Did Descriptive and Prescriptive Norms About Gender Equality at Home Change During the COVID-19 Pandemic? A Cross-National Investigation.

Using data from 15 countries, this article investigates whether descriptive and prescriptive gender norms concerning housework and child care (domestic work) changed after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Results of a total of 8,343 participants (M = 19.95, SD = 1.68) from two comparable student samples suggest that descriptive norms about unpaid domestic work have been affected by the pandemic, with individuals seeing mothers' relative to fathers' share of housework and child care as even larger. Moderation analyses revealed that the effect of the pandemic on descriptive norms about child care decreased with countries' increasing levels of gender equality; countries with stronger gender inequality showed a larger difference between pre- and post-pandemic. This study documents a shift in descriptive norms and discusses implications for gender equality-emphasizing the importance of addressing the additional challenges that mothers face during health-related crises.

The undue influence of genetic information on senior medical students' treatment decisions.

BACKGROUND: Knowledge of the genetic basis of health conditions can influence how the public perceives their own and others' health. When there are known genetic associations for such conditions, genetic essentialist biases facilitate deterministic thinking and an over-emphasis of genetic causality. This study investigates the role that genetic essentialist biases play in medical decision-making. METHODS: Senior postgraduate medical students (N = 102) read a scenario in which a patient presents with gastroenterological symptoms. Half of the students were told that the patient tested positive for HLADQ2 - a gene implicated in, but not deterministic of, coeliac disease. The other half received no genetic information. Students were assessed on their recommendations for investigation and management using a multiple-choice questionnaire. Twenty-two of these students participated in a qualitative follow-up which used focus groups and semi-structured interviews to explore the reasoning behind students' responses. RESULTS: Management recommendations differed between the two groups, with those receiving genetic information more likely to recommend a gluten free diet. Recommendations for further investigation did not differ significantly between groups. Interviews suggested that these findings arose despite the students' good understanding of the common non-deterministic nature of genes, such as HLADQ2. CONCLUSION: Differences in management recommendations suggest that the inclusion of genetic information unduly biased students towards a premature diagnosis of a serious health condition, coeliac disease. Follow-up interviews introduced the possibility that observed manipulation-based differences may have been based on anticipated expectations of examiners, rather than perceived future clinical practice. Based on the present results it is unclear whether intentional exam-taking strategies fully account for medical students' decisions, or if they contribute in addition to the activation of genetic essentialist biases. Further research in clinical settings may ascertain whether genetic essentialist biases would truly influence medical student and doctors within their clinical practice environment.

Is Social Gender Transition Associated with Mental Health Status in Children and Adolescents with Gender Dysphoria?

Social gender transition is an increasingly accepted intervention for gender variant children and adolescents. To date, there is scant literature comparing the mental health of children and adolescents diagnosed with gender dysphoria who have socially transitioned versus those who are still living in their birth-assigned gender. We examined the mental health of children and adolescents referred to the Gender Identity Development Service (GIDS), a specialist clinic in London, UK, who had socially transitioned (i.e., were living in their affirmed gender and/or had changed their name) versus those who had not socially transitioned. Referrals to the GIDS were aged 4-17 years. We assessed mental health correlates of living in one's affirmed gender among 288 children and adolescents (208 birth-assigned female; 210 socially transitioned) and of name change in 357 children and adolescents (253 birth-assigned female; 214 name change). The presence or absence of mood and anxiety difficulties and past suicide attempts were clinician rated. Living in role and name change were more prevalent in birth-assigned females versus birth-assigned males. Overall, there were no significant effects of social transition or name change on mental health status. These findings identify the need for more research to understand how social transition influences mental health, including longitudinal studies that allow for more confident inferences to be made regarding the relationship between social transition and mental health in young people with gender dysphoria.

BIDAR: Can Listeners Detect if a Man Is Bisexual from His Voice Alone?

