Associations between body dissatisfaction and relationship functioning among same-sex female couples: An actor-partner interdependence model.

Nearly all past research about body dissatisfaction and romantic relationship factors is among heterosexual couples; little is known about these associations in sexual minority couples. The present study aimed to fill gaps in the current literature by using actor-partner interdependence models (APIMs) to examine dyadic patterns of association between body dissatisfaction and different aspects of relationship functioning among same-sex female couples. Participants were 163 same-sex female romantic dyads (326 women) between the ages of 18-35 years who completed measures of body dissatisfaction and relationship factors. Results from significance testing of actor and partner effects indicated higher levels of women's own body dissatisfaction were associated with lower levels of their own, but not their partner's, relationship satisfaction, closeness, sexual satisfaction, and intimacy/connectedness. Significance testing alone indicated that the association between one's own body dissatisfaction and their partner's relationship satisfaction was not significant. However, dyadic pattern testing identified a partner pattern for this effect, which suggests that the association between one's own body dissatisfaction and one's own relationship satisfaction is similar in magnitude and direction as that between an individuals' own body dissatisfaction and their partner's relationship satisfaction. In this study, women's own body dissatisfaction was found to be negatively associated with their own relationship functioning, which is consistent with findings of women in male-female couples. Thus, these findings highlight the important role that body dissatisfaction plays in women's relationship experiences. More research is needed to better understand potential cross-partner effects of body dissatisfaction and relationship factors in same-sex female couples. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2022 APA, all rights reserved).

Rationale and Design of a Remote Web-Based Daily Diary Study Examining Sexual Minority Stress, Relationship Factors, and Alcohol Use in Same-Sex Female Couples Across the United States: Study Protocol of Project Relate.

BACKGROUND: The Healthy People 2020 initiative aims to reduce health disparities, including alcohol use, among sexual minority women (SMW; eg, lesbian, bisexual, queer, and pansexual). Compared with heterosexual women, SMW engage in more hazardous drinking and report more alcohol-related problems. Sexual minority stress (ie, the unique experiences associated with stigmatization and marginalization) has been associated with alcohol use among SMW. Among heterosexuals, relationship factors (eg, partner violence and drinking apart vs together) have also been associated with alcohol use. Negative affect has also been identified as a contributor to alcohol use. To date, most studies examining alcohol use among SMW have used cross-sectional or longitudinal designs. OBJECTIVE: Project Relate was designed to increase our understanding of alcohol use among young SMW who are at risk for alcohol problems. The primary objectives of this study are to identify daily factors, as well as potential person-level risk and protective factors, which may contribute to alcohol use in SMW. Secondary objectives include examining other physical and mental concerns in this sample (eg, other substance use, eating, physical activity, and stress). METHODS: Both partners of a female same-sex couple (aged 18-35 years; n=150 couples) are being enrolled in the study following preliminary screening by a market research firm that specializes in recruiting sexual minority individuals. Web-based surveys are being used to collect information about the primary constructs of interest (daily experiences of alcohol use, sexual minority stress, relationship interactions, and mood) as well as secondary measures of other physical and mental health constructs. Data are collected entirely remotely from women across the United States. Each member of eligible couples completes a baseline survey and then 14 days of daily surveys each morning. Data will be analyzed using multilevel structural equation modeling. RESULTS: To date, 208 women (ie, 104 couples) were successfully screened and enrolled into the study. In total, 164 women have completed the 14-day daily protocol. Compliance with completing the daily diaries has been excellent, with participants on average completing 92% of the daily diaries. Data collection will be completed in fall 2018, with results published as early as 2019 or 2020. CONCLUSIONS: Project Relate is designed to increase our understanding of between- and within-person processes underlying hazardous drinking in understudied, at-risk SMW. The study includes a remote daily diary methodology to provide insight into variables that may be associated with daily hazardous alcohol use. Before the development of programs that address hazardous alcohol use among young SMW, there is a need for better understanding of individual and dyadic variables that contribute to risk in this population. The unique challenges of recruiting and enrolling SMW from across the United States in a daily diary study are discussed. INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID): DERR1-10.2196/11718.

Discrepant Drinking and Partner Violence Perpetration Over Time in Lesbians' Relationships.

Discrepant drinking (i.e., differences in alcohol use) and perpetration of intimate partner violence in same-sex female couples were examined. Self-identified lesbian participants were recruited from market research firms and reported on their own and their partner's alcohol use and their own perpetration of psychological aggression and physical violence at baseline, then 6 and 12 months later. Cross-lagged panel analyses revealed that discrepant drinking predicted participants' subsequent perpetration of psychological aggression but not physical violence. Both psychological aggression and physical aggression predicted subsequent discrepant drinking. Consistent with findings in heterosexual couples, differences in alcohol use appear to be a risk factor for relationship aggression.

