Feminism & Psychology current issue

Editorial Introduction: Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans and Queer Health Psychology: Historical Development and Future Possibilities

Peel, E., Thomson, M. — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 07:24:15 PST

Our Health, Our Say: Towards a Feminist Perspective of Lesbian Health Psychology

Fish, J. — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 07:24:16 PST

Although women’s health has been a central concern of feminist psychology, lesbian health has been largely overlooked. Adopting a feminist approach, this article considers the distinctiveness of lesbian health psychology by examining the contexts for lesbian health. Notions of disease and risk have underpinned the endeavour of constituting lesbians’ health as a research discipline. Dominant traditions have established lesbian health psychology along key dimensions of difference from heterosexual women: differences in risk and preventive health behaviours, in healthy behaviours, in experiences of healthcare, in mental health and in experiences of discrimination. In this article, I propose an agenda for a critically informed perspective of lesbian health psychology and for explanations that do not reinscribe pathology.

Chronic Illness in Non-heterosexual Contexts: An Online Survey of Experiences

Jowett, A., Peel, E. — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 07:24:16 PST

In this article we contribute to the expansion of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) health psychology beyond the confines of sexual health by examining the experiences of lesbian, gay and bisexual people living with non-HIV related chronic illness. Using a (predominantly) qualitative online survey, the perspectives of 190 LGB people with 52 different chronic illnesses from eight countries were collected. The five most commonly reported physical conditions were arthritis, hypertension, diabetes, asthma and chronic fatigue syndrome. Our analysis focuses on four themes within participants’ written comments: (1) ableism within LGBT communities; (2) isolation from LGBT communities and other LGB people living with chronic illness; (3) heteronormativity within sources of information and support and; (4) homophobia from healthcare professionals. We conclude by suggesting that LGBTQ psychology could usefully draw on critical health psychology principles and frameworks to explore non-heterosexual’s lived experiences of chronic illness, and also that there remains a need for specifically targeted support groups and services for LGB people with chronic illnesses.

Transgender People in Australia and New Zealand: Health, Well-being and Access to Health Services

Pitts, M. K., Couch, M., Mulcare, H., Croy, S., Mitchell, A. — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 07:24:16 PST

This research had its beginnings in an act of trans activism, including a campaign by a number of trans organizations advocating the need for research dealing with health, well-being and access to health services in relation to this population. This study set out to recruit the broadest possible community sample by using a range of recruitment techniques and an online survey. In total, 253 respondents completed the survey. Of these, 229 were from Australia (90.5%) and 24 (9.5%) were from New Zealand. Respondents rated their health on a five-point scale; the majority of the sample rated their health as ‘good’ or ‘very good’. On the SF36 scale, respondents had poorer health ratings than the general population in Australia and New Zealand. Respondents reported rates of depression much higher than those found in the general Australian population, with assigned males being twice as likely to experience depression as assigned females. Respondents who had experienced greater discrimination were more likely to report being currently depressed. Respondents were asked about their best and worst experiences with a health practitioner or health service in relation to being trans. They contrasted encounters where they felt accepted and supported by their practitioners with others where they were met with hostility.

Discharged for Homosexuality from the Canadian Military: Health Implications for Lesbians

Poulin, C., Gouliquer, L., Moore, J. — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 07:24:16 PST

This study examines the short- and long-term psychological, physical and social health implications associated with pre-1992 investigations and eventual discharge of Canadian military servicewomen for reasons of homosexuality. Theoretically, it sheds light on the impact of the intersection between sexism and heterosexism. The feminist psycho-social ethnography of the commonplace methodology was utilized. The study draws on in-depth semi-structured interviews with 13 former military personnel who self-identified as lesbian. While in the military, study participants were persecuted and forced to adopt various cognitive and behavioural coping strategies to avoid being found out and discharged by the military’s Special Investigative Unit. Women reported that the relentless military surveillance, ongoing risk evaluation, and identity hiding contributed to psychological, physical and social health effects, including high stress, physical exhaustion, depression, substance abuse and social isolation. The criminal code’s definition of torture and the literature regarding the effects of stalking on victims provide context for the results. The discussion presents policy recommendations aimed at repairing the psychological damage that discharged lesbian service members suffered.

The Health and Well-being Implications of Emotion Work Undertaken by Gay Sperm Donors

Riggs, D. W. — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 07:24:16 PST

As reproductive health clinics both within Australia and internationally continue to face a shortfall in the number of available sperm donors, so there exists a growing demand for men willing to donate to clinics. At the same time, and where an increasing number of countries move toward legislating for the release of identifying information about donors to children conceived of their sperm, fewer men report a willingness to act as donors. This article suggests that this is at least in part caused by the considerable ‘emotion work’ involved in sperm donation. Drawing on 21 interviews conducted with gay Australian sperm donors, the article provides a thematic analysis of instances of such emotion work and explores the implications of this for the health and well-being of gay men who donate sperm both to clinics and in private arrangements.

Understandings of Cervical Screening in Sexual Minority Women: A Q-Methodological Study

Darwin, Z., Campbell, C. — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 07:24:16 PST

Discursive perspectives argue that cervical screening carries social and moral meaning. Overlooked by research into the health needs of sexual minority women, previous literature that has examined uptake of cervical screening has instead targeted increasing attendance via information and service provision. In order to explore the diversity of meanings that British sexual minority women have about cervical screening, the Q-sorts of 34 sexual minority women were factor analysed by-person and rotated to simple structure using Varimax. The five factors are interpreted and discussed relative to competing discourses on information provision within cervical screening. The five accounts are labelled ‘cervical screening is’: an essential health check that women have the right to refuse; a woman’s health entitlement; a vital test but degrading experience; a sensible thing to do; and an unnecessary imposition for some women. Critical approaches to informed choice are explored with attention to recent developments in cervical cancer prevention. Findings highlighting the need for affirmation of diversity within healthcare are considered in relation to existing criteria for UK national screening programmes.

How Does an Emergent LGBTQ Health Psychology Reconstruct its Subject?

Flowers, P. — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 07:24:16 PST

Heterocentric Practices in Health Research and Health Care: Implications for Mental Health and Subjectivity of LGBTQ Individuals

Ussher, J. M. — Fri, 06 Nov 2009 07:24:16 PST

Thank You to our Volume 19 Reviewers

Fri, 06 Nov 2009 07:24:16 PST