Sara E. Gutierres

Influence of popular erotica on judgments of strangers and mates

Two studies were done to investigate the influence of exposure to centerfold erotica on sexual attraction judgments. In Experiment 1, college students judged a photograph of a nude female after being exposed either to control stimuli (abstract art or other average nudes) or to photographs taken from popular erotic magazines. The target was judged as less sexually attractive after subjects had been exposed to popular erotica. Male and female subjects showed parallel patterns of attraction ratings. In Experiment 2, male and female subjects were exposed to opposite sex erotica. In the second study, there was an interaction of subject sex with stimulus condition upon sexual attraction ratings. Decremental effects of centerfold exposure were found only for male subjects exposed to female nudes. Males who found the Playboy-type centerfolds more pleasant rated themselves as less in love with their wives. Results are discussed in light of general gender differences in sexual behavior, and are related to the current controversy about pornography.

Beauty, Dominance, and the Mating Game: Contrast Effects in Self-Assessment Reflect Gender Differences in Mate Selection

An experimental study examined the effects of exposure to physically attractive and dominant same-sex individuals on self-assessments. Consistent with prior findings on mate selection, it was predicted that women’s self-assessments of their mate value would be adversely affected by exposure to highly physically attractive women and would be relatively unaffected by exposure to socially dominant women. Conversely, men’s self-assessments of their mate value were expected to be more affected by the social dominance than by the physical attractiveness of the men to whom they were exposed. Findings for self-assessed judgments of desirability as a marriage partner were in line with hypotheses. Results fit with earlier findings suggesting that such effects may be caused by changes in the perceived population of competitors rather than direct changes in self-perceptions of physical appearance or dominance. Overall, findings are supportive of models assuming domain-specific rather than domain-general cognitive processes.

Sociocultural and Psychological Factors in American Indian Drug Use: Implications for Treatment

Use of alcohol and other drugs has been acknowledged as a serious problem among American Indian populations. This study was designed to 1) compare female and male American Indian substance users in residential treatment on psychological (self-esteem, depression, attributional style) and sociocultural (demographics, personal drug use history, family history, acculturation) variables, and 2) examine relationships of the psychological and sociocultural variables with program completion. Results showed that females experienced more family dysfunction (family members misuse of substances, and emotional, physical, and sexual abuse) than males. Both females and males showed positive change on the psychological measures from treatment entry to treatment completion. The factors predicting dropout before program completion were divorce, use of cocaine and depressants, and living in foster care as a child. Implications for prevention, intervention, and training of treatment service providers are discussed.

Designing Health Promotion Programs for Latinos

In this chapter we examine strategies in program design that include the politics of working with Latino1 communities. We also examine strategies for reaching hard-to-reach members of this population, for enhancing program effectiveness (effect size), and for maintaining initial gains in healthy behavior change. Our views are based on prior health promotion studies including our recent study, “Companeros en la Saltier” (Partners in Health), which is a church-based study of cancer-risk reduction among Latinas, that is, Latino women.2 Health promotion in Latino populations is challenging, particularly when working with Latinos who live in low-income, disrupted communities where many unhealthy environmental conditions compete with efforts at health promotion. This challenge calls for a deeper understanding of the cultural, social, and psychological factors that must be addressed in designing potent and effective programs that succeed in promoting sound health in various Latino populations.

Relationship of “Risk” Factors to Teen Substance Use: A Comparison of Abstainers, Infrequent Users, and Frequent Users

This study was designed for the purpose of investigating the differences between adolescent substance abstainers, infrequent users, and frequent users on risk factors for substance use related to commitment to education, peer influence, family relationships, and intrapersonal factors. Results from analyses comparing the three groups on the risk factor variables showed that teen substance abstainers and infrequent users are more similar to each other than they are similar to frequent substance users. The study provides support for the contention that preventive efforts may be more successful if targeted at clearly identified groups of problem teen substance users.

Escape/aggression incidence in sexually abused juvenile delinquents

The psychological impact of sexual abuse on children is not a well-understood phenomenon. It has been suggested, however, that such an experience renders the child more aggressive and antisocial. Juvenile delinquency crime data represent a strong test of that assumption. This study reports a continuation of prior research testing a theoretical model which predicts that juveniles subjected to abuse will not become aggressive but will engage in escape and social avoidance behaviors. Analysis of the juvenile delinquency patterns of sexually abused children later arrested for juvenile crimes supported the hypothesis derived from the theoretical model. Abuse did not lead to aggression significantly more than in a control sample of nonabused juveniles, but did significantly increase the frequency of escape infractions.

The relationship between attitudes toward pregnancy and contraception use among drug users

Use of alcohol and drugs during pregnancy is regarded as a serious problem in the medical field. The current study explored gender and ethnic differences in attitudes and behaviors related to sexuality and contraceptive use among European American, Mexican American and Native American female and male clients in drug recovery programs. The study also examined the relationship between sexual abuse, concern for pregnancy, concern for contracting sexually transmitted diseases and contraception use among women drug users. Results showed gender and ethnic differences in attitudes toward pregnancy, abortion and contraceptive use. In addition, both Mexican American and Native American women who had a high concern for pregnancy were more likely to use birth control when they reported sexual abuse than when they reported no abuse. In contrast, European American women with a high concern for pregnancy showed a tendency to use birth control less when they reported abuse than when they did not. The observed attitudinal and behavioral differences between genders and ethnic groups are discussed in relation to design of treatment program components to increase contraceptive use and decrease unwanted pregnancies among drug users.