Previous research has identified a range of perceptual voice and speech features that differ between gay and straight men, enabling listeners to determine if a man is gay or straight at a rate better than chance from his voice alone. To date, no published studies have examined if bisexual men's voices differ from gay and straight men's voices with regard to perceived masculinity-femininity - nor whether listeners can identify a bisexual man based only on his voice. In the present study, we examined if listeners could identify bisexual men's sexual identities from voice recordings. Seventy participants (N= 70) rated 60 voice recordings of a sample of 20 gay, 20 bisexual, and 20 straight Australian men on perceived sexual orientation and degree of masculinity-femininity. Participants could correctly categorize the sexual orientations of the gay and straight speakers at rates greater than chance, but bisexual men were only identified at chance. Bisexual voices were consistently misperceived as being the most exclusively female attracted, and, contrary to expectations, were perceived as the most masculine sounding of all the speakers. Together, these findings suggest that while the voices of bisexual men in our sample were perceived as more masculine and female attracted, listeners do not associate this impression with bisexuality, and thus cannot identify bisexual men from their voices. Consequently, while bisexual men appear to be at lower risk of facing voice-based identification and discrimination than gay men, they may be often misperceived as being straight.

Do Beliefs About Sexual Orientation Predict Sexual Identity Labeling Among Sexual Minorities?

Research has found that sexual orientation beliefs predict heterosexuals' attitudes toward sexual minorities, and important sexual identity outcomes in sexual minority populations. To this point, no studies have systematically examined how sexual orientation beliefs may be associated with sexual identity self-labeling among sexual minority individuals. The present study examined this question in a sample of 1840 same-gender attracted individuals recruited for a cross-sectional online survey. Beliefs in the naturalness and discreteness of sexual orientation categories were highest in gay/lesbian individuals, intermediate in bisexual people, and lower in queer and pansexual individuals. Beliefs in the importance of sexual orientation were highest in gay/lesbian and queer identified individuals and lower in bisexual people. Within-group analysis demonstrated that gay/lesbian individuals who reported more exclusive same-gender attraction reported higher naturalness, discreteness, and importance beliefs than those with less-exclusive same-gender attraction. However, naturalness, discreteness, and importance beliefs were not associated with sexual attraction patterns in bisexual individuals. Finally, among predominately same-gender attracted populations, the adoption of a queer identity (over a gay/lesbian identity) was predicted by lower naturalness and discreteness beliefs, and increased perceived importance in females. Among non-monosexual populations, adoption of a pansexual identity over a bisexual identity was predicted by lower naturalness beliefs in females, but not predicted by sexual orientation beliefs in males. Collectively, these findings suggest that sexual orientation beliefs differ between sexual identity groups and may partly explain the adoption of particular sexual identity labels among contemporary sexual minority populations.

Shifts in demographics and mental health co-morbidities among gender dysphoric youth referred to a specialist gender dysphoria service.

Past research has identified shifts in the demographics and co-occurring mental health issues of youth referred to certain gender dysphoria services. The present study examined shifts in demographics (age, sex and social transition status), social adversity (bullying experiences and abuse) and psychological functioning (mood, anxiety, suicidality and autism spectrum disorder) at time of referral (of both children and adolescents) to the Gender Identity Development Service, London between the years of 2012 and 2015. Patients were 782 children and adolescents (M = 13.94, SD = 2.94, range 4-17; 63.8% assigned female at birth). Little change in sex ratio or age was observed between these two time points. However, we observed greater rates of depression and anxiety of birth-assigned females (but not birth-assigned males) in the more recent cohort, at the same time that reported social adversity (bullying and abuse) was falling. Also, of interest, the proportion of young people who had partially or fully socially transitioned prior to contact with the service had increased overtime. We discuss potential factors driving these shifts and their implications for supporting recent cohorts of gender diverse young people.

Exposure to continuous or fluid theories of sexual orientation leads some heterosexuals to embrace less-exclusive heterosexual orientations.

We examined whether heterosexual individuals' self-reported sexual orientation could be influenced experimentally by manipulating their knowledge of the nature of sexual orientation. In Study 1 (180 university students, 66% female) participants read summaries describing evidence for sexual orientation existing on a continuum versus discrete categories or a control manipulation, and in Study 2 (460 participants in a nationally representative Qualtrics panel, 50% female) additionally read summaries describing sexual orientation as fluid versus stable across the life-course. After reading summaries, participants answered various questions about their sexual orientation. In Study 1, political moderates and progressives (but not conservatives) who read the continuous manipulation subsequently reported being less exclusively heterosexual, and regardless of political alignment, participants reported less certainty about their sexual orientation, relative to controls. In Study 2, after exposure to fluid or continuous manipulations heterosexual participants were up to five times more likely than controls to rate themselves as non-exclusively heterosexual. Additionally, those in the continuous condition reported less certainty about their sexual orientation and were more willing to engage in future same-sex sexual experiences, than those in the control condition. These results suggest that non-traditional theories of sexual orientation can lead heterosexuals to embrace less exclusive heterosexual orientations.

