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Concealing a sexual minority identity at work has been linked to adverse health and employment outcomes. The authors of this paper examine whether LGBQ employee levels of concealment from coworkers and supervisors are linked to perceived workplace climate and LGBQ-identity centrality.

Heterosexism represents a pervasive minority stressor for sexual minority individuals; however, the research presents mixed findings on the association between heterosexism and relational dynamics....

We examined the ways that federal, state, and local marriage recognition influence multiple domains of personal well-being of individuals in same-sex (n = 279) and different-sex (n = 266) relationships. Longitudinal data were collected across the transition to marriage equality (i.e., the U.S. Supreme Court Obergefell v. Hodges [2015] case decision, which resulted in same-sex marriage recognition federally). Prior to the ruling, levels of stigma and psychological distress were higher and family support was lower for individuals who were in same-sex (vs. different-sex) relationships. Levels of life satisfaction and family support were higher for those who were married (vs. not married). Levels of stigma and stress were lower and family support and life satisfaction were higher for those who lived in states that recognized same-sex marriage. A more supportive community climate was also associated with lower levels of stigma and stress and higher levels of family support than less supportive communities. Following the ruling, levels of stigma decreased over time, particularly for individuals in same-sex relationships, after accounting for state and local recognition. Levels of family support also increased, whereas support from friends decreased following the ruling. The findings of this study indicate that federal, state, and local marriage recognition play unique roles in changing the climate of discrimination for individuals in same-sex relationships. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).

Workplace climate matters significantly for lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer, or other sexual minority (LGBQ) employees, given that the presence of workplace hostility or support can affect well-being. The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Climate Inventory (LGBTCI) is a measure of workplace climate for LGBQ individuals, intended to capture the full range of workplace climate from hostility to support. The purpose of this article is to provide evidence that the recommended scoring approach of the LGBTCI needs to be reconsidered. We used latent class analysis to estimate classes of work-related experiences in our sample of 442 LGBQ employees who completed the LGBTCI. A four-class solution fit the data best. Characteristics of each class were identified and consequently labeled: supportive work climate, tolerant work climate, ambiguous work climate, and hostile work climate. Findings suggest that a more accurate measure of workplace climate would include independent scales for support and hostility.

Using a minority stress framework, we examined changes in personal well-being among individuals in same-sex relationships during the transition to federal marriage recognition. Longitudinal panel data from 279 individuals were collected once before and at three time points after the U.S. Supreme Court decision in the Obergefell vs. Hodges case that resulted in federal recognition of same-sex marriage. Prior to the ruling, levels of internalized homonegativity, isolation, and vicarious trauma were positively associated with psychological distress. Levels of felt stigma and vicarious trauma were negatively associated with life satisfaction. Following the ruling, trajectories of psychological distress decreased over time for individuals who experienced higher (vs. lower) initial levels of internalized homonegativity, isolation, and vicarious trauma. Trajectories of life satisfaction increased over time for individuals who experienced higher (vs. lower) initial levels of vicarious trauma. These changes occurred over and above the effects of state and local recognition and marital status.

The aim of this study is to investigate interpersonal needs and life satisfaction among lesbians in rural Spain. Forty in-person interviews were conducted to collect both survey and interview data. The quantitative results show that life satisfaction is inversely associated with romantic-emotional loneliness and positively associated with sexual satisfaction. Qualitative data are used to then elucidate these associations. The findings highlight the importance of romantic relationships in the lives of rural lesbians who live in communities that lack organized support for sexual minorities. Increased visibility might help them to better fulfil some of their interpersonal needs.

LGBTQ parents and their children live in every type of community; differences in location are linked to intersections of race, class, gender, and place-based attachments and identities. Residential communities vary in their social climate for LGBTQ issues, and community climate variations have an impact on the health and well-being, as well as the political engagement, of LGBTQ parents and their children. In this chapter, we describe what is known about the climate within local legal, political, religious, educational, and employment contexts that LGBTQ parents and their children traverse in daily living. We summarize the research on how this climate impacts their quality of life. Also, we discuss the importance of understanding communities as ever-changing, in part due to the efforts of LGBTQ parents and their children. Finally, we discuss the importance of future research focused on transgender parents and their children and the need for a more global perspective.

