2015 Association for Women in Psychology Conference

The notion that part of the development of the sexual identities of lesbian, gay, and bisexual people entails a time period during which an individual conceals his or her sexual identity from others has become commonplace in contemporary American society. This idea is typically encapsulated in the metaphor of the closet, as a place where one keeps his or her sexual identity closed off and secret from the rest of the world. Recent psychological research has suggested some benefits of coming out of the closet, or effectively disclosing their non-normative sexual identity to family members, peers, or coworkers. These include increased positivity in self-concept, reduced anxiety from concealing an important piece of identity from important people in their lives, and increased cohesiveness in identity politics. However, for those who identify as queer, the idea of a metaphorical space to shield one’s identity may appear as a deployment of hetero-(or even homo-)normativity. Queer theory questions the universality of the narrative of the healing coming out process, which may gloss over the, at times, catastrophic impact of this event in some peoples’ lives. Through thematic analysis of survey responses, this poster will assess the dominant themes found in the responses of queer-identified persons. We aim to address the meaningfulness and usefulness of this concept for queer individuals and if/how coming out of the closet may strengthen individual well-being.

Using a resilience based model, this poster will discuss how career counselors can assist transgender clients in developing resilience in the face of widespread bias and discrimination in the American workforce (Grant et al., 2011). It will begin with the definition for the widely used umbrella term “transgender,” along with the definition of “cisgender” and a list of common gender neutral pronouns. This poster will state hardships experienced by transgender individuals in the workplace: rejection, disrespect of preferred name choice and pronouns, denial of a job, name-calling, threats, destruction of property, physical violence, sexual assault, denial of preferred restroom choice, and being fired (Budge et al., 2010; Dietert & Dentice, 2009; Levitt & Ippolito, 2014). In the face of workplace discrimination and hardships in other life domains, transgender individuals cultivate resilience. Studies that capture the different forms of resilience used by transgender individuals will be included. Resilience takes the forms of identity development, a sense of hope, awareness of oppression, advocacy, connecting with other transgender individuals, familial relationships, accessing resources, and spirituality (Singh et al., 2011; Singh & McKleroy, 2011). It is important to note that these resilience strategies are not generalizable to the entire transgender population - more research on the resilience strategies of transgender individuals is ideal. Recommendations will be given of how to assist transgender clients with specific workplace issues and with cultivating specific forms of resilience using Social Cognitive Career Theory and a Social Justice Approach (Burnes et al., 2010; Lent & Brown, 1996). Examples of how to advocate for transgender clients will be given: spearheading the creation of unisex bathrooms, mediating between employers and employees, conducting trainings in workplaces, connecting clients with mentors and support groups, co-authoring legislation related to transgender rights in the workplace, facilitating access to appropriate services, and networking with organizations dedicated to improving the experiences of transgender people in the workplace (McWhirter & O’Neil, 2008). References: Budge, S., Tebbe, E., & Howard, K. (2010). The work experiences of transgender individuals: Negotiating the transition and career decision-making processes. Journal of Counseling Psychology, 57(4), 377-393 Burnes, T., Singh, A., Harper, A., Harper, B., Maxon-Kann, W., Pickering, D., Moundas, S., Scofield, T., Roan, A., & Hosea, J. (2010). American counseling association: Competencies for counseling with transgender clients. Journal of LGBT Issues in Counseling, 4(3-4), 135-159. Dietert, M. & Dentice, D. (2009). Gender identity issues and workplace discrimination: The transgender experience. Journal of Workplace Rights, 14(1), 121-140. Grant, Jaime M., Lisa A. Mottet, Justin Tanis, Jack Harrison, Jody L. Herman, & Mara Keisling (2011). Injustice at Every Turn: A Report of the National Transgender Discrimination Survey. Washington: National Center for Transgender Equality and National Gay and Lesbian Task Force. Lent, R. & Brown, S. (1996). Social cognitive approach to career development: An overview. Career Development Quarterly, 44(4), 310-321. Levitt, H. & Ippolito, M. (2014). Being transgender: Navigating minority stressors and developing authentic self-presentation. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 38(1), 46-64. McWhirter, E. & O'Neil, M. (2008). Transgender identities and gender variance in vocational psychology: Recommendations for practice, social advocacy, and research. Journal of Career Development, 34(3), 286-308. Singh, A., Hays, D., & Watson, L., (2011). Strength in the face of adversity: Resilience strategies of transgender individuals. Journal of Counseling & Development, 89(1), 20-27. Singh, A. & McKleroy, V. (2011). “Just Getting out of Bed is a Revolutionary Act”: The resilience of transgender people of color who have survived traumatic life events. Traumatology, 17(2), 34-44.