Genetic essentialism: The mediating role of essentialist biases on the relationship between genetic knowledge and the interpretations of genetic information.

PURPOSE: Genetic research, via the mainstream media, presents the public with novel, profound findings almost on a daily basis. However, it is not clear how much laypeople understand these presentations and how they integrate such new findings into their knowledge base. Genetic knowledge (GK), existing causal beliefs, and genetic essentialist tendencies (GET) have been implicated in such processes; the current study assesses the relationships between these elements and how brief presentations of media releases of scientific findings about genetics are consumed and affect the readers. METHODS: An Australian national survey of GK, GET, and existing causal beliefs about health phenomena (heart disease and obesity) was conducted. Participants were also exposed to news headlines that offered genetic and non-genetic partial explanations of the same health phenomena and reported their evaluations of these headlines, as well as the effects of the headlines on their personal understanding of the health phenomena. RESULTS: GK was negatively-associated with GET. Whereas GK did not directly predict the evaluation and effects of the genetic headlines, GET did. GK predicted the effects of the headlines indirectly via GET and via GET and existing causal beliefs. CONCLUSION: GET seem to predict unwarranted effects of exposure to news headlines about genetic science, whereas GK seems to indirectly mitigate the same unwarranted effects.

Why Do Some Gay Men Identify as "Straight-Acting" and How Is It Related to Well-Being?

Recent literature has described the phenomenon of "straight-acting" gay men: gay men who identify with traditional heteronormative masculinity. The current study examined predictors of "straight-acting" identification in gay men and how identifying as straight-acting relates to well-being. A sample of Australian gay men (N = 966) provided self-report data on two potential predictors of straight-acting identity: self-perceived masculinity and internalized homophobia. A path analysis assessed how these variables related to straight-acting identification. While masculine self-presentation positively predicted well-being and internalized homophobia negatively predicted well-being, straight-acting identification, which positively correlated with both, did not independently predict either psychological distress or physical well-being. Analyses further suggested that internalized homophobia had particularly deleterious effects among gay men who were more feminine. Implications for clinical and public health interventions among gay men are discussed.

Do Bisexuals Have a Bisexual Viewing Pattern?

Past visual attention research appears to show that bisexual men and women view erotic images differently compared to heterosexual and gay/lesbian men and women. However, none of these studies have employed analytic approaches required to determine whether these apparent bisexual viewing patterns are due to averaging together heterosexual and gay/lesbian type viewing patterns, or rather are because bisexual-identified individuals possess unique viewing patterns which are distinct from heterosexual and gay/lesbian individuals. In the current eye-tracking study, we aimed to address this question. Visual attention of 60 men (24 heterosexual, 19 gay, 17 bisexual) and 54 women (21 heterosexual, 10 lesbian, 23 bisexual) was tracked, while they viewed erotic images of nude men and women. Applying analytic approaches capable of detecting bisexual responding revealed that bisexual men, but not bisexual women, had a unique bisexual controlled attention pattern, and that neither bisexual men nor women demonstrated a unique bisexual pattern of initial attention. Our findings provide mixed evidence for a unique bisexual attentional profile in men and women.

Visual Attention to Sexual Stimuli in Mostly Heterosexuals.

