relationship satisfaction via masturbation frequency. Pornography use may have multiple opposing influences on sexual satisfaction.     

Experiences of transgender prisoners and their knowledge,attitudes, and practices regarding sexual behaviors and HIV/STIs: A systematic review

Background: Despite transgender people being more visible in prison systems, research suggests they are at higher risk of experiencing sexual violence compared to other prisoners. Research also suggests that transgender prisoners experience harassment, and physical and sexual assault by fellow prisoners, and prison officers who lack transgender-specific health knowledge. There exist no systematic reviews on the experiences of transgender people in prisons. This review aims to fill this research gap. The following question developed in consultation with transgender, sexual health/HIV and corrective services stakeholders has guided the systematic review: What are transgender and gender-diverse prisoners’ experiences in various prison settings and what are their knowledge, attitudes and practices regarding sexual behaviors and HIV/STIs?

Methods: The review followed the PRISMA guidelines and searches were conducted in four databases for the period of January 2007 to August 2017. Studies were assessed against predetermined inclusion and exclusion criteria. Included studies were peer-reviewed, written in English with online full-text availability and reported data on transgender and gender-diverse prisoner experiences relevant to the research question.

Results: Eleven studies (nine qualitative, one quantitative, one mixed-methods; nine in USA, two in Australia) met the criteria for review. Four studies were of high quality, six were of good/acceptable quality, and one study was of modest quality. Transgender and gender-diverse prisoners reported a range of challenges which included sexual assault, discrimination, stigma, harassment, and mistreatment. Information on their sexual health and HIV/STIs knowledge, attitudes, practices is in short supply. Also, their lack of access to gender-affirming, sexual health/STIs and mental health services is commonplace.

Conclusions: The experiences of transgender prisoners as reported in this review are almost uniformly more difficult than other prisoners. Their “otherness” is used as a weapon against them by fellow prisoners through intimidation and violence (including sexual) and by prison officers through neglect and ignorance.     

Cultural Considerations for Treating PTSD in Latinx Sexual Assault Survivors With Prolonged Exposure

There is growing interest in the implementation of culturally responsive mental health care that balances treatment fidelity and cultural fit (Castro et al., 2004). Prolonged exposure (PE) is a first-line, evidence-based treatment for posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and has been successfully implemented in low-income and ethnoracial minority samples (Feske, 2008) and with Latinx individuals specifically (Vera et al., 2011). However, cultural and systemic factors may contribute to Latinx individuals experiencing higher conditional risk for PTSD (Alcántara et al., 2013), disparities in mental health care utilization (Alves-Bradford et al., 2020), and challenges with PTSD treatment delivery (Valentine et al., 2017). Culturally responsive implementation of PE with Latinx clients involves making culturally informed but person-specific assessments of clients, with adaptations as needed. We propose several culturally responsive strategies for therapists to consider when conducting PE with Latinx sexual assault survivors, such as building trust and rapport early on, conducting culturally informed assessment, investing in psychoeducation, optimizing imaginal exposure and in vivo exposure, and problem-solving barriers to homework engagement. Therapists are encouraged to approach this work with cultural humility (Fisher-Borne et al., 2015; Tervalon & Murray-Garcia, 1998) through open listening, critical self-reflection, and consideration for the way in which Latinx identity intersects with other important identity characteristics that can impact treatment relevance and engagement.     

Online daters' reactions to sexually explicit initiation messages

This study used expectancy violations theory and uses and gratifications theory to conduct an experiment investigating how the content of relationship initiation messages, recipients' gender, and recipients' motives for using online dating applications shape whether and how the initiation message violates recipients' expectations. Participants (N = 275) were recruited through an emergent adult population at a large Midwestern university and identified primarily as women (66.7%), heterosexual (79%), and white (64.5%). Participants were randomly assigned to imagine matching with someone through online dating who sent either a traditional greeting or sexually explicit content in their initial message. As predicted, receiving a sexually explicit message was more unexpected and perceived more negatively than receiving an ordinary greeting, but the intensity of that negative reaction was moderated by users' motives for using online dating apps and gender. Negative reactions to receiving sexually explicit content were amplified for women and individuals interested in long-term relationships. Negative reactions were dampened for men and online daters interested in casual sexual relationships. The implications of the findings are discussed in relation to expectancy violations theory and research on relationship initiation in online contexts.     