The previous decade has seen a drastic shift in the social environment for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) people. It is not surprising then to find that the perceived “best” and “worst” aspects of life for nonmetropolitan LGBTQ individuals have also changed. We use data from two cohorts of the Rainbow Illinois survey to examine differences between responses in 2000 and 2011. Furthermore, we examine demographic differences in the perception of what is “best” and “worst” among the 2011 cohort. Results suggest that although the general social climate has improved for some, it remains problematic for others. Implications for social service providers are thoroughly discussed.

This study explores how rural, low-income mothers use family-based nature activities to promote the health of themselves and their families. Data were collected through in-person interviews with a ...

In this article, we use case study methodology to provide a detailed description of the life of Lucy, a single, lesbian mother living in a rural community on a low income. Using the lens of stigma and minority stress theory (Meyer, 2003), we highlight the ways in which sexual-minority stress interacts with other life stressors, and analyze how they affect health and well-being. Four main themes emerged to describe Lucy's understanding of these stress processes: the intersection of her identities as a local, lesbian mother; the portability or mobility of these identities; conflicting messages of support and hostility; and the permanent or transitory nature of her stress. We contribute to the literature by examining the tenets of Meyer's original minority stress model and extending its theoretical applications.

While studies with the general population indicate that one’s life satisfaction is related to economic well-being and social support, much less is known about these constructs among lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer (LGBQ) populations. The current study examines the relationship between economic well-being and life satisfaction in a sample of 458 LGBQ individuals. Further, the direct and moderating effects of family and community support are examined. As hypothesized, perceived financial stress and proximal family support each had a significant main effect on life satisfaction. Household income (adjusted by number of individuals living in the household) had a non-linear effect on life satisfaction. Community support for LGBQ individuals was not associated with life satisfaction, and the moderating hypotheses were not supported. The findings and the implications for future research are discussed.

Little is known about involvement in LGBTQ organizations. Factors associated with involvement in nonmetropolitan LGBTQ organizations were examined using logistic regression and survey data from 426 LGBTQ individuals residing in a nonmetropolitan region. Involvement was examined in five types of organizations (professional, social/recreational, religious, political, and community center/charity). The same model testing proximity, generativity, minority stress, and social location hypotheses was repeated for each organization type. Results demonstrate that the generativity hypothesis is most strongly supported. Indeed, emotional attachment to the LGBTQ community significantly increased the odds of involvement in every type of organization. However, the factors associated with involvement otherwise differed by organization type. Implications for organizational leaders are discussed.