The proposed poster will focus on experiences of microaggressions toward lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer (LGBQ) employees in the workplace. Microaggressions have been described as everyday verbal, behavioral, or environmental indignities, whether intentional or unintentional, that convey hostile, derogatory, or negative slights and insults toward members of oppressed groups (Nadal, 2008). Though microaggression research is in its nascent stage, much of the previous scholarly work has focused on racial/ethnic microaggressions. Some microaggression research has concentrated on the LGBQ community; however, this work has been mainly focused on developing a typology of LGBQ microaggressions (Platt and Lenzen, 2011; Nadal et al., 2010; Sue, 2010; Sue & Capodilupo, 2008), describing the negative side effects of LGBQ microaggressions (Burn et al., 2008; Nadal et al., 2011), and LGBQ microaggressions in counseling settings (e.g., Shelton & Delgado-Romero, 2011). Although the workplace has been named as a context where microaggressions occur (Nadal, Rivera, and Corpus, 2010), no scholarly research has examined how LGBQ microaggressions are experienced and expressed within the workplace. The current research used a qualitative approach to identify the types of microaggressions that LGBQ employees experience in their place of employment. Participants included LGBQ self-identified adults (18 or older) who were currently working at least part-time. Our survey expanded upon the previous research by asking participants to describe their experiences of microaggressions in the workplace. In addition participants described existing workplace policies that both prevented and promoted microaggressions in the workplace. Implications of these findings and recommendations for workplace policies will be discussed.

Transgender, or trans, refers to individuals whose gender identity is not concordant with their biological sex. The trans panic claim is a defense that has been applied in assaults on transgender persons, typically transwomen. In most invocations of this defense, a heterosexual male engaged in a romantic or sexual relationship with an individual whom he perceives to be biologically female is confronted with the victim’s transgender identity; the offender unleashes an uncontrollable rage in an assault on the transgender victim. Trans panic defenses allege that these crimes entail temporary insanity or are justifiable due to provocation by the victim. By mitigating punishment for a murder by categorizing it as manslaughter, the Court devalues the lives of transwomen and curtails their liberties of self-expression. Furthermore, the concept of trans panic as a defense appears to conflict with hate crime legislation, which seeks to increase penalties for bias-motivated crimes. The American Bar Association (2013) has made a plea to legislators to abolish the gay and trans panic defenses, “which seek to partially or completely excuse crimes such as murder and assault on the grounds that the victim’s sexual orientation or gender identity is to blame for the defendant’s violent reaction.” They stated that “neither a non-violent sexual advance, nor the discovery of a person’s sex or gender identity, constitutes legally adequate provocation to mitigate the crime of murder to manslaughter, or to mitigate the severity of any non-capital crime.” This presentation evaluates the trans panic defense theoretically and empirically. This is the first known effort to evaluate the validity of such defenses empirically. Empirical findings support the author’s position that trans panic cases would are a subset of hate crime, rather than a subset of manslaughter. The significant implications for sentencing and restorative justice are discussed.

In this poster I will present the findings of a recent qualitative study concerning the therapeutic experiences of lesbian and bisexual women as well as gay men. Despite some indications that treatment experiences have been improving (Liddle, 1999), LGB clients still receive discriminatory and inadequate treatment (Bieschke, Paul, & Blasko, 2007). Studies consistently show that counselors continue to be inadequately trained in the experiences of LGB clients (Murphy, Rawlings, & Howe, 2002; Phillips & Fischer, 1998). Furthermore, even clinicians who seek to offer affirmative therapy may hold unconscious negative biases as a result of growing up within a heterosexist culture (Bieschke et al., 2007). Utilizing Interpretive Phenomenological Analysis (Smith, 2010), this study presents the therapeutic experiences of seven individuals in order to inform competent practice with this population. Results of this study included reflections on the influences of invisibility and visibility on self-categorization, ways in which sexual minority individuals assess the cultural competence of their practitioners, and the influence of heterosexism on expectations of therapy. Participants also discussed situations in which clinicians expressed judgment or lack of knowledge in the therapy. Recommendations concerning how therapists can effectively respond to cultural ruptures will be provided based on these accounts. Furthermore, underlying principles of competent cross-cultural therapy are proposed, which emphasize the importance self-reflective work on the part of the clinician in order to facilitate their ability to provide nonjudgmental acceptance, discuss sexuality with ease, value different ways of approaching relationship, and decrease therapeutic defensiveness. Additionally, participant preferences regarding the sexual orientation of the therapist were explored, and the diversity of preferences reflect variations present within the body of matching research. While this study found that several participants preferred sexual minority therapists, the results also suggest that there are significant benefits to working with culturally competent heterosexual clinicians. Participants described benefiting from the experience of acceptance from a member of the dominant culture, which provided a corrective experience to familial rejection and internalized heterosexism. These accounts suggest that this therapeutic dyad could provide aspects of restorative justice in the microcosm of the therapy room through the witnessing of influences of heterosexism by an educated and reflective heterosexual.

Mental health professionals were interviewed about their experience in therapy with the Hmong GLBT population. Findings include themes regarding clients’ distress, as well as culturally competent strategies to help them manage multiple levels of identity in a society where they have to navigate homophobia, racism, and sexism.

