Victim Blame in a Hate Crime Motivated by Sexual Orientation

“John” was a 35-year-old white gay man who was referred to Dr. Ruiz for psychiatric care by a local family practitioner. John suffered primarily from bouts of depression and anxiety and also used cocaine quite regularly. At about age 16, John began to use pot with his high school friends during social parties. He also realized around this time that he was gay, although he kept it primarily to himself out of shame, guilt, embarrassment, and fears of rejection by family and friends. By age 18, John was occasionally using alcohol and LSD and had engaged in a few homosexual encounters. During college, he stepped up his addiction to stimulants and continued to have occasional homosexual encounters. Upon finishing college, he earned a master’s degree in education. During this period, his use of cocaine and amphetamines as well as his homosexual activities became more regular. Since earning his master’s degree, he had been working as a high school math teacher for about 10 years.

The purpose of the research is to investigate an aspect of homosexual experience referred to as "coming out", specifically disclosure of sexual-orientation by homosexual males to their parents. Self-disclosure of sexual orientation is examined in relationship to amount of general self-disclosure subjects engaged in with their parents (as measured by the Jourard Self-disclosure Questionnaire, JSDQ), and subjects' attitudes toward homosexuality (as measured by the Index of Homophobia). The relationship between the amount of general self-disclosure and personality traits (as measured by the Sixteen Personality Questionnaire, 16PF) is also examined. Finally, the homosexual sample is compared to the 16PF normative population to determine if there are consistent personality trait differences for homosexual males. One hundred and two homosexual males, ages 18 to 58, volunteered to participate as subjects. They were obtained through a local gay bar, gay organizations, and a friendship network. Of the total sample 30 subjects met the criteria established for the self-disclosing group and 30 subjects for the nondisclosing group. These subjects disclosed (or withheld) their sexual orientation to both parents. First, results indicate that homosexual males who disclosed their sexual orientation to their mothers and fathers were more self-disclosing about other areas of their lives than homosexual men who did not disclose their sexual orientation. Additionally, homosexual males disclosed more about themselves to their mother than to their father. Secondly, homosexual males who self-disclosed their sexual orientation to their parents did not have significantly different attitudes toward homosexuality than individuals who did not self-disclose. This suggests that homosexual men can hold positive attitudes toward homosexuality even if they withhold their orientation from their parents. It was also found that the JSDQ correlates with a cluster of 16PF personality traits which form the second-order Factor I (Extraversion). Finally, it was found that the homosexual sample differs from the 16PF normative population on twelve first-order personality traits. Based on second-order factors, the homosexual sample is mildly anxious in comparison to the general population and thus more likely to experience somewhat more discomfort when under stress. Areas for further study are examined.

Blame attribution is a valuable mechanism explaining decision making. However, present literature mainly employs blame attribution as a dependent variable. The shortcoming of this fact is that blame attribution offers a potentially valuable explanatory mechanism for decision making. The authors designed two studies to investigate blame attribution as a moderator of sentencing decisions in sexual orientation-based hate crimes. Study 1 showed that mock jurors punished perpetrators of hate crimes more severely than a control condition. Also, degree of victim blame influenced punitive decision making. In Study 2, mock jurors extended findings that perpetrators of hate crimes are more harshly punished than those of other types of crimes. Victim and perpetrator blame failed to moderate decision making in this more complex scenario. Results are discussed in relation to hate crimes definitions and attribution theory.

Although research has found that between 5% to 20% of adult men in non-institutionalized and non-military populations have been the victimes of a sexual assault, these victims are largely ignored by society and mental health professionals. Factos that may account for this lack of attention may be due to the small number of victims (as compared to female victims) and rape myths that promote the denial that male rape can occur. The psychological literature also reflects this neglect as the majority of this literature has focused on female and child victims, largely ignoring adult male victims. The purpose of the present research was to address some of the limitations of the literature regarding the attribution of victim blame towards male victims of sexual assault. The study investigated how the independent variables of 1.) victim gender, 2.) victim sexual orientation, and 3.) participant sexual orientation influence the dependent variables of attribution of blame and participant's perceived similarity to the victim. The results indicated that the participants' sexual orientation, the victims' sexual orientation, and the victims' gender were found to be related to the particpant perceived similarity to the victim. However, participants' perceived similarity to the victim did not influence their attribution of blame towards the victims. The results were not consistent with Defensive Attribution Theory (Shaver, 1970; Walster, 1966).

