Melanie D. Otis

Stress and relationship quality in same-sex couples

This research focuses on the relationship between sources of minority stress and the quality of same-sex couples’ relationships. Interdependence theory and the minority stress model are used to examine actor-partner effects of internalized homophobia, discrimination, and perceived stress on perceptions of relationship quality in same-sex couples. Couples were recruited through web-based solicitations (N = 131). Path analysis and Kenny’s (1996) technique for examining interdependent relationships for exchangeable dyad members were used to identify between- and within-couple differences. Internalized homophobia and discrimination were found to impact couple members in unique ways. Higher levels of internalized homophobia and discrimination were predictive of less favorable perceptions of relationship quality. As hypothesized, the impact of perceived discrimination and/or victimization was mediated by perceived stress.

The effect of childhood maltreatment on adult criminality: a tobit regression analysis.

This article reports on the results of an analysis of a data set containing information on 667 nonmaltreated and 908 maltreated children. The data also contain information on whether the study subjects were arrested in early adulthood. Because adult arrests are an imperfect and censored measure of antisocial behavior, tobit regression analysis was used to examine the effect of the subjects’ experiences of child maltreatment on later arrests while controlling for those subjects’ demographic characteristics. The analysis finds that children’s age, race, and sex and experiences of child neglect all have an impact on subsequent adult arrests. However, physical abuse and sexual abuse do not emerge as statistically significant predictors of arrests in this model. The study also illustrates a method for the decomposition of tobit coefficients to extract more information from them.

Perceptions of Victimization Risk and Fear of Crime Among Lesbians and Gay Men

Research on fear of crime has evolved to suggest the existence of a complex relationship between individual, lifestyle, and contextual factors. Past work generally focuses on predominantly heterosexual populations; this study examines correlates of fear of crime and perceptions of risk among a sample of 272 self-identified lesbians and gay men. Higher levels of perceived risk and fear of victimization were found among females, persons in neighborhoods characterized by incivility, and persons who had experienced previous victimization. Perceived risks of personal and property victimization were similar for males and females. Contrary to past research, women did not seem to view all types of potential victimization as opportunities for sexual assault. Instead, fear of victimization was offense specific—past personal victimization predicted fear of future personal victimization, and past property victimization predicted fear of future property victimization. Similarities and differences between current findings and suggestions for future research are discussed.

An Exploratory Study of Religiosity and Same-Sex Couple Relationships

Abstract An apparent lack of empirical research on religiosity and same-sex couple relationships led to an exploratory examination of the role of religiosity in the relationships of 90 same-sex couples. For most couple participants, religious expression took an internal or private form rather than a public form. Couples tended to be homogamous in their religiosity. Couple homogamy of intrinsic religiosity (but not of affiliation or public/private religious activities) was associated with higher relationship satisfaction. Couples used various strategies to address conflicts between sexual identity and religiosity including abandoning public religiosity in favor of private religious expression or retaining a public expression by integrating or compartmentalizing sexual minority identities. Implications for future research and practice are discussed.

An Examination of Intimate Partner Violence and Psychological Stressors in Adult Abortion Patients

The purpose of this article is to describe an exploratory study examining the relationship between intimate partner violence and psychological stressors in a sample of 188 adult abortion patients. Results indicate the almost 15% of respondents report a history of abuse by the coconceiving partner. In addition, women who reported having had one or more past abortions were more likely to also report that the person involved in the current pregnancy had also emotionally abused them. Women reporting one type of partner abuse were significantly more likely to also report other types of abuse. Women reporting abuse were less likely to report informing their coconceiving partner of their appointment at the clinic, less likely to report that their partner contributed financially to the abortion cost, and more likely to report partner refusal to wear a condom. Women who reported emotional abuse were more likely to score higher on all but one of the psychological stressor scales. The implications of these findings are discussed.

Child and caregiver dropout in child psychotherapy for trauma

This study focused on the identification of variables collected at baseline assessments that predict children and caregivers who are at risk for dropout from treatment. A sample of 115 children and their caregivers who received evidence-based treatment for traumatic stress was utilized for this study. Multinomial logistic regression analyses indicated that caregiver and child age, the childs externalizing behaviors, and the child and caregivers acknowledgment of posttraumatic stress symptoms significantly predicted premature dropout from treatment. Clarification of child and caregiver characteristics that increase the risk of dropout allows for the identification of families in need of additional support to stay in treatment.

AN EXPLORATORY STUDY OF DIFFERENCES IN VIEWS OF FACTORS AFFECTING SEXUAL ORIENTATION FOR A SAMPLE OF LESBIANS AND GAY MEN

An exploratory study of lesbians (70) and gay men (118) from a rural state in the mid-South was conducted using a self-administered, mail-out survey. The nonrandom sample was drawn from organizational mailing lists, snowball sampling, and a convenience sample at a community event. Respondents were asked to indicate the extent to which each of the following affected sexual orientation: genetics, relationship between parents, relationship with parents, birth order, peers, growing up in a dysfunctional family, growing up in a single-parent family, negative experiences with the opposite sex, and positive experiences with the same sex. Similar to studies of heterosexual men and women, these gay men were more likely to view sexual orientation as a result of genetics than the lesbian respondents. Further, the lesbian group were more likely to view positive relationships with the same sex to have a great influence on sexual orientation. These data indicate there are sex differences in views on factors that affect sexual orientation.

Gender Equality, Patriarchal Cultural Norms, and Perpetration of Intimate Partner Violence: Comparison of Male University Students in Asian and European Cultural Contexts

This study examined the relationship between patriarchal cultural norms and violence perpetration by male partners using a subsample of university students in Asia (n = 784) and Europe (n = 575) from the International Dating Violence Study (IDVS) data set. Bivariate analyses indicated Asian students scored significantly higher than Europeans on dominance, hostility to women, jealousy, negative attribution, and violence approval as well as perpetration of severe physical assault in dating relationships. Logistic regression models demonstrated that dominance and violence approval were significant predictors of severe physical and psychological aggression against dating partners. Implications for culturally relevant programming for intimate partner violence prevention are discussed.

Social Stress, Economic Hardship, and Psychological Distress as Predictors of Sustained Abstinence from Substance Use After Treatment

Social characteristics associated with disadvantage, such as racial/ethnic minority status, female gender, and low socioeconomic status (SES), are often associated with increased psychological distress and substance use disorders. This project tests a conceptual model derived from Pearlins social stress theory for predicting abstinence from substance use between baseline and 1-year follow-up in secondary data from a large statewide sample of Kentucky substance abuse treatment participants (N = 1,123). Racial minority status, employment, and higher education level were predictive of substance use at follow-up, while female gender was predictive of abstinence. Limitations, implications for practice, and suggestions for future research are discussed.

Changing Youths' Attitudes Toward Difference: A Community-Based Model that Works

ABSTRACT In a diverse society, prejudice and stereotyping can lead to a myriad of individual and social problems. Research on youth development suggests that inter-group relations can be improved through programs that focus on planned interaction between individuals from diverse backgrounds, and attend to cognitive and emotional aspects of prejudice, along with efforts to build supportive relationships among participants. Anytown U.S.A., a human relations program for high school-aged youth, is designed to achieve these goals. The weeklong program utilizes experiential, cognitive, and behavioral components to increase knowledge of diversity, increase empathy for others, increase self-esteem, and develop a commitment to social change. This paper presents an evaluation of a regional Anytown program and discusses the implications of these findings for future youth develop programming.