This study investigated the experiences of 42 college/university-level instructors with regard to incorporating lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) content into their family-oriented courses. Based on how supportive they rated their colleagues, departments, and institutions for their teaching about LGBTQ issues, and how open they deemed their students to learning about such perspectives, participants were categorized as working in one of three teaching climates: the least positive, moderately positive, or the most positive. Notably, the authors found that educators faced resistance from other faculty members in addition to students. Further, most faculty assessed their students as open to learning about LGBTQ issues, yet teaching about transgender and queer issues appeared to be particularly challenging for some. Perceived challenges varied by the teaching climates in which participants reportedly worked. The challenges and strategies shared by participants have implications for both faculty and administrators concerned with creating more inclusive classrooms and departments.Prior to the 1990s, sexual orientation and gender nonconformity were rarely discussed in higher education, prompting scholars to call for greater inclusion of these issues in course curricula (Allen, 1995; Simoni, 1996). Since the 1990s, college-level instructors in the social sciences have increasingly incorporated lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) issues into their courses. Despite this progress, a national higher education survey found that only slightly more than one half of respondents felt that classrooms were accepting of LGBT people, and only 22% reported that course curricula adequately represented the contributions of LGBT people (Rankin, 2003). Indeed, many instructors teach courses without discussing explicitly the experiences of LGBTQ persons and families (Hackman, 2012), and students-heterosexual, cisgender, and LGBTQ-identified-may be ignorant about such topics (Case, Stewart, & Tittsworth, 2009; Fletcher & Russell, 2001). Thus, there remains a need for further integration of LGBTQ issues into college-level family courses.Basic understanding of sexual orientation and gender identity and expression is important (Fletcher & Russell, 2001), especially for students aiming to become professionals who can competently provide services to a diverse range of individuals and families. Further, family courses are natural settings for discussing some of the most controversial social issues of the past few decades, such as marriage and parenting in the LGBTQ community. Given that citizens are often called upon to shape public policy by voting on issues such as marriage equality, the education of students (i.e., future potential voters) on such matters is paramount. The failure to incorporate LGBTQ content into family courses is a lost opportunity to explore the contemporary social and political significance of these issues (Fletcher & Russell, 2001).Inclusion of LGBTQ content in college courses is also believed to increase students' tolerance of diverse sexualities and gender presentations (Case et al., 2009; Fletcher & Russell, 2001). Inclusion of LGBTQ content in higher education may promote more tolerant attitudes toward LGBTQ people and families, and help to reduce LGBTQ individuals' exposure to stigma; indeed, LGBTQ students, faculty, and staff disproportionately experience harassment at U.S. colleges and universities (Rankin, Blumenfeld, Weber, & Fraser, 2010). Teaching about LGBTQ issues may contribute to an improved learning environment for all.Family scholars have shared their experiences of and recommendations for incorporating these topics into the classroom (Allen, 1995; Fletcher & Russell, 2001). Yet little empirical data exist on the challenges they face or the strategies they employ when teaching about LGBTQ issues. To address this gap, we collected data from 42 college and university instructors about their experiences of incorporating LGBTQ issues into their courses on families. …

Twenty-two parents, representing 15 GLBTQ-parent families living in nonmetropolitan communities in Illinois, were interviewed about their interactions with others in community settings. A total of 345 interactions were coded by sexual orientation salience (no, yes) and setting (private, public, organizational). Roughly half of the interactions (N = 156, 45%) were those in which parents said that their sexual orientation did not matter; nonsalience was more likely to occur in private or organizational settings rather than public. Regarding salience, parents described a slightly higher proportion of interactions in which their sexual orientation did matter (N = 189, 55%). Of these, salience was most likely to occur in organizational settings rather than public or private. Parents most commonly described salience that occurred in organizational settings as negative rather than positive. Regarding desired resources, parents prioritized support and socialization for their children rather than for themselves, b...

A positive attachment to one's residential community has been linked to better mental health (McLaren, 2009), stronger social support (Young, Russell, & Powers, 2004), and a higher quality of life (Mak, Cheung, & Law, 2009). Attachment to residential community has been understudied in research on lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) families. The current study attempts to fill this gap by using family and minority stress theories to examine the predictors of residential community attachment among 77 lesbian mothers living in nonmetropolitan communities. Our findings indicate that stronger residential community attachment is predicted by more frequent contact with family of origin, low religiosity, and an interaction between close LGBT friendships and the presence of at least one local LGBT organization. Contrary to expectations, anti-LGBT victimization perpetrated by community members did not have an effect on residential community attachment. Key Words: attachment to community, family of origin, LGBT community, lesbian mothers, nonmetropolitan, religiosity. Attachment to community is the emotional connection between person and place (Altaian & Low, 1992). It lies at the person-environment nexus such that who one is (identity) is merged with where one is (place; Stedman, 2002). A positive attachment to one's residential community has been linked to better mental health and social support (McLaren, 2009; McLaren, Jude, & McLachlan, 2008; Young, Russell, & Powers, 2004) as well as general quality of life (Mak, Cheung, & Law, 2009). Further, place attachment has been linked to place-protective behavior such that "we are willing to fight for places that are more central to our identities and that we perceive as being in less-than-optimal condition' ' (Stedman, 2002, p. 577). Thus, place attachment can have positive implications for individuals, families, and their communities. REVIEW OF LITERATURE Attachment to residential community has been understudied in research on lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) families. Instead, we have a canon that has historically either ignored residential context or oversampled from urban areas (Oswald, 2007). This "metronormative" (Herring, 2007) stance is changing, thanks in part to Census data that documents samesex partner households in virtually every U.S. county; when these households include children they are likely to reside in less urbanized counties (Gates & Ost, 2004). The emerging social science research has found that nonmetropolitan areas pose both constraints and opportunities (Cohn & Hastings, 2010; Holman & Oswald, in press; Kinkier & Goldberg, 2011; Kosciw, Greytak, & Diaz, 2009; Oswald & Culton, 2003; Oswald & Masciadrelli, 2008). The question remains, however, as to why LGBT people, and parents in particular, would choose to live outside of an urban "gay mecca" (Stacey, 2006); presumably in these meccas LGBT families would be considered "normal" and have relatively easy access to LGBT-affirming resources. We surmise that LGBT people live where they do because they are attached to it; they have important emotional connections to their residential communities that may be related to sexuality, but may also be related to aspects of their lives not pertaining to their sexuality. We used ordinal regression to examine what factors predict attachment to community among a survey sample of 77 nonmetropolitan lesbian mothers. Residential community attachment was measured with a single item question; the rationale for, and limitations of, this approach are discussed. This research has theoretical and substantive importance because it can move us beyond urban versus rural stereotypes to understand the diversity of LGBT families and the complexities of nonmetropolitan communities. Further, it has practical importance for policy makers and practitioners who wish to promote the social inclusion of lesbian mothers and their families. …