“Some days are much holier than others”: Relational uncertainty and partner influence in Christian dating couples' sexual intimacy negotiation

When intrafaith couples' religion strictly prohibits premarital sexual intercourse, negotiating sexual intimacy can become a multilayered process of identity negotiation that compounds the difficulty of sexual communication. Through the lens of relational turbulence theory, this study explored how devout Christian couples negotiate sexual intimacy by reanalyzing qualitative interview data the first author collected in 2017 from 16 self-identified Christians (8 heterosexual couples). Seven themes revealed how relational uncertainty, partner interference, and partner facilitation manifested in the context of sexual intimacy negotiation. Themes of relational uncertainty experience and prevention included assumption of shared values, relationship talk, and sexual behaviors as an uncertainty catalyst. Partner facilitation and interference emerged as themes of sexual escalation and de-escalation including snowball effect, pinpointing underlying motivations for boundary violations, gatekeeping sexual temptation, and drawing from shared values of sacrifice and prayer. These interpretive findings advance the literature on relational turbulence theory and provide Christian dating couples with practical advice for how to negotiate sexual intimacy in committed premarital relationships.     

Worth the risk? Fear of being single and willingness to make risky health decisions in sex and dating contexts

Does fear of being single (FOBS) predict risky health behaviors when such behavior could promote pursuit of a romantic connection? Study 1 tested general tendencies toward taking health risks associated with FOBS. Study 2 tested how those with stronger FOBS navigated romantic versus non-romantic risk behavior during the COVID-19 pandemic. Study 3 extended the test of risky behavior beyond the pandemic to test whether FOBS was associated with willingness to engage in risky sexual behavior. Despite nonsignificant associations with taking health risks more generally, FOBS was associated with greater willingness to engage in risky behaviors in dating contexts, particularly when considering their willingness to settle for less in relationships. This research provides novel insight into dating choices associated with stronger FOBS and how willingness to settle predicts risky health behavior when it could appeal to romantic prospects.     

Subjective Sleep Disturbances in Sexual Assault Survivors: Associations With Trauma and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder Symptom Severity

Prior work implicates sleep disturbance in the development and maintenance of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). However, the majority of this literature has focused on combat veteran men, and limited work has examined links between sleep disturbance and PTSD symptoms in sexual assault survivors. This is a notable gap in the literature, as sexual trauma is disproportionately likely to result in PTSD and is more common in women. We sought to examine the relations between subjective sleep disturbance, sexual assault severity, and PTSD symptoms in a sample of sexual assault survivors with PTSD (PTSD+), without PTSD (PTSD-), and healthy controls. The sample (N = 60) completed the Insomnia Severity Index and prospectively monitored their sleep for 1 week using the Consensus Sleep Diary. The sexual assault survivors also completed the Sexual Experiences Survey and PTSD Checklist-5. Results of group comparisons found that the PTSD+ group reported significantly higher insomnia symptoms, longer sleep onset latency, more nocturnal awakenings, and lower sleep quality compared to the healthy control group and higher insomnia symptoms compared to the PTSD- group. Results of regression analyses in the sexual assault survivors found that insomnia symptoms and number of nocturnal awakenings were significantly associated with higher PTSD symptoms, and sexual assault severity was significantly associated with higher insomnia symptoms, longer sleep onset latency, and lower sleep quality. These findings highlight specific features of sleep disturbance that are linked to trauma and PTSD symptom severity among sexual assault survivors.     

Drawing the line: How the workplace shapes the naming of sexual harassment

Although sexual harassment naming – the process by which individuals identify and label experiences as sexual harassment – is key to tackling the problem of workplace sexual harassment, extant research focused on individual differences has explained a limited amount of variance in individuals’ propensity to name. We push this research in a new direction, drawing on institutional theory and strategic human resource management to identify workplace contextual factors that influence individuals’ propensity to name sexual harassment. Surveying 408 employed adults, we find that current employment in an industry with a high prevalence of sexual harassment reduces individuals’ likelihood of identifying scenarios as sexual harassment. Further, prior work experience in highly sexually harassing industries has a lasting negative effect on individuals’ propensity to name. In contrast, we show that individuals’ propensity to identify sexual harassment is greater when they perceive that their organization has implemented more HR practices supporting a climate for naming and that these HR practices can actually reduce the negative effect of current employment in a highly sexually harassing industry. Critically, by demonstrating that changing industry norms or adopting specific HR practices can shift individual naming of sexual harassment, we offer new avenues for sexual harassment prevention.