Measuring Attitudes About Hate: Development of the Hate Crime Beliefs Scale

Employing the federal Hate Crimes Prevention Act (HCPA) of 2009 and other such legislation as a backdrop, the present study evaluated the nature of beliefs about hate-crime legislation, offenders, and victims. In addition, it investigated construct validity (i.e., political beliefs and prejudice) and predictive validity (i.e., blame attribution and sentencing recommendations). 

A total of 403 U.S. adults completed measures of prejudice and an initial pool of 50 items forming the proposed Hate Crime Beliefs Scale (HCBS). Participants were randomly assigned to read one of four hate-crime vignettes, which varied in regard to type of prejudice (racial-, sexual orientation-, transgender-, and religion-based prejudices) and then responded to blame and sentencing questions. 

Factor analyses of the HCBS resulted in four sub-scales: Negative Views (i.e., higher scores reflect negative views of legislation and minority group protection), Offender Punishment (i.e., higher scores suggest endorsement of greater punishment), Deterrence (i.e., greater scores denote support for hate-crime legislation as a deterrent of more violence), and Victim Harm (i.e., higher scores reflect pro-victim attitudes). Greater pro-legislation and pro-victim beliefs were related to liberal political beliefs and less prejudicial attitudes, with some exceptions. 

Controlling for a number of demographic, situational, and attitudinal covariates, the Negative Views sub-scale displayed predictive utility, such that more negative views of legislation/minority group protection were associated with elevated victim blame, as well as lower perpetrator blame and sentencing recommendations. 

Results are discussed in the context of hate-crime research and policy, with additional implications considered for trial strategy, modern prejudice, and blame attribution theory.

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By:  Cabeldue MK1, Cramer RJ2, Kehn A3, Crosby JW4, Anastasi JS4.

• 1Fairleigh Dickinson University, Teaneck, NJ, USA cabeldue@student.fdu.edu.
• 2Old Dominion University, Norfolk, VA, USA.
• 3University of North Dakota, Grand Forks, ND, USA.
• 4Sam Houston State University, Huntsville, TX, USA. 
• J Interpers Violence. 2016 Mar 6. pii: 0886260516636391. 

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Mental Health of Transgender Veterans in US States With and Without Discrimination and Hate Crime Legal Protection

OBJECTIVES:

To examine whether indicators of community- and state-level lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender equality are associated with transgender veterans' mental health.

METHODS:

We extracted Veterans Administration data for patients who were diagnosed with gender identity disorder, had at least 1 visit in 2013, and lived in a zip code with a Municipality Equality Index score (n = 1640). We examined the associations of whether a state included transgender status in employment nondiscrimination laws and in hate crimes laws with mood disorders; alcohol, illicit drug, and tobacco use disorders; posttraumatic stress disorder; and suicidal ideation or attempt.

RESULTS:

Nearly half (47.3%) of the sample lived in states with employment discrimination protection, and 44.8% lived in states with hate crimes protection. Employment nondiscrimination protection was associated with 26% decreased odds of mood disorders and 43% decreased odds of self-directed violence.

CONCLUSIONS:

Understanding lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender social stressors can inform treatment and care coordination for transgender populations.

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By:  Blosnich JR1, Marsiglio MC1, Gao S1, Gordon AJ1, Shipherd JC1, Kauth M1, Brown GR1, Fine MJ1.

• 1At the time of the study, John R. Blosnich, Shasha Gao, Adam J. Gordon, and Michael J. Fine were with the Center for Health Equity Research and Promotion, VA Pittsburgh Healthcare System, Pittsburgh, PA. Mary C. Marsiglio was with the Mental Illness Research Education and Clinical Center, Portland VA Medical Center, Portland, OR. Jillian C. Shipherd and Michael Kauth were with the VA Office of Patient Care Services, Department of Veterans Affairs, Washington, DC. George R. Brown was with the Mountain Home VA Medical Center, Mountain Home, TN. 

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Enacted Sexual Stigma, Stigma Consciousness, and Subjective Happiness Scale Adaptation: A Two-Country Study

Violence against people due to their sexual orientation is a phenomenon that exists within a framework of sexual stigma and sexual prejudice that can result in enacted stigma. 