Social Factors Linking Stigma-Related Stress with Alcohol Use among Lesbians.

A conceptual model linking stigma-related stress and lesbian women's alcohol use and related problems via social factors (i.e., social constraints and social isolation), depressive symptoms, and negative reinforcement drinking motives (i.e., coping and conformity) was tested. Self-identified lesbian women (N = 1048), age 18-35 years in the United States completed an online survey of discrimination, stigma consciousness, social isolation, social constraints, depressive symptoms, drinking motives, alcohol use and related problems. The hypothesized path model showed excellent model fit. The predicted pathway of stigma-related stressors to alcohol outcomes via social factors, depressive symptoms, and coping/conformity motives was largely supported. Results highlight the importance of social factors in linking stigma-related stress to alcohol use and related problems among lesbians. Understanding the underlying social mechanisms connecting stigma to negative health outcomes may help inform intervention efforts to reduce alcohol use and related problems among lesbians and associated health disparities.

Empirical Investigation of a Model of Sexual Minority Specific and General Risk Factors for Intimate Partner Violence among Lesbian Women.

OBJECTIVE: This study proposed and tested the first conceptual model of sexual minority specific (discrimination, internalized homophobia) and more general risk factors (perpetrator and partner alcohol use, anger, relationship satisfaction) for intimate partner violence among partnered lesbian women. METHOD: Self-identified lesbian women (N=1048) were recruited from online market research panels. Participants completed an online survey that included measures of minority stress, anger, alcohol use and alcohol-related problems, relationship satisfaction, psychological aggression, and physical violence. RESULTS: The model demonstrated good fit and significant links from sexual minority discrimination to internalized homophobia and anger, from internalized homophobia to anger and alcohol problems, and from alcohol problems to intimate partner violence. Partner alcohol use predicted partner physical violence. Relationship dissatisfaction was associated with physical violence via psychological aggression. Physical violence was bidirectional. CONCLUSIONS: Minority stress, anger, alcohol use and alcohol-related problems play an important role in perpetration of psychological aggression and physical violence in lesbian women's intimate partner relationships. The results of this study provide evidence of potentially modifiable sexual minority specific and more general risk factors for lesbian women's partner violence.

Individual differences in the impact of vicarious racism: African American students react to the George Zimmerman trial.

OBJECTIVE: This research focused on how race-based rejection sensitivity (RS-Race) and components of racial identity intensify negative psychological reactions to an incident of vicarious racism. We examined how these individual difference variables directly and/or indirectly predicted African American students' reactions to the trial of George Zimmerman in the killing of the African American teenager, Trayvon Martin. METHOD: In Study 1, 471 African American students completed measures of RS-Race, thought intrusions about the Zimmerman trial, and outcome variables (negative affect about the Zimmerman trial and forgiveness for Mr. Zimmerman). In Study 2, 304 African American students completed measures of racial identity (centrality, private regard, and public regard), thought intrusions about the Zimmerman trial, negative affect, and forgiveness. RESULTS: In Study 1, higher RS-Race was either directly and/or indirectly (via thought intrusions) related to more negative affect and lower forgiveness. In Study 2, high racial centrality and low public regard either directly and/or indirectly (via thought intrusions) predicted more negative affect and lower forgiveness. CONCLUSIONS: RS-Race and specific components of racial identity are likely to sensitize African Americans to incidents of racism that happen to other African Americans, leading to negative psychological reactions when these events occur. (PsycINFO Database Record

Pathways to Hazardous Drinking Among Racially and Socioeconomically Diverse Lesbian Women: Sexual Minority Stress, Rumination, Social Isolation, and Drinking to Cope.

Lesbian women engage in more hazardous drinking than heterosexual women yet we know relatively little about what explains this disparity. In the present study, race, socioeconomic status, minority stress, general psychological processes and distress were examined as pathways to hazardous drinking among young (18-35 years) Black and non-Hispanic White lesbian women. We used the psychological mediation framework adaptation of minority stress theory and the reserve capacity model as theoretical underpinnings of the conceptual model in the current study. Self-identified lesbian participants (N= 867) completed a one-time online survey that assessed race, socioeconomic status, perceived sexual minority discrimination, proximal minority stress (concealment, internalized homophobia, lack of connection to lesbian community), rumination, social isolation, psychological distress, drinking to cope, and hazardous drinking. Cross-sectional results demonstrated that being Black was associated with hazardous drinking via sequential mediators of rumination, psychological distress, and drinking to cope. Socioeconomic status was associated with hazardous drinking via sequential mediators of sexual minority discrimination, proximal minority stress, rumination, social isolation, psychological distress, and drinking to cope. Understanding these pathways can aid researchers and clinicians studying and working with lesbians who are at risk for hazardous drinking.