Sexual minority group members are at a higher risk for mental health difficulties than are heterosexual individuals. The results of this study showed that college student sexual minorities were common in counseling centers and that they were more likely than heterosexual students to seek counseling. The results also showed that sexual orientation groups differed in meaningful ways from one another, and many sexual orientation groups reported higher levels of psychological symptoms than did heterosexual students.

For gay men in the United States, race/ethnicity has been demonstrated to factor importantly into sexual preferences, and race-based beliefs regarding certain racial groups are prevalent within the gay male community. For gay men of color, such beliefs may differentially influence their sexual preferences. Yet, little is known about the social-psychological factors underlying differences in sexual preferences among gay men of color. The present study examined how personal preferences for social hierarchy and dominance may explain variations in sexual positioning preferences, and how this relationship may be further qualified by their race-based sexual attraction among gay Asian/Pacific Islander (API) men. A total of 141 API gay men were recruited to participate in an online survey. Measures assessed participants' sexual positioning preferences, race-based sexual attraction, and preferences for social hierarchy or social dominance orientation (SDO). Self-identified tops scored higher on SDO than bottoms or versatiles. Participants attracted to non-API men scored higher on SDO compared to participants attracted to API men and participants who reported no race-based attraction. Finally, a significant two-way interaction indicated that tops attracted to non-API men scored the highest on SDO, and bottoms with no race-based attraction in men scored the lowest. Race/ethnicity is a prominent factor in sexual attraction and sexual positioning preferences among gay men, and one's proclivity for social hierarchy and dominance explains differences in sexual preferences among API gay men. By demonstrating how API gay men negotiate sexual preferences, present findings help elucidate existing race-based sexual dynamics within gay male culture.

Purpose – Sexual orientation and employment bias is examined in Cyprus by implementing an experiment for the period 2010-2011. The design is aimed at answering three main questions. Do gay males and lesbians face occupational access constraints and entry wage bias than comparable heterosexuals? Do gay males and lesbians benefit from providing more job-related information? Does the differential treatment between gay male/lesbian and heterosexual applicants disappear as the information of the applicants increases? The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach – The author sent applications to advertised vacancies and experimented with two information sets the “sexual orientation” and “information” of the potential applicants. Findings – The estimations suggest that gay male and lesbian applicants face significant bias than heterosexual applicants. Moreover, both heterosexual and gay male/lesbian applicants gain by providing more job-related information. However, the estimations suggest that the informational premium for sexual orientation minorities could not reduce the discriminatory patterns. Practical implications – The current results indicate that discrimination against sexual orientation minorities in the Cypriot labour market is a matter of preference, not the result of limited information. One strategy the Cypriot government may employ is to try to affect public opinion and people's attitudes towards sexual orientation minorities. Originality/value – This is the first nationwide field experiment in the Cypriot labour market and contributes to the literature as it is the first field study on sexual orientation which tries to disentangle statistical from taste-based discrimination in the labour market.

We examined evidence that minority sexual orientation is associated with more-frequent reports of physical health complaints. We also investigated the possible role of HIV infection among gay men and higher rates of psychological distress among lesbians, gay men, and bisexually and homosexually experienced heterosexual individuals in generating these health disparities. We used data from the California Quality of Life Survey (N=2272 adults) to examine associations between sexual orientation and self-reports about physical health status, common health conditions, disabilities, and psychological distress. Prevalent HIV infection was reported by nearly 18% of gay, bisexual, and homosexually experienced heterosexual men. Gay men and bisexual and homosexually experienced heterosexual individuals had higher levels of psychological distress compared with exclusively heterosexual individuals. Self-reported physical health status varied by gender and by sexual orientation. Lesbians and bisexual and homosexually experienced heterosexual women reported a greater variety of health conditions and limitations compared with exclusively heterosexual women; however, these differences mostly disappeared when distress levels were taken into account. Among men, differences in health complaints appeared to reflect the ongoing burden of HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases in the gay male community.