The present study primarily aimed to validate the Stigma Consciousness Questionnaire (SCQ) and the Subjective Happiness Scale (SHS; for lesbian, gay, and bisexual [LGB] populations) in the Spanish context by using samples from two countries (Spain [N = 157] and the United States [N = 83]). 

Also, to examine how the construct of stigma consciousness correlates with anti-LGBQ (anti-lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer) hate crime victimization and violent incidents, as well as examine whether the former influences subjective happiness. 

The population from the United States reported higher stigma consciousness and received more anti-LGBQ threats and insults. Hate crime victimization was the same across the two samples and positively correlated with violent incidents in both samples. 

Subjective happiness was negatively correlated with SCQ, although its subscales it did not correlate with enacted stigma measures.

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By:  Strizzi J1, Fernández-Agis I2, Parrón-Carreño T2, Alarcón-Rodríguez R2.

• 1University of Almeria, Spain jenna.strizzi@gmail.com.
• 2University of Almeria, Spain.
• J Interpers Violence. 2016 Jan;31(2):316-38. doi: 10.1177/0886260514555372. Epub 2014 Nov 6. 

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Discrimination and Hate Crimes in the Context of Neighborhood Poverty and Stressors among HIV-Positive African-American Men Who Have Sex with Men

In a sample of HIV-positive African-American men who have sex with men (MSM), we examined neighborhood factors that may contextualize perceived discrimination from three intersecting stigmatized characteristics: race, HIV status, and sexual orientation. HIV-positive African-American MSM (N = 162, mean age = 44, SD = 8) provided information on neighborhood-related stressors and discrimination experiences related to being Black, HIV-positive, or perceived as gay. 

Residential ZIP codes and US Census data were used to determine neighborhood poverty rates. Regressions, controlling for socio-demographics, indicated that (1) higher neighborhood poverty was significantly related to more frequent experiences with hate crimes (Gay-related: b = 1.15, SE = .43, p < .008); and (2) higher neighborhood-related stressors were significantly related to more frequent discrimination and hate crimes. 

For HIV-positive African-American MSM, higher neighborhood poverty and related stressors are associated with experiencing more discrimination and hate crimes. Interventions for this group should promote individual- and neighborhood-level socioeconomic empowerment and stigma reduction.

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By:   Dale SK1,2, Bogart LM3, Galvan FH4, Wagner GJ3, Pantalone DW5,6, Klein DJ7.

• 1Massachusetts General Hospital, Boston, MA, USA. skdale@mgh.harvard.edu.
• 2Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA. skdale@mgh.harvard.edu.
• 3Health Unit, RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, CA, USA.
• 4Bienestar Human Services, Inc., Los Angeles, CA, USA.
• 5University of Massachusetts, Boston, MA, USA.
• 6The Fenway Institute of Fenway Health, Boston, MA, USA.
• 7RAND Corporation, Santa Monica, CA, USA. 

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Frequency, Nature, and Correlates of Hate Crime Victimization Experiences in an Urban Sample of Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Community Members

The present study examines two central research questions. First, we sought to add to current knowledge on the frequency and types of hate crime experiences in an urban sample. Also, drawing on existing frameworks for sexual minority specific (SMS) stress, we examined internalized SMS stress (defined by internalized homophobia and acceptance concerns regarding one's minority status) as a mediator of the association between hate crime victimization (i.e., objective or social SMS stress) and mental health symptoms (i.e., symptoms of depression, anxiety, and general stress). 

Participants were 336 self-identified lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) community members who elected to participate in research at a community health agency in an urban southwestern United States jurisdiction. 

Results suggested:

• approximately one third of the sample reported lifetime hate crime victimization, with the most common types characterized by interpersonal, as opposed to property, crimes;
• approximately half of participants reported their most recent victimization to law enforcement; and
• internalized SMS stress mediated the relation between hate crime victimization and overall mental health symptoms. 

Findings are discussed with respect to implications of the unique nature of hate crimes in an urban setting, as well as theoretical and