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In this paper published in Social Science and Medicine we introduce the construct of “internalized gay ageism,” or the sense that one feels denigrated or depreciated because of aging in the context of a gay male identity, which we identify as an unexplored aspect of sexual minority stress specific to midlife and older gay-identified men. We find that internalized gay ageism can reliably be measured among these men, is positively associated with depressive symptoms net of an array of other factors that may also influence symptomatology (including depressive symptom histories), and mattering partially mediates but does not moderate its effect on depressive symptoms. Midlife and older gay men have traversed unparalleled historical changes across their adult lives and have paved the way for younger generations of sexual minorities to live in a time of less institutionalized discrimination. Still, they are at distinct risk for feeling socially invisible and devalued in their later years.

Sexual minority stress, along with aging-related stress, jeopardizes the mental health of midlife and older gay men. In the study, sexual minority stress included the men’s perceptions that they needed to conceal their sexual orientation or that others were uncomfortable with or avoided them because of their sexual orientation. The study also found that legal marriage for same-sex couples may confer a unique protective effect against poor mental health. Having a same-sex domestic partner or same-sex spouse boosted the emotional health of the studied men, but having a same-sex legal spouse appeared to be the most beneficial relationship arrangement.The study’s findings further suggest that targeted campaigns may be necessary to address this generation of gay men’s heightened risk for poor mental health. In addition to sexual orientation stigma, the studied men’s mental health was also negatively affected by having experienced the loss of many of their peers to AIDS. General aging-related stress, such as concerns over finances and independence, also affected the mental health of these midlife and older gay men.The study was based on self-administered questionnaires completed in 2009 or 2010 by approximately 200 HIV-negative and HIV-positive gay-identified men between the ages of 44 and 75. The studied men were a subsample of participants in the UCLA component of the Multicenter AIDS Cohort Study, one of the largest and longest running natural-history studies of HIV/AIDS in the United States.The study was conducted by Richard G. Wight, MPH, PhD (Department of Community Health Sciences, School of Public Health, and the Williams Institute, School of Law, UCLA), Allen J. LeBlanc, PhD (Department of Sociology and the Health Equity Institute, San Francisco State University), Brian de Vries, PhD (Gerontology Program, San Francisco State University), and Roger Detels, MD, MS (Department of Epidemiology, School of Public Health, UCLA).

This chapter examines how the historically time-altered trajectory of HIV/AIDS in the United States has influenced the lives of persons living with HIV (PLH) and their midlife and older female caregivers. Our theoretical model integrates the concepts of linked lives, stress proliferation, and future uncertainty. We report on a study of 135 PLH and their caregiving wives or mothers. We find that, net of other stress covariates, future uncertainty is positively associated with depressive symptoms among PLH but not among caregivers. We identify “cross-person” effects in that the caregiver’s perceptions of future uncertainty are positively associated with PLH depressive symptoms.

Closeness is often considered synonymous with better quality romantic relationships. However, individual differences exist in the degree of closeness people desire in their relationships. This study examined the implications that discrepancies between actual and ideal closeness have for relationship quality in romantic couples. A questionnaire was administered to a sample of 103 cohabiting couples (N = 206) in the United States, who were randomly selected from a nationally representative survey panel. Dyadic analysis using actor–partner interdependence models with latent outcomes revealed that internal discrepancies between actual and idealized closeness were associated with poorer relationship quality for both individuals and their partners. These associations persisted above and beyond the effects of actual closeness and dyad-level differences in actual and ideal closeness. The association between closeness and relationship quality may be more individual than dyadic in nature, warranting renewed attention to the idiographic experience of closeness and its association with relational well-being. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Informal care has become an increasingly important element in the delivery of health and social services to people living with HIV disease or AIDS (PWAs), yet the provision of such care does not come without costs to the caregiver. Instead, caregiving imposes burdens that may compromise caregiver health. Common ailments among AIDS caregivers were examined with two waves of data from a diverse sample of informal care providers in Los Angeles and San Francisco (N = 642). Symptoms of poor physical health are markedly present among AIDS caregivers and are significantly associated with care-related demands and stressors. This stress and health relationship varies significantly between caregivers who are HIV seropositive and those who are seronegative. Care-related effects are more direct among seronegative caregivers who are perhaps less overwhelmed with the maintenance of their own health. For all caregivers studied, level of depression and prior physical health are strong correlates of these physical ailments. Implications of these results are discussed. Key words - AIDS, caregiving, stress, health

A genetic linkage map describing Toxoplasma gondii was developed and analyzed. The map for the parasitic protozoan was made by using randomly selected low copy number DNA markers defining restriction fragment length polymorphisms (RFLPs). An analysis of inheritance patterns of 64 RFLP and two phenotic type markers was done. Results indicate that most chromosomes did not undergo internal and intramolecular recombination. These results prove that unknown gene linkage can be established with minimal DNA markers.