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is a significant concern for some lesbian households with children. Yet we know of only one study that has examined lesbian mothers' experiences with IPV. In the current study we analyzed the counseling experiences of participants in our prior study. Interviews with 24 lesbian mothers (12 Black, 9 White, and 3 Latina) 23 to 54 years of age ( M = 39.5) were coded using thematic analysis. Overall, lesbian mothers experiencing IPV did seek help from counselors ( n = 15, 63%), typically after reaching a breaking point. Counselors were most helpful when addressing the abuse and promoting self-empowerment, and least helpful when victim-blaming or ignoring the abuse and/or the same-sex relationship. Lesbian mothers' perceptions that mental health professionals were sometimes ineffective have implications for provider training. In order to work effectively with this population, providers should attempt to eliminate or correct personal biases or prejudices with self-exploration and education. By becoming more aware and knowledgeable of the nuances, struggles, and strengths of the lesbian community, providers can gain competency in providing therapeutic services to such clients. Mental health professionals can also adopt an advocacy stance to assist in spreading cultural awareness to others and support policy or institutional changes to include same-sex IPV. Competencies can be assessed through future studies that identify the knowledge and skills gap among mental health professionals who frequently work with the lesbian population.

Community climate is the degree of support for GLBT people within a specific locale. In this paper we describe the elements of community climate, theorize how it is produced, and argue that this approach provides an important elaboration of Meyer's (2003) minority stress model. Furthermore, we present a new methodology for assessing community climate that could be used by any researcher with a geographically diverse data set that includes location identifiers such as ZIP code. In closing we discuss the theoretical, empirical, and practical contributions that could be made by GLBT family scholars who utilize this new technique for measuring community climate.

Life course theory and the concept of emerging adulthood were used to examine the visions of fatherhood among 14 gay men between the ages of 18- 25 years. Participants were asked to discuss their future fatherhood plans with probes for personal, family, and historical contexts. Grounded theory methods were used to analyze the data. The emergent core narrative was that these men’s plans for the future largely upheld and expanded, rather than challenged, the normative nuclear family ideal. Though barriers were anticipated, they describe their personal and historical contexts as enabling them to pursue family and children in ways that differ from past cohorts of gay men.

Generativity is typically studied as a normative adult inclination expressed through social roles (D.P. McAdams & E. de St. Aubin, 1992). We extend this research by examining generativity through the lenses of social marginality and ritual. Toward this end, we utilize in-depth interview and observational data about family rituals from 49 downstate Illinois residents who participated in a larger survey of nonmetropolitan lesbian and gay life. We first examine their ritual intentions and the locations where they are enacted. Then we identify what makes the rituals generative and identify their facilitating and moderating conditions. The findings suggest a distinction between normative and queer generativity. Our final product is a substantive grounded theory of generativity among sexual minorities that extends current theory.

