"I like my beer cold, my TV loud, and my homosexuals flaming!" : preference for stereotype consistency as a function of a person x situation interaction /

The study centers on the power of Right-Wing Authoritarianism (RWA) and Social Dominance Orientation (SDO) as predictors of prejudice against stereotypical and nonstereotypical homosexuals under the threat of death and the threat of uncertainty. Right-wing authoritarianism (RWA) is an individual difference variable that measures the tendency for individuals to unquestionably follow those perceived to be authorities. Social Dominance Orientation (SDO) is an individual difference variable that measures the degree to which an individual prefers inequality among social groups. The RWA and SDO Scales are considered to be two of the strongest predictors of prejudice, such as prejudice against homosexuals. The study focuses on the unique predictive power of these two variables in predicting prejudice against homosexuals. The study also examines the role of situational threat in prejudice, specifically the threat of death (mortality salience) and the threat of uncertainty (uncertainty salience). Competing predictions from theories involving the threat of death (Terror Management Theory) and the threat of uncertainty (Uncertainty Management Theory) are also tested. The preference for expected information in the form of stereotypes concerning male homosexuals (that is, a stereotypical or non-stereotypical homosexual) were tested. The difference between the predictive power ofRWA and SDO was examined by measuring how these variables predict liking of a stereotypical or non-stereotypical homosexual under the threat of death, the threat of uncertainty, or a control condition. Along with completing a measure for RWA and a measure for SDO, participants were asked to think of their own death, of their being uncertain or about watching television then were asked to read about a week in the life of either a stereotypical or non-stereotypical male homosexual. Participants were then asked to evaluate the individual and his essay. Based on the participants' evaluations, results from 180 heterosexual university students show that RWA and SDO are strong predictors for disliking of a stereotypical homosexual under the threat of uncertainty and disliking of a non-stereotypical homosexual under the threat of death. Furthermore, however, results show that RWA is a particularly strong predictor of disliking of a stereotypical homosexual under the threat of uncertainty, whereas SDO is an exceptionally strong predictor of disliking of the non-stereotypical homosexual under the threat of death. This further adds to the notion that RWA and SDO are indeed unique predictors of prejudice. Implications are also explored, including the fact that the study simuhaneously examined the role of individual difference variables and situational threat variables, as well as exploratory analysis on Dominating Authoritarians.

Educational issues perceived by expectant lesbian couples /

Despite the increasing public profile of lesbian childbearing, public health resources for expectant women often bear heterosexist assumptions and create barriers to accessing information relevant to lesbian mothering experiences. This descriptive, exploratory study examined one lesbian couple's perceived educational needs for effective support, barriers to access, strategies for locating care, and the impact of childbearing on their lives, as well as their reflections on inviting ways to offer supportive practices in a public health context. A case study approach used feminist ethnographic methodology and purposeful convenience sampling. A prenatal and a postnatal open-ended interview were completed with 1 white, middle-class, able, lesbian childbearing couple, each ofwhom has birthed as coparent and biological mother in this couple relationship. Despite this couple's immense situated privilege, they struggled to locate the support they sought for childbearing in a way that offered optimal emotional and physical care from the preconceptual to postpartum stages and which maintained confidentiality or anonymity as desired. They created meaningful care through personal networks. The findings were framed using invitational and feminist theories: how people, places, programs, processes, policies, and politics contributed to educational support. A three part conceptual framework emerged which identified components of access to support: perceived safety of resources, disclosure status, situated privilege, and public or private availability of information. The consequences of lack of public access to comprehensive childbearing care for lesbian women and their communities are described. Educational possibilities addressed systemic heterosexism through the development of sensitive educators, meaningful curriculum, program planning, explicit policies, community partnerships, and political leadership with respect to both institutional and research venues.

Queer Encounters: exploring experiences of (gender)queers in women's public washroom spaces

This thesis is based on 13 qualitative interviews conducted with 12 individuals whom I refer to as (gender)queers in Winnipeg, Manitoba, and St. Catharines, Ontario. Drawing on queer theory and the literature of sexuality and space, I explore how (gender)queers experience women's public washrooms as gendered and heterosexualized spaces. I examine the degree to which a simultaneous heterosexing and female gendering of women's public washrooms is linked to the marginalization and sometimes violent exclusion of (gender)queers within these particular spaces. I also discuss the ways in which (gender)queers may use a variety of strategies aimed at navigating heterosexualized and gendered public washrooms. Finally, I explore alternatives to conventional washrooms spaces, including the gender-neutral washrooms, multi-stall non-gendered public washrooms, and public washrooms in queer spaces.