Individuals who report mostly heterosexual orientations (i.e., mostly sexually attracted to the opposite sex, but occasionally attracted to the same sex) outnumber all other non-heterosexual individuals combined. The present study examined whether mostly heterosexual men and women view same- and other-sex sexual stimuli differently than exclusively heterosexual men and women. A novel eye-tracking paradigm was used with 162 mostly and exclusively heterosexual men and women. Compared to exclusively heterosexual men, mostly heterosexual men demonstrated greater attention to sexually explicit features (i.e., genital regions and genital contact regions) of solo male and male-male erotic stimuli, while demonstrating equivalent attention to sexually explicit features of solo female and female-female erotic stimuli. Mediation analyses suggested that differences between mostly and exclusively heterosexual profiles in men could be explained by mostly heterosexual men's increased sexual attraction to solo male erotica, and their increased sexual attraction and reduced disgust to the male-male erotica. No comparable differences in attention were observed between mostly and exclusively heterosexual women-although mostly heterosexual women did demonstrate greater fixation on visual erotica overall-a pattern of response that was found to be mediated by reduced disgust.

Causal Reasoning About Human Behavior Genetics: Synthesis and Future Directions.

When explaining the causes of human behavior, genes are often given a special status. They are thought to relate to an intrinsic human 'essence', and essentialist biases have been shown to skew the way in which causation is assessed. Causal reasoning in general is subject to other pre-existing biases, including beliefs about normativity and morality. In this synthesis we show how factors which influence causal reasoning can be mapped to a framework of genetic essentialism, which reveals both the shared and unique factors underpinning biases in causal reasoning and genetic essentialism. This comparison identifies overlooked areas of research which could provide fruitful investigation, such as whether normative assessments of behaviors influence the way that genetic causes are ascribed or endorsed. We also outline the importance of distinguishing reasoning processes regarding genetic causal influences on one's self versus others, as different cognitive processes and biases are likely to be at play.

Genetic Knowledge within a National Australian Sample: Comparisons with Other Diverse Populations.

BACKGROUND: Genetic knowledge, which plays important functions in our understanding of science, health, social groupings, and even behaviour, has been evaluated in past studies with various populations. This wide reach of genetics means that different types of items are used to assess genetic knowledge, which restricts meaningful comparisons across time- and locale-based studies. AIM: The present study addresses this limitation by recruiting an Australia-wide sample and evaluating their genetic knowledge using items sourced from four diverse samples. METHOD: Seven hundred and eighty Australians completed a variety of items assessing their genetic knowledge as well as several demographic indicators. RESULTS: The results show superior overall genetic knowledge in the current sample compared with previous samples. Additionally, the study finds that genetic knowledge about health and illness seems to be the most accurate, whereas such knowledge about social categorisations and behaviours seems to be the most error-prone. In the current sample, being a female and having interest in genetics were positive predictors of genetic knowledge; surprisingly educational attainment was not a significant predictor. CONCLUSION: Compared with previous surveys, the current sample showed significantly better genetic knowledge. However, certain areas that relate to public understating still indicate rampant misperceptions.

Born this way: Sexual orientation beliefs and their correlates in lesbian and bisexual women.

In this study, we examined how beliefs about the nature and origin of sexual orientation were associated with sexual identity outcomes, namely internalized sexual stigma and sexual orientation uncertainty, and in turn, psychological well-being in sexual minority women. A community sample of 393 lesbian and 205 bisexual women were recruited for a cross-sectional online survey. Using multigroup structural equation modeling, we examined whether believing sexual orientation to be inborn/immutable (i.e., natural) and/or as existing in discrete categories (i.e., discrete) was indirectly associated with psychological well-being via internalized stigma and sexual orientation uncertainty and whether some of these relationships were moderated by nonprototypical attractions (nonexclusive same-sex attractions in lesbian women and straight- or lesbian-leaning attractions in bisexual women) and age. Overall, similar patterns of direct effects were observed in lesbian and bisexual women. In both groups, naturalness beliefs were associated with lower internalized-stigma, whereas discreteness beliefs were associated with greater internalized stigma. In bisexual women, nonprototypical sexual attraction patterns moderated the relationship between discreteness beliefs and sexual orientation uncertainty. Younger age was associated with increased sexual orientation uncertainty in both lesbian and bisexual women. Specific to lesbian women, nonprototypical attraction predicted less endorsement of immutability and binary/discrete beliefs about sexual orientation, and unexpectedly, greater internalized stigma. The present study identifies potential implications of common lay theories of sexual orientation for lesbian versus bisexual women. (PsycINFO Database Record

Who Adopts Queer and Pansexual Sexual Identities?