Stereotypes about lesbian women and feminist women characterize these women as “man-haters” (Bell & Klein, 1996; Eliason, Donelan, & Randall, 1992; Swim, Ferguson, & Hyers, 1999). However, previous research has indicated that feminist-identified women do not stereotypically hold negative attitudes toward men and, in fact, have healthy relationships with heterosexual men (Rudman & Phelan, 2007). Similarly, this research aims to challenge stereotypes of lesbian and feminist women. In this study, we examined women’s attitudes toward men by considering the intersection of gender, sexual orientation, and political ideology (i.e., feminist identification). Female participants (N = 322) participated in an online survey that measured feminist identity (Feminist Identity Index; Rudman & Fairchild, 2007; Zucker, 2004), as well as hostile and benevolent attitudes toward men (Ambivalence Toward Men Inventory; Glick & Fiske, 1999). Sixty-seven participants identified as lesbian, 69 participants identified as bisexual, and 186 participants identified as heterosexual (88 heterosexual participants did not identify as feminists). Participants ranged in age from 17 to 67 years old (M = 26 years; 75% White). Results indicate that attitudes toward heterosexual men depend on women’s sexual orientation and feminist identity. Feminist-heterosexual and bisexual women held the most positive attitudes toward men compared to lesbian women and nonfeminist-heterosexual women, F(3, 319) = 4.44, p = .004. Specifically, nonfeminist-heterosexual women (M ¬= 2.65) endorsed benevolent sexism toward men to a greater extent than lesbian women (M = 2.10), feminist-heterosexual women (M = 2.16), and bisexual women (M = 2.30). These results discredit the belief that lesbians and feminists have more biases toward men than other women do. Moreover, this work exemplifies the idea that women do not share homogenous perceptions of men, but rather, their social locations on political and sexual identity spectrums greatly inform their attitudes. Implications for benevolent and hostile attitudes will be discussed.

The purpose of this study is to address the lack of research related to sexual satisfaction in the transgender community. There is a significant lack of research examining factors that may contribute to quality of sex in the transgender community. Research that does exist often focuses on physical factors that either enhance, or hinder sexual satisfaction. The few studies that examine sexual pleasure often use self-report questionnaires, and although many of these questionnaires are valid and useful scales, they fail to explore the reasons behind participant’s sexual satisfaction or dissatisfaction. Furthermore, these questionnaires are often originally created for biological females, and may not address the issues of transgender women. Given the positive benefits of sexual expression on one’s physical and emotional health, it is important to understand the lived sexual experiences of transgender individuals, and to not solely focus on sexual complications or dysfunction. Many of the studies examining sexual satisfaction or functioning are limited to transsexuals who have had sex reassignment surgery (SRS), specifically, vaginoplasty.In addition, they are mainly conducted in Europe or Brazil, and few are done in the United States. Moreover, those done in the United States may be limited in that many participants who could afford this expensive surgery were of higher socio-economic status (SES). This is different in many of the other countries where previous transsexual studies were done, where laws are different with regards to transsexuals (where surgery is available at a lower cost or free). Lastly, there is often a medical bias, in that these studies are often conducted in medical clinics by staff members or doctors who performed the individual’s surgery This qualitative research study includes a face to face semi-structured ninety (90) minute interview that will be used to elicit in-depth information about the interviewee's lived experiences.

The objective of this ethnographic research is to offer an introductory summary of a Subculture Within A Subculture... This research will endeavor to offer powerful social and historical content for the subject’s social emergence, seek to demystify Fetish/Kink/ Bondage, Dominance, Sadism, Masochism (BDSM), to challenge the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual (DSM‐5) Paraphilic and Paraphilic disorder, reframe the A & B diagnostic criteria classifications, to explore the subject’s underground lifestyle from a psychosocial point of view, to offer sixteen (N=16) personal interview findings from sexually variant women of color in the fetish/BDSM lifestyle, and to advocate for inclusive sex‐positive awareness acceptance.

Many rights that heterosexuals take for granted (e.g., marriage, adoption) are still struggles for non-heterosexuals. Many of the arguments against non-heterosexuals’ rights are based in religious ideologies, such as ‘a marriage is between one woman and one man’ or ‘children need one father and one mother.’ Research has indicated that women are more accepting of homosexuality than men. Additionally, lesbian women often face less religious discrimination than gay men. Finally, when asked their attitudes towards homosexuals individually, people are less discriminatory than when they are within a small group. This study further explored the relationships between gender, religiosity, and attitudes towards gays/lesbians. Using secondary data analysis on one author’s thesis data (Z. Kunicki), this current study examined a prediction model of spirituality based upon one’s identified gender and the strength of one’s religiosity. A convenience sample of 222 undergraduates (female = 151, male =69, dta = 2) used an online program to complete a series of surveys that examined religiosity and attitudes about homosexuals. Data were analyzed using a multiple regression with religiosity and gender as predictors of attitudes towards gays/lesbians. One prediction model used both genders together while the other separated the models by gender. Results indicated that using both genders in the model, being a woman was related to more favorable attitudes towards homosexuals, while religiosity scores predicted less favorable attitudes. This finding was true for both genders. However, the separate analyses by gender indicated that religiosity was a bigger influence on men’s attitudes towards gays/lesbians than women’s attitudes. The use of undergraduates as the sample may have been a limitation of this study. Future research should use a more diverse sample. In addition, research should seek to explore how attitudes towards gays/lesbians and other minority groups develop, and if these developments are different for men and women.