This study used a sample of 293 lesbian, gay, and bisexual youth to examine factors that differentiated youth whose parents knew of their sexual orientation from youth whose parents did not know. Earlier awareness and disclosure of same-gender attractions, greater childhood gender atypicality, and less internalized homophobia were characteristic…

Domestic violence (DV) is a pattern of behaviors in the context of an intimate relationship, which can be manifested in emotional, physical, or sexual abuse. DV currently represents a social and a public health issue. This study is an effort to foster a better understanding of DV among same-sex couples. In it, the authors included the…

The debate among scholars and gay activists and religious/political activists about the appropriateness and efficacy of conversion therapy has left out a number of individuals for whom neither gay-affirmative nor conversion therapy may be indicated. The present discussion, through the use of case material, offers considerations for the…

Despite a long history of viewing homosexuality as pathological and in need of change, the majority of mental health professions have, during the past 30 years, adopted statements that have depathologized lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals. However, concurrent with these advances has been a rise in religious and therapeutic approaches to…

There are an estimated 2 to 10 million gay and lesbian parents raising from 6 to 14 million children in the United States. Research has revealed few measurable differences between gay and lesbian families and heterosexual families. However, as a result of living in a homophobic and heterosexist society, gay and lesbian families face unique…

This study extended research on prejudice against lesbian and gay (LG) persons by examining theoretically grounded links between intrapersonal and interpersonal manifestations of such prejudice. On the basis of G. A. Kelly's (1955/1991a, 1955/1991b) conceptualization of threat, the authors operationalized intrapersonal homophobia, or LG threat, as…

This article theorizes the issue of validity from a social constructionist perspective, particularly as it is applied to the assessment of qualitative research. Validity must be interrogated for its discursive function within the social sciences. I will argue that, as a criterion of assessment, validity polices the social science enterprise and…

Significant obstacles stand in the way of analyzing the integration of gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgendered (GLBT) faculty members into the U.S. professoriate. Whereas the National Center for Education Statistics, the U.S. Census Bureau, and other agencies collect voluminous, valuable data on race, gender, and ethnicity, few data exist for…

This article explores a theory of narrative that can account for its underlying structures and can critique a paradox of consciousness-raising: that the more that narratives are privileged in teacher education, the less we know about how this narrative affects what will come to be said about teacher education's reliance upon stories of experience…

Schools are experiencing an increased level of litigation about issues pertaining to sexual orientation. This monograph provides educators and attorneys with a comprehensive analysis of this litigation along with practical tips for avoiding lawsuits in this sensitive area. The monograph consists of six chapters and addresses the following topics:…

This article explores the ways in which high school girl popularity is constructed as heterosexual and normatively gendered, leaving lesbian adolescents on the periphery of the high school social scene. Based upon data from a larger critical life history study with adolescent lesbians, this article explores their experiences of school, friendship,…

This study investigated tenth- and twelfth-grade adolescents' (N less than or equal to 264) judgments about the acceptability of same-sex peers who varied in terms of their sexual orientation (straight, gay or lesbian) and their conformity to gender conventions or norms in regard to appearance and mannerisms or activity. Overall, the results of…

Mirroring increased cultural and disciplinary attention to sexuality, many introductory sociology textbooks have begun to include coverage of the topic. Our study first assesses the extent of textual coverage of sexuality in a sample of 38 introductory textbooks published after 2000. Secondly, we focus on 14 textbooks with a sexuality chapter…

The excesses of the modern prom often require principals to play the roles of police, fashion arbiters, and even parents. In the midst of the 2007 junior and senior prom season, school leaders attest to a mounting list of policies, regulations, and security measures they are enforcing for the year's big social event. Indeed, the prom, a…

Objective: The aim of this study is to assess community-based support for intervening on behalf of children exposed to intimate partner violence (IPV) and to determine what contextual and respondent characteristics are associated with that support. Method: An experimental vignette design was used in a random-digit-dial survey of six ethnic groups…