SUMMARY Twenty-four lesbian mothers (12 African American, 9 White, and 3 Latina) who had experienced physical abuse by a same-sex partner were interviewed. Three types of IPV were found: intimate terrorism, situational violence, and mutual violent control. Further, relationships between mothers/abusers, mothers/children, and abusers/children were examined. Regarding relationships with abusers, 71% of mothers reported lengthy sagas, 17% had worked it out, and 13% made a clean break from the abuser. Regarding relationships with their children, 48% of mothers hid the violence, 26% minimized it, and 26% openly communicated about the situation. Relationships between abusers and the mothers' children were found to be either co-parental (29%), playmate (21%), abusive (21%), or non-parental (21%). Correlations among relational and demographic variables were also examined.

In this article, the authors present a typology for organizing our current knowledge regarding same-sex couples in the United States who have and have not established legal ties between partners. This framework is complemented by a discussion of key rulings that define what is legally possible as well as the introduction of “legal consciousness,” a construct for examining how perceptions of legal authority drive engagement with the legal system. Finally, the authors use their analysis to generate questions for future research and discuss policy and practice implications.

This study examined ecological predictors of structural and moral commitment among cohabiting same-sex couples. Structural commitment was operationalized as the execution of legal documents, and moral commitment was operationalized as having a commitment ceremony. The authors tested 2 logistic regression models using a subsample of Rainbow Illinois survey respondents. First, the execution of legal documents was examined using the entire subsample (n=190). Because antigay victimization may sensitize individuals to the importance of legal protection, actual and feared victimization were hypothesized to predict legalization. These hypotheses were not supported. However, relationship duration, a control variable, did predict legalization. The authors then used data only from those individuals who had executed a legal document (n=150) to determine those who also reported a commitment ceremony (Model 2). Parental status, religiosity, involvement with a supportive congregation, and an interaction between gender and parental status were hypothesized to predict ritualization. Only religiosity and parental status emerged as significant. Results from this study demonstrate the importance of distinguishing between legalization and ritualization. Further, they extend knowledge about how same-sex couple commitment is shaped by noncouple factors, such as time, individual religiosity, and parental status.

Oswald (2000) reported the processes by which heterosexual family weddings may undermine gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender(GLBT) people’s family membership. The present study sought to understand whether family membership during ritual was also conditional for heterosexual people. Toward that end, Oswald’s methodology was replicated with heterosexual participants. Although faced with multiple pressures, at no time did these difficulties challenge their sense of belonging to family. On the contrary, they functioned to pull heterosexual family members closer to the core of membership. The fear of gossip or inciting the wrath of loved ones appeared to be primary mechanisms that led heterosexual people to uphold their status as family members through conformity.

Preston and D'Augelli situate anti-gay stigma within the organization of rural communities, examine how gay men negotiate that stigma within the context of family, romantic, and sexual relationship...

Heterosexism as an interpersonal dynamic at weddings was examined using feminist critical science. Data were collected from 45 gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people who attended focus groups. Gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender participants described multiple interactions in which they were devalued or hidden, while heterosexuality was elevated, as well as interactions in which they or another family member resisted heterosexism. Weddings were perceived to be difficult, and participation in them was questioned. As part of their critique of weddings, participants offered a vision of relationships that was based on commitment, rather than heterosexuality or material benefits. Results of this study were used to create a brochure and website for educating hetero-sexual people planning weddings.