Sexual Orientation and Functional Limitations: Cross-sectional Analyses From the Adult Psychiatric Morbidity Survey

Association between sexual orientation and subjective cognitive complaints in the general population in England

The city of Portland adopted different policies toward gay bars between 1948 and 1965. Portland's conservative mayors, generally uninterested in changing the city or promoting growth, ignored gay bars. Reform mayors instigated campaigns against gay bars to gain public, political, and business support for their broader economic and social goals. They were able to use crackdowns on gay bars as popular components of their reform initiatives because Portland, in comparison to other cities, professed conservatism and morality and had little economic or cultural incentive to tolerate gay bars. Blaming Portland's vice on outsiders, reform mayors argued that their actions protected Portland's traditional reputability, despite the city's long history of tolerating vice and gay bars. This thesis focuses on the reform mayoral administrations of Dorothy McCullough Lee and Terry Schrunk and their policies toward gay bars and vice. Chapter two discusses Lee's attack on all criminality in Portland, and deals briefly with why the previous administration, under Frank Riley, was rejected as corrupt. Terry Schrunk's later reform, centered in suppressing sexual deviance and promoting economic development downtown, is discussed in chapter four. Chapter three describes growing awareness of queer communities, including changing definitions of queerness and perceived threats. These changes in popular beliefs about queerness, although not the direct cause of actions against gay bars in Portland, influenced the types of vice associated with gay bars, arguments used to justify anti-queer actions, and the level of priority placed on suppressing Portland's queer community. This thesis incorporates primary and secondary sources on gay bars, Portland, and queer history. It relies heavily on city council minutes and newspaper articles, but also draws from sources including City Club Bulletins, letters from Schrunk's constituents, interviews, popular psychological works, and comparisons with articles about other cities, such as Miami, San Francisco, and New York.

Previous research has consistently shown that rape victims may be blamed for the assault but little is known about victim blaming in other sexual crimes. In the present experiment, we examined blame attributions for sexual assault and online sexual harassment. The study also investigated the effects of victim behavior, participants' belief in a just world, and participant gender on attributions of both victim and perpetrator blame. A vignette methodology was employed and a community sample (N = 200) answered questions of victim and perpetrator blame after reading one of four different scenarios (which manipulated crime type and victim behavior). Crime type and victim behavior affected participants blame attributions: the participants attributed least blame to the non-flirtatious sexual assault victim and most blame was attributed to the flirtatious sexual harassment victim. Practical and theoretical implications are discussed.