Emotional Distress, Alcohol Use, and Bidirectional Partner Violence Among Lesbian Women.

This study examined the relationship between emotional distress (defined as depression, brooding, and negative affect), alcohol outcomes, and bidirectional intimate partner violence among lesbian women. Results lend support to the self-medication hypothesis, which predicts that lesbian women who experience more emotional distress are more likely to drink to cope, and in turn report more alcohol use, problem drinking, and alcohol-related problems. These alcohol outcomes were, in turn, associated with bidirectional partner violence (BPV). These results offer preliminary evidence that, similar to findings for heterosexual women, emotional distress, alcohol use, and particularly, alcohol-related problems are risk factors for BPV among lesbian women.

Disentangling reactions to HIV disclosure: effects of HIV status, sexual orientation, and disclosure recipients' gender.

This experiment examined how reactions to HIV disclosure by a male stimulus person are influenced by the discloser's HIV status and sexual orientation as well as the disclosure recipient's gender. Participants (152 male and female college students) disclosed more intimately about themselves (revealing highly personal facts and personal feelings) when the man's HIV test result was positive versus negative. The effects of HIV status disclosure on participants' self-disclosure and social support were also moderated by the man's sexual orientation and participants' gender. The results document circumstances when HIV disclosure may lead to positive reactions instead of avoidance and exclusion.

Predictors of perpetration of men's same-sex partner violence.

This study examined alcohol consumption, internalized homophobia, and outness as related to men's (N = 107) reports of the perpetration of violence against a same-sex partner. Higher typical weekly alcohol consumption, higher levels of internalized homophobia, and less outness (e.g., lower levels of disclosure of one's sexual orientation) predicted the perpetration of partner violence. In contrast to what we expected, the interaction between higher alcohol consumption and higher levels of outness about one's sexual orientation (i.e., being open to friends, family members, work colleagues) increased the likelihood of participants' reports of perpetrating physical violence. These results suggest the importance of both alcohol consumption and sexual minority stressors and their interactions in understanding men's perpetration of same-sex partner violence.

Body talk and body-related co-rumination: associations with body image, eating attitudes, and psychological adjustment.

Talk about physical appearance and body image is common among young women. We investigated how body talk (negative, positive/self-accepting, and co-ruminative) is related to body image, body-related cognitive distortions, disordered eating, psychological adjustment, and friendship quality via hierarchical regression analyses (controlling for social desirability and body mass index). In a sample of young adult women (N=203), negative body talk was, as predicted, negatively related to body satisfaction and self-esteem and positively related to appearance investment, body-related cognitive distortions, disordered eating, and depression, but not friendship quality. Self-accepting/positive body talk was negatively related to body-related cognitive distortions and positively related to body satisfaction, self-esteem, and friendship quality. Body-related co-rumination demonstrated adjustment trade-offs, being related to body-related cognitive distortions, disordered eating, and higher friendship quality. Results indicated no advantage to negative body talk, both individual and relationship benefits from positive/self-accepting body talk, and mixed outcomes for body-related co-rumination.

Student pursuers: an investigation of pursuit and stalking in the student-faculty relationship.

Data from faculty and students provide information on the prevalence of unwanted pursuit and stalking in the student-faculty relationship. Among faculty, 67.8% reported unwanted pursuit. For the most serious case, 6%-11% met criteria for stalking. Among students, 4.1% reported engaging in unwanted pursuit of faculty. Both faculty and students perceived anger (especially for male students) to be the motive for student unwanted pursuit/stalking, with some endorsement of romantic interest and concern about the role of mental illness. Sex differences suggest female faculty members are more often a target of unwanted pursuit or stalking and more likely to experience fear.

Types, frequency, and effectiveness of responses to unwanted pursuit and stalking.

This study investigated the types, frequency, and effectiveness of responses to unwanted pursuit (UP) and stalking after relationship termination. Participants included female and male college students who were either pursued by a former partner or who pursued an ex-partner. Factor analyses of targets' responses to pursuit yielded four factors, similar to Cupach and Spitzberg's (2004) proposed response types. Targets reported engaging in Avoidance/ Minimization and Support-Seeking responses more often than Approach or Assertion/Aggression, and Approach more often than Assertion/Aggression; pursuers reported that targets engaged in Common Responses more often than Assertion/Aggression responses. Generally, targets rated more assertive but less frequently used responses such as "took legal action" or "made geographic change" as most effective, whereas pursuers rated threats and assertive or aggressive verbal confrontations as most effective. Analysis of qualitative data indicate that a combination of target avoidance and the passage of time provides an opportunity for the pursuer to move on from the relationship, which results in the cessation of UP. Implications for stalking prevention and intervention are discussed.

