Letitia Anne Peplau

The Revised UCLA Loneliness Scale: Concurrent and Discriminant Validity Evidence

The development of an adequate assessment instrument is a necessary prerequisite for social psychological research on loneliness. Two studies provide methodological refinement in the measurement of loneliness. Study 1 presents a revised version of the self-report UCLA (University of California, Los Angeles) Loneliness Scale, designed to counter the possible effects of response bias in the original scale, and reports concurrent validity evidence for the revised measure. Study 2 demonstrates that although loneliness is correlated with measures of negative affect, social risk taking, and affiliative tendencies, it is nonetheless a distinct psychological experience.

Loneliness : a sourcebook of current theory, research, and therapy

This compendium offers a wide range of in-depth research into loneliness and its treatment. Sociologists and psychologists address issues such as the difference between loneliness and being alone, the various types of loneliness, why people become lonely, and how the lonely can be helped. A selected bibliography on loneliness is also included.

Sex differences in same-sex friendship

Two studies examined sex differences in the same-sex friendships of college men and women. In a questionnaire study, self-reports were obtained of number of friends and frequency of interaction, typical and preferred kinds of interactions with friends, and emotional intimacy. A role-play study provided more direct information about conversations between friends. Men and women did not differ in quantitative aspects of friendship such as number of friends or amount of time spent with friends, nor in the value placed on intimate friendships. However, clear sex differences were found in both studies in the nature of interactions with friends. Women showed emphasis on emotional sharing and talking; men emphasized activities and doing things together. Results are discussed in terms of life-cycle constraints on friendship, and the possibility of sex differences in standards for assessing intimacy in friendship is considered.

Sexual compliance: Gender, motivational, and relationship perspectives

This paper provides a systematic review of research on sexual compliance in heterosexual relationships. Three perspectives shed light on which individuals are the most likely to comply with a sexually interested partners desire for sex and why. A gender perspective highlights the common male‐female asymmetry in compliant sexual behavior and identifies factors that contribute to womens greater likelihood of being the sexually compliant partner. A motivational perspective distinguishes between approach and avoidance motives for compliance and considers the possible consequences of these motives for emotional reactions, sexual risk taking, and sexual violence. A relationship maintenance perspective views sexual compliance as illustrative of broader patterns of sacrifice in committed relationships. Each perspective suggests important new directions for empirical research.

Human Sexuality: How Do Men and Women Differ?

A large body of scientific research documents four important gender differences in sexuality. First, on a wide variety of measures, men show greater sexual desire than do women. Second, compared with men, women place greater emphasis on committed relationships as a context for sexuality. Third, aggression is more strongly linked to sexuality for men than for women. Fourth, womens sexuality tends to be more malleable and capable of change over time. These male-female differences are pervasive, affecting thoughts and feelings as well as behavior, and they characterize not only heterosexuals but lesbians and gay men as well. Implications of these patterns are considered.

Issues in psychotherapy with lesbians and gay men: A survey of psychologists.

In 1984, a task force of the American Psychological Association (APA) Committee on Lesbian and Gay Concerns was charged with investigating bias in psychotherapy with lesbians and gay men. The task force surveyed a large and diverse sample of psychologists to elicit information about specific instances of respondent-defined biased and sensitive psychotherapy practice. Open-ended responses were used to separately identify major themes of biased and sensitive practice and to illustrate each with concrete examples. Results suggest that psychologists vary widely in their adherence to a standard of unbiased practice with gay men and lesbians. To bring individual practice into accord with APA policy will require continued and expanded efforts to educate practitioners about sexual orientation.

Desiring the Muscular Ideal: Men's Body Satisfaction in the United States, Ukraine, and Ghana

Failure to achieve a lean and muscular build, a prominent characteristic of masculinity for many men, may lead to body dissatisfaction. In four studies the authors used silhouette measures to assess men’s satisfaction with their muscularity and body fat. Across studies, many U.S. men (51‐71%) were not satisfied with their body fat level. Further, over 90% of U.S. undergraduate men wanted to be more muscular, as did many Ukrainian (69%) and Ghanaian (49%) men. In the United States, men’s ratings of their current and ideal muscularity were associated with endorsement of the male role, and many men desired increased muscularity for reasons related to increased dominance and attractiveness to women. These results suggest widespread desire for increased muscularity among men.

Giving up and giving in: The costs and benefits of daily sacrifice in intimate relationships.

This research provided the first empirical investigation of how approach and avoidance motives for sacrifice in intimate relationships are associated with personal well-being and relationship quality. In Study 1, the nature of everyday sacrifices made by dating partners was examined, and a measure of approach and avoidance motives for sacrifice was developed. In Study 2, which was a 2-week daily experience study of college students in dating relationships, specific predictions from the theoretical model were tested and both longitudinal and dyadic components were included. Whereas approach motives for sacrifice were positively associated with personal well-being and relationship quality, avoidance motives for sacrifice were negatively associated with personal well-being and relationship quality. Sacrificing for avoidance motives was particularly detrimental to the maintenance of relationships over time. Perceptions of a partners motives for sacrifice were also associated with well-being and relationship quality. Implications for the conceptualization of relationship maintenance processes along these 2 dimensions are discussed.

Stigma Management and Well-Being: The Role of Perceived Social Support, Emotional Processing, and Suppression

Lesbians and gay men frequently make decisions about concealing or disclosing their stigmatized identity. Past research has found that disclosing ones sexual orientation is often beneficial. This study aimed to answer the question, “why?”. Specifically, this study tested a model in which perceived social support, emotional processing, and suppression mediate the association between disclosure and well-being. To capture disclosure decisions in real time, participants completed a 2-week daily diary study and a 2-month follow-up survey. As expected, participants generally reported greater well-being on days when they disclosed (vs. concealed) their sexual orientation. Perceived social support was a consistent predictor of well-being and mediator of the association between disclosure and well-being. Although less consistent across time and measures, emotional processing and to a lesser extent suppression were also significantly associated with disclosure and well-being. This research advances the scientific understanding of concealable stigmatized identities and their impact on individual well-being.

A New Paradigm for Understanding Women's Sexuality and Sexual Orientation

Major scientific findings about women’s sexuality and sexual orientation are reviewed. Sexual orientation is unrelated to mental health. There is no inherent association between gender conformity and women’s sexual orientation; masculinity and femininity are linked to sexual orientation in some social contexts but not in others. Research has so far failed to identify major biological or childhood antecedents of women’s sexual orientation. Women’s sexuality and sexual orientation are potentially fluid, changeable over time, and variable across social contexts. Regardless of sexual orientation, there are important commonalities in women’s sexuality. In particular, women tend to have a relational or partner-centered orientation to sexuality. Together, these findings provide the basis for a paradigm shift in the conceptualization of women’s sexual orientation. Scientific research on women’s sexuality and sexual orientation is still a young endeavor. Nonetheless, several basic findings have been supported consistently by empirical research. Taken together, these findings highlight the need to reject old models of women’s sexual orientation and to develop a new paradigm that is grounded in scientific research and sensitive to the realities of women’s lives. Too often, old theories have taken male experience as the norm for human experience. Yet there appear to be important differences in the sexualities of women and men that emerge when women’s lives are the central focus of investigation. Consequently, we believe that a necessary research strategy will be to develop separate analyses of women’s and men’s sexualities, each based on a