violation of the equality ideal. At most, this latter conception of bias crime statutes can assert that crimes based on the protected characteristics threaten the equality ideal because these characteristics have generally been the basis of past discrimination—but they cannot locate either the harm risked by the perpetrator or his individual culpability more precisely. 2. The Potential Underinclusiveness Problem This proposed solution to the overinclusiveness problem of bias crimes does not address the potential underinclusiveness question. Why, for example, are the elderly and the disabled typically not included within bias crime statutes? Formulating the list of protected characteristics that should be included within bias crimes statutes is a complex question without a single solution whose full elaboration is beyond the scope of this article. A few points, however, follow naturally from the above analysis. Clearly, political factors influence the calculation of the proper scope of bias crime laws, as debates over the inclusion of gender and sexual orientation as protected characteristics demonstrate. In response to political pressure, the scope of bias crimes has been rapidly increasing. This phenomenon threatens to seriously weaken bias crime laws. Legislative judgment about which characteristics are likely to make their bearers targets of violent discrimination helps sharpen the focus of bias crimes, feeding more clearly into the historical experience that justifies the penalty enhancement associated with these crimes. Having too many groups including within 149. See, e.g., Julie Goldscheid, Gender-Motivated Violence: Developing A Meaningful Paradigm for Civil Rights Enforcement, 22 Harv. Women’s L.J. 123 (1999). 150. Martin S. Zwerling, Legislating Against Hate in New York: Bias Crimes and the Lesbian and Gay Community, 11 Touro L. Rev. 529 (1995); Anthony S. Winer, Hate Crimes, Homosexuals, and the Constitution, 29 Harv. C.R.-C.L. L. Rev. 387 (1994). 151. Historical and contemporary social contexts suggest why certain aspects of peoples’ identity provoke a strong sense of solidarity with other members of the This content downloaded from 157.55.39.177 on Tue, 15 Nov 2016 03:56:32 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms DANNERMACRO 5/5/2003 4:42 PM 2002] CULPABILITY IN CONTEXT 447 the definition of bias crimes risks reducing the higher stigma associated with this kind of crime. Generally rejecting the expansion of bias crime statutes, however, does not resolve the question of which groups should properly be included within their reach. Whether gender should be considered a protected characteristic, for example, demonstrates the difficulty of the inquiry about which characteristics should be included and which should be excluded. Women have historically been subjected to discrimination in many facets of their lives, including voting and employment. Whether women are still subject to widespread discrimination is less obvious. The model of bias crime presented here focuses on the perpetrator’s choice of the victim as a representative of a group of which he is a member. The victim’s group affiliation has more importance than any individual characteristics of the victim; indeed, this is what distinguishes bias crimes from general vulnerable victim statutes. Thus, some crimes typically committed against women, like acquaintance rape, fit uncomfortably within the bias crimes model. The question of whether gender group. For these reasons, vulnerability can and should be seen as especially salient along the dimensions of the protected characteristics currently articulated in existing bias crimes. Thus, I believe that Kenneth Simons’s response to Harel & Parchomovsky’s article is misguided. See Simons, supra note 21, at 241 (arguing that race, religion, and the other characteristics protected by bias crimes are less important predictors of victims’ vulnerability due to other factors, like “geography, wealth, class, and similar factors”). Vulnerability generally might be more dependent on the factors that Simon mentions, but these characteristics are less likely to constitute the basis of widespread harm to other members of the “group,” precisely because the relevant characteristics are less salient to their members. 152. Cf. William A. Schabas, Genocide in International Law 114 (2000) (arguing for a narrow definition of the crime of genocide: “for society to define a crime so heinous that it will occur only rarely is testimony to the value of such a precise formulation. Diluting the definition, either by formal amendment or its terms or by extravagant interpretation of the existing text, risks trivializing the horror of the real crime when it is committed”). 153. Perhaps the problem can be resolved through the statutory formulation of bias crimes. In a bias crime, the perpetrator must select the victim in at least substantial part because of his or her membership in a protected group. The acquaintance rapist might not primarily select his victim because she is a woman but instead because of some other characteristic. If that characteristic is not This content downloaded from 157.55.39.177 on Tue, 15 Nov 2016 03:56:32 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms DANNERMACRO 5/5/2003 4:42 PM 448 BUFFALO CRIMINAL LAW REVIEW [Vol. 6:389 should be included in bias crimes statutes should turn on the pervasiveness of discrimination against women, and how many of the crimes committed against women reflect perpetration because of their identity as women, rather than other factors less central to the purpose of bias crime statutes. The discussion of bias crimes in this article also provides legislators with other criteria they might use when evaluating the propriety of expanding the scope of characteristics protected by bias crimes. History is clearly an important factor. Has the characteristic historically been the basis for discrimination? Race, ethnicity, national origin, and religion easily qualify here, as would sexual orientation. Contemporary circumstances must also be considered. Prejudices that were vivid hundreds of years ago but have no contemporary currency clearly should not be included within these statutes. Legislators should also consider the particular characteristics of discrimination within their jurisdiction. Some groups, one could imagine, would be likely targets of discrimination across the United States and thus would be included in all bias crime statutes, while others might be particularly vulnerable only in particular regions. specifically included within the reach of the bias crime statute, the acquaintance rape should not be considered a bias crime. Even assuming, however, that the “because of” formula helps distinguish between crimes that fit within the bias crimes model and those that do not, this resolution does not identify which characteristics should be included within the statute generally. 154. Cf. United States v. McCall, 174 F.3d 47, 50 (2d Cir. 1998) (construing the federal vulnerable victim enhancement and stating “broad generalizations about victims based upon their membership in a class are disfavored where a very substantial portion of the class is not in fact particularly vulnerable to the crime in question. In such cases, courts have required that the enhancement be based on individualized findings as to the vulnerability of particular victims”). While individualized findings as to particular victims would not be appropriate for bias crimes statutes because of the relative importance of the group over the individual, considering the proportion of crimes committed against members of a group that are likely to be considered bias crimes might prove a useful way of determining whether or not the characteristic should be included within the bias crime statute. 155. Gays and lesbians, for example, might fit this description. See Herek, supra note 14, at 945 (noting that “sexual prejudice is still acceptable in many quarters of American society”). I imagine that African Americans, Latinos, and other minority racial groups would also likely be considered vulnerable groups This content downloaded from 157.55.39.177 on Tue, 15 Nov 2016 03:56:32 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms DANNERMACRO 5/5/2003 4:42 PM 2002] CULPABILITY IN CONTEXT 449 Legislators also might consider whether the characteristic is likely to make the victims subject to attack because of social discrimination against this group or because it is a proxy for some other quality, such as physical helplessness. This type of inquiry makes some characteristics, like age and disability, problematic for inclusion within the reach of bias crime statutes. While crimes against the elderly should certainly be seen as crimes targeting vulnerable victims, they should not be defined as bias crimes. Discrimination—not opportunism— is the foundation of the bias crime perpetrator’s culpability. If one believes, as I do, that the category of bias crimes should be narrow, inevitably groups that resemble those already included within the reach of bias crime statues will feel unfairly excluded. As Jacobs and Potter point out in their comprehensive critique of bias crimes, the judgment about the proper scope of these statutes is inescapably political. While the legislative crafting of bias crime statutes should be informed by clear questions and criteria, the difficulty of the inquiry is unavoidable.