Some nonheterosexual individuals are eschewing lesbian/gay and bisexual identities for queer and pansexual identities. The present study aimed to examine the sexual and demographic characteristics of nonheterosexual individuals who adopt these labels. A convenience sample of 2,220 nonheterosexual (1,459 lesbian/gay, 413 bisexual, 168 queer, 146 pansexual, and 34 other "write-in") individuals were recruited for a cross-sectional online survey. In support of our hypotheses, those adopting pansexual identities were younger than those adopting lesbian, gay, and bisexual identities, and those adopting queer and pansexual identities were more likely to be noncisgender than cisgender, and more likely to be cisgender women than men. The majority of pansexual individuals demonstrated sexual orientation indices within the bisexual range, and showed equivalent patterns of sexual attraction, romantic attraction, sexual behavior, and partner gender as bisexual-identified men and women. In contrast, three-quarters of queer men, and more than half of queer women, reported sexual attraction in the homosexual range. This study found that rather than a general movement toward nontraditional sexual identities, queer and pansexual identities appear most appealing to nonheterosexual women and noncisgender individuals. These findings contribute important information regarding who adopts queer and pansexual identities in contemporary sexual minority populations.

Essentialist beliefs, sexual identity uncertainty, internalized homonegativity and psychological wellbeing in gay men.

The present study examined essentialist beliefs about sexual orientation and their implications for sexual identity uncertainty, internalized homonegativity and psychological wellbeing in a sample of gay men. A combination of targeted sampling and snowball strategies were used to recruit 639 gay identifying men for a cross-sectional online survey. Participants completed a questionnaire assessing sexual orientation beliefs, sexual identity uncertainty, internalized homonegativity, and psychological wellbeing outcomes. Structural equation modeling was used to test whether essentialist beliefs were associated with psychological wellbeing indirectly via their effect on sexual identity uncertainty and internalized homonegativity. A unique pattern of direct and indirect effects was observed in which facets of essentialism predicted sexual identity uncertainty, internalized homonegativity and psychological wellbeing. Of note, viewing sexual orientation as immutable/biologically based and as existing in discrete categories, were associated with less sexual identity uncertainty. On the other hand, these beliefs had divergent relationships with internalized homonegativity, with immutability/biological beliefs associated with lower, and discreteness beliefs associated with greater internalized homonegativity. Of interest, although sexual identity uncertainty was associated with poorer psychological wellbeing via its contribution to internalized homophobia, there was no direct relationship between identity uncertainty and psychological wellbeing. Findings indicate that essentializing sexual orientation has mixed implications for sexual identity uncertainty and internalized homonegativity and wellbeing in gay men. Those undertaking educational and clinical interventions with gay men should be aware of the benefits and of caveats of essentialist theories of homosexuality for this population.

Minority stress and community connectedness among gay, lesbian and bisexual Australians: a comparison of rural and metropolitan localities.

OBJECTIVE: To determine whether lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) Australians residing in rural-remote and other non-inner metropolitan localities experience increased levels of minority stress and reduced social support relative to their inner metropolitan counterparts. METHODS: A convenience sample of (n=1306) LGB Australians completed an online survey that assessed minority stressors, level of connection with other LGB individuals and social isolation. Postcodes provided were coded into three metropolitan and two rural zones. A series of hierarchical regression analyses were undertaken to examine the effect of locality on minority stress and social support independent of sex, age, ethnicity, education and income. RESULTS: Those residing in rural-remote localities reported significantly increased concealment of sexuality from friends, more concern regarding disclosure of sexuality, less LGB community involvement, fewer friendships with other LGB people and, among men, higher levels of internalised homophobia than those residing in inner metropolitan areas. Unexpectedly, those residing in outer metropolitan areas of major cities experienced comparable levels of minority stress and LGB disconnection to those in rural and remote Australia. CONCLUSIONS: LGB individuals in rural-remote and outer metropolitan areas of major cities face increased exposure to a number of minority stressors and less LGB community connectedness. These are risk factors associated with psychiatric morbidity in LGB populations. IMPLICATIONS: Health promotion targeted at reducing homophobia and discrimination in rural-remote and outer metropolitan communities and additional services to assist LGB Australians struggling with stigma and isolation in non-inner city areas may help mitigate the disadvantages faced by these LGB populations.