Inmates with HIV, stigma, and disclosure decision-making.

Seventeen male, former inmates with HIV were interviewed about their experiences with HIV in a jail or prison in the southeastern region of the United States. Participants reported that stereotypes and prejudicial attitudes about HIV/AIDS were widely held by other inmates, and that concerns about HIV/AIDS stigma affected their decisions about HIV disclosure. The results suggest the need to better educate inmates and institutional staff about HIV/AIDS stigma and to increase privacy protection for inmates with HIV, especially in the context of providing medical care and dispensing medications.

AIDS stigma among inmates and staff in a USA state prison.

We examined AIDS stigma among male inmates and male and female staff at a state prison in the southern region of the USA. Inmates and staff rated people with AIDS more negatively than someone with other diseases (diabetes, cancer, heart disease and high blood pressure). Inmates and staff were concerned about being treated differently if they tested seropositive. They also described AIDS stigma as a barrier to seeking HIV testing. Both instrumental (inaccurate beliefs about casual contact causing transmission of the virus) and symbolic factors (negative attitudes about injection drug use) predicted AIDS stigma. Negative attitudes about homosexuality predicted AIDS stigma among Caucasian prison staff and inmates, but not among African American staff and inmates. The results indicate the need to address HIV/AIDS stigma in developing HIV treatment, care and prevention programs in the prison environment.

Social comparison activity in coping with HIV.

Taylor and Lobel's (1989) model of social comparison processes under threat predicts that upward affiliation (a social activity) may be useful to improve the skills and to find inspiration in coping with HIV, whereas downward evaluation (a cognitive activity) may assist someone to feel better by comparing oneself to a less fortunate person. Participants with HIV were randomly assigned, using a 3 x 3 factorial design, to read one of nine vignettes about someone whose HIV medical prognosis and psychological adjustment were described as good, poor or unspecified. Participants desired upward affiliation with a target doing well physically, but they wanted to avoid a target doing poorly psychologically. Participants also evaluated their own physical condition as better than a target coping poorly physically with HIV. The results may be useful in understanding the impact of various role models in coping with HIV.

Close relationships and social support in coping with HIV: a test of sensitive interaction systems theory.

This study tested sensitive interaction systems theory, and examined how persons with HIV seek and receive social support in relationships with peers versus parents and the association between different kinds of support-receiving behaviors and depressive symptoms. The participants were men and women with HIV in southeastern Virginia who completed a self-administered questionnaire about their relations with parents, an intimate partner, and a close friend. Participants reported using more Ask behaviors (a direct form of support seeking) with a friend and an intimate partner than with parents. They also reported receiving more Approach (Solve/Solace) forms of support from a friend and an intimate partner than from parents and less Avoidance (Escape/Dismiss) from a close friend than from parents. As a support-seeking behavior Ask was most likely to be associated with Approach forms of support providing from all types of relationship partners. Avoidance from parents, an intimate partner, or a friend was positively associated with depressive symptoms. Counselors should discuss with clients the social support process and how different forms of support seeking and support providing may be more or less useful in coping with HIV.

Perceived HIV-related Stigma and HIV Disclosure to Relationship Partners after Finding Out about the Seropositive Diagnosis.

The present study examined how perceived HIV-related stigma (how much HIV-infected persons believe that the public stigmatizes someone with HIV) influences both reasons for and against HIV disclosure and self-reports of HIV disclosure to a friend, intimate partner and a parent. The research participants were 145 men and women living with HIV. They were asked to recall when they first learned about their HIV diagnosis. Then they indicated how much specific reasons might have influenced disclosing or not disclosing about the HIV diagnosis to a friend, intimate partner and a parent. Findings, based on the total sample, indicated that perceived HIV-related stigma was associated with the endorsement of various reasons against disclosing to a friend and a parent, including concerns about self-blame, fear of rejection, communication difficulties and a desire to protect the other person. Perceived HIV-related stigma was not associated with the endorsement of any reasons for disclosing to a friend, intimate partner or a parent, including catharsis, test other's reactions, duty to inform/educate, similarity and a close/supportive relationship with the other. In addition, perceived HIV-related stigma predicted self-reports of disclosure to a parent but not to a friend or intimate partner. Specific reasons for and against self-disclosure predicted HIV disclosure based on the type of relationship with the potential disclosure recipient. The data analyses were also stratified by gender; these results were, with some exceptions, consistent with the findings with the total sample. The research introduces scales that quantify individuals' reasons for HIV disclosure and/or nondisclosure.