Previous research on sexual orientation and body weight has relied primarily on small convenience samples. I use data from two large representative public health surveys to examine the relationships between sexual orientation and body weight. First, I present new estimates of obesity rates by sexual orientation from the 2001 California Health Interview Survey (which contains information on self-reported sexual orientation) and the 1996–2002 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (which contains information on intra-household same-sex unmarried partnerships). I find evidence in both surveys that gay men are much less likely to be obese relative to their heterosexual counterparts, while lesbians are much more likely to be obese. These differences cannot be easily explained by other demographic characteristics, and there is no evidence that the differences are related to differences in physical activity or muscle strengthening activities. Moreover, I find that obese gay men are less likely to be in a partnership relative to their obese heterosexual male counterparts, even after controlling for the overall lower likelihood of partnership among gay men. This suggests that minority sexual orientation may exacerbate the barriers associated with obesity.

For certain crimes there is a tendency in the United States to blame individuals for their victimization. Previous work has shown that affective states can impact blame attribution. Drawing upon this work, the purpose of the current pre‐registered research was to examine the relation between affective disgust and victim blame attribution. In Study 1, as participants’ (N = 203) level of implicit disgust associations with gay men increased, their tendency to blame a gay male homicide victim also increased, whereas their agreement that the homicide qualified as a hate crime decreased. In Study 2, disgust was experimentally induced by exposing participants (N = 431) to disgusting (e.g., vomit, insects) or neutral images (e.g., mug, stapler). Inducing disgust increased victim blame and decreased perceptions that the homicide constituted a hate crime. However, exploratory mediation analyses in both studies showed that the impact of disgust on hate crime applications is best explained as an indirect effect of victim blame. Taken together, these findings suggest that both individual differences in implicit gay‐disgust and situational feelings of disgust may underlie people’s perceptions of how blameworthy a victim is for the crime committed against them.