Under the Rainbow: Rural Gay Life and Its Relevance for Family Providers* We surveyed 527 nonmetropolitan gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender people (GLBT) and inductively analyzed their responses to open-ended questions regarding the "best" and "worst" aspects of being GLBT in that area, and how to improve their lives as rural GLBT people. Field observations supplemented the qualitative data. "Best things" included close relationships, high quality of life, involvement with GLBT social networks or organizations, and self-acceptance. "Worst things" included weak and fragmented GLBT resources, living within a homophobic social climate, and lacking equal rights. Suggested improvements included pursuing civil rights, fostering a supportive climate, and strengthening personal relationships. Ways that family professionals can develop commitment to GLBT people, enhance existing services, and advocate for political change are discussed. Key Words: community, gay, lesbian, rural, sexual orientation. Ramona: Driving south from Chicago on Highway 57 there is an abrupt shift where the city ends and prairie begins. The sky suddenly opens over vast cornfields and a loud quiet settles on your ears. The first time I encountered this shift my heart sank with the realization that I was about to become a prairie resident. Having spent half my life in south Minneapolis, a place where lesbians take for granted a tremendous array of visible and accessible resources, I was stunned to find myself within a geography that appeared to offer absolutely nothing. Like the urban gays and lesbians interviewed by Weston (1995), I believed in the "gay imaginary," the notion that rural life is profoundly hostile to gay men and lesbians, and that urban gay ghettos are the homeland "over the rainbow" where one can find true family, community, and happiness. Linda: Growing up in a town with less than 1,000 people, marrying a farmer (my childhood sweetheart), and raising our children in that same community taught me both the joys and pitfalls of rural life. I was always aware that gay people existed in my community, but we were implicitly taught to never acknowledge such a difference. In 1996 my oldest son committed suicide at age 21. Although the truth died with him, I suspect that he was struggling with his sexuality and felt that he would never belong. I will never know the truth about my son's situation, but his death opened my eyes to the impact that silence has on people's lives. By failing openly to accept differences, my home community made real the gay imaginary. The prevailing wisdom appears to be that "rural" and "gay" are incompatible. This notion has been upheld by omission within academia: Rurality and sexuality rarely are integrated in social science research (Bell & Valentine, 1995). However, our training as feminist scholars has sensitized us to reflexively examine the gaps between mythology and lived experience (Lather, 1991). Despite the allure and opportunity that cities may hold, some gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender (GLBT) people choose to live in more rural surroundings. Therefore, here we look more carefully at the lives of nonmetropolitan GLBT people and reconsider the accuracy of the gay imaginary. Our purpose is to present descriptive findings regarding the positive and negative aspects of rural gay life and show how family professionals can be part of strengthening the available supports. We use the terms rural and nonmetropolitan interchangeably. (Although nonmetropolitan is more accurate given the geographical range covered by this study, it is cumbersome and less readily understood.) Review of Literature Rural culture is traditionally organized by kinship systems that link blood lineage, legal marriage, and land ownership (Boswell, 1980). Cultural coherence is bolstered when there is consistency and fluidity between family, community, and religious systems (Salamon, 1992). …

This article reviews the literature on gay and lesbian family networks as a way to identify the resilience processes that enable members to create and strengthen their family networks. Two processes, intentionality and redefinition, were identified. Intentionality refers to behavioral strategies that legitimize and support relationships. Redefinition refers to meaning making strategies that create linguistic and symbolic structures to affirm one's network. Brief comparisons are made to the literature on resilience in ethnic minority families, and careful study of the similarities and differences between gay and lesbian family networks, and other marginalized families, is urged.

Nine gay, lesbian, and queer adults who were raised in rural areas but now live in the city returned to their families and communities of origin to attend family weddings. The shift from urban to rural, nonfamily to family, everyday to ritual, was a shift by which they renegotiated their sense of self as different from their families and communities of origin. What it meant to be gay, lesbian, or queer (GLQ) depended upon specific interaction contexts. The negotiation of being different as GLQ occurred within dialectics of visibility/invisibility, closeness/distance, and comfort/discomfort during weddings. Results presented here emerged as significant within a larger study of heterosexism and family ritual. Data were collected in focus group interviews and analyzed inductively using a combination of family discourse and grounded theory methods.

Survey data collected from 400 non-metropolitan gay men and lesbians were used to examine what factors lead them to attend a family-of-origin ritual and affect their sense of belonging during the event. The present study was inspired by qualitative findings regarding the production of outsider status during rituals. Attendance and belonging were both predicted by type of ritual and the quality of relationships with families of origin. Also, partners were more likely to be invited when the couple relationship was more visible. Residential community climate, age, income, and gender were not significant. The family membership complexities of gay and lesbian people are discussed, and a more nuanced understanding of membership during ritual is encouraged.

SUMMARY This exploratory study begins to redress a critical gap in the literature on committed same-sex relationships and last name practices. Data were gathered from an Internet survey, which included 16 lesbian respondents currently in a same-sex relationship. Analyses explored individual, couple, and family of origin factors associated with changing or not changing one's name. Name-changing was cited as a strategy for securing external recognition and acceptance of family status by outsiders. Not changing was cited as a strategy to preserve each partner's individual identity. Contrary to our expectations, changing one's last name was not associated with having a commitment ceremony. Instead, name-changing was ritualized on other occasions, special to the individual couple, such as an anniversary, a partner's birthday, or an intimate dinner party among friends.

To understand what happened when young women come out as bisexual or lesbian, 6 college-age bisexual or lesbian women who had recently come out, and 25 of their family members and friends, were interviewed about how the woman's coming out affected their relationships. Each was analyzed separately, using grounded theory coding techniques. The overall findings across the six relationships are presented here. Inductive qualitative analysis revealed changes in communication, relationship structure, and beliefs. Communication changes included talking about coming out, engaging in conflict, and asking questions of self and others. Changes in relationship structure included building community and negotiating closeness and distance. Changes in beliefs included testing one's own sexuality and changing one's mind about bisexual and homosexual people. Overall, coming out was embedded within the relationships and events of everyday life.

Family is viewed as central to Latin American society, and yet little is known about the interdynamics between husbands and wives within a patriarchal society that has had strong influences from the Roman Catholic Church. Family is the context in which cultural values and norms about gender roles are formed and transmitted from one generation to another (Castillo de Miranda, 1993; Gonzdlez de la Rocha, 1994), and a major part of how gender roles are identified in families is through decision making processes. Decision making processes within marriages are key to understanding the dynamics that occur within these relationships (Rettig, 1993) and also to understanding how the public and private domains of a society interact (Jelin, 1991). This is because decision making processes reveal interaction and agency within relationships, and can indicate where individuals are acting out or resisting social norms. Just as an association between the power dynamics and decision making processes between husbands and wives is often drawn too quickly without a breadth and depth of understanding about the processes, so too, has the gender differentiation of the public-private duality (domestic-private/female/powerless domain in opposition to public/male/powerful domain) led to the analysis of household activities in isolation from the sociocultural and socioeconomic context of the societies in which they are embedded. Although this study can only be viewed as exploratory, it begins to provide some means for dialogue about whether there is a pattern of gender norms for decision making within Panamanian couples. The study has two purposes: (a) to investigate perceptions of decision making process, outcome and implementation within urban Panamanian couples, and, (b) to investigate the amount of convergence between the perceptions of husbands and wives. DECISION CONTEXT AND PROCESS Most family decision making studies have emphasized the outcomes of decision making until recently (McDonald,1980; Olson & Cromwell,1975; Safilios-Rothschild,1976; Scanzoni & Polonko, 1980; Scanzoni & Szinovacz, 1980), when they began to use the organizing concepts of decision context and process (Danes, 1993; Danes & Rettig, 1993; Godwin & Scanzoni, 1989a, 1989b; Hill & Scanzoni, 1982). The decision context of this study is greatly affected by the foundations of Panamanian society. Culture and politics, along with strong sociocultural norms rooted in the Roman Catholic Church, have created an environnent where public and private life are viewed as separate (Jelin, 1991). Family is understood to be a private institution and is so defined in public documents. Panama's constitution indicates that the state will create an organism to protect the family and promote responsible fatherhood and motherhood. The constitution also recognizes the Roman Catholic faith as the country's predominate religion (Meditz & Hanratty, 1989). A renewal movement by the Catholic Church began in the 70s and 80s in the urban areas to promote the establishment of community services for the poor and educational courses to solidify the familial base within the communities (Flores, 1990; Opazo, 1988). Given these foundations, family life and domestic labor are taken for granted as existing within a private sphere that is outside the realm of scientific investigation (Jelin,1991). Although there is little discussion about family decision making patterns in the Latin American literature on families in the United States, there is a wealth of literature addressing the social and cultural context surrounding gender roles in Latin American societies. The twin phenomena of machismo and marianismo are said to influence a pattern of expectations based on real or imagined attributes of individuals (Scott, 1986; Stevens, 1973). The chief characteristics of machismo are exaggerated aggressiveness and an uncompromising stance in male-to-male interpersonal relationships, with callousness and sexual aggression in maleto-female relationships. …

LGB military families will be increasingly visible now that Don’t Ask/Don’t Tell has been repealed, and the military has stated that these servicemembers and their families are to be treated equally. Achieving equality in policy, practice, and attitudes will, however, take time and effort. Current Federal laws (e.g., the Defense of Marriage Act) prevent LGB servicemembers from being treated equally. Also, it is likely that anti-LGB attitudes held by some servicemembers did not simply end when DADT was repealed. Further, the military stance of neutrality is problematic given the need for LGB-affirming resources. These barriers to equal service are important to remedy because their existence may inhibit the strength of LGB military families, and the willingness of LGB adults to continue as enlisting as members of the U.S. armed forces.

Few studies of the climate in engineering for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) students have been conducted. According to these studies, LGBT students are often forced to cope with hostile climates in engineering. To address the question of how LGBT students experience the climate in engineering, we interviewed a total of 16 students at two institutions in the Midwest. We analyzed the interview transcripts using open coding based on a combination of Meyer's Minority Stress Theory and Tinto's Theory of Student Departure. Preliminary results indicate that LGBT students experience more situations of exclusion within engineering than in other areas of their campuses. Based on their experiences, students advocate increased visibility for LGBT students in engineering and a mentoring program to provide support from engineering faculty and graduate students who also identify as LGBT.

Lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals and their families are often presumed to live in urban “gay Meccas” rather than nonmetropolitan and more rural parts of the USA. However, this urban stereotype is simply not true, particularly for LGB-parented families. LGB parents and their children live in a diversity of community settings, and these communities vary in their levels of support for LGB families. The purpose of this chapter is to document what is known about how the daily lives of LGB families are differentially impacted by where they live. Using minority stress theory, we examine the influences of geographical and demographic diversity as well as community climate, which includes legal, religious, political, workplace, and educational dimensions. Furthermore, we discuss how communities can change to be more LGB affirming.

Mothers in same-sex relationships face unique challenges when help seeking for intimate partner violence (IPV). Formal helping systems often invalidate their family relationships, leaving them vulnerable and distrustful when help seeking. To better understand their experiences, the authors interviewed 24 lesbian/bisexual mothers who were either in or had left abusive same-sex relationships. Increasing severity of violence, effects of violence on children and families, and “being tired” influenced their definitions of the situation. Decisions to seek formal help appeared to be influenced by their support from informal networks and perceived stigma related to the intersection of IPV and being lesbian or bisexual.

We explored how Korean American (KA) physicians in the Los Angeles area respond in their medical practice to Korean immigrant women with a history of intimate partner violence (IPV). Twenty physicians were recruited and interviewed in-depth. Grounded theory analyses revealed that KA physicians’ responses to IPV ranged from denying signs of IPV and trivializing IPV to acknowledging IPV. Physician response was related to the degree to which he or she was enculturated in mainstream medical practice norms in the United States. We advance current knowledge on physicians’ IPV screening and intervention practices by exploring the practices of KA physicians, in particular.

This article analyzes the experiences of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people who attended family weddings in order to understand how outsiderwithin status can be produced during religious ritual. Though all participants constructed themselves as outsiders relative to religion during weddings, only those from religiously conservative families linked their position to family dynamics. Results challenge the idea that rituals necessarily produce a sense of belonging, bring empirical attention to religion as an ongoing family issue for GLBT people, and suggest that religious diversity and liberalism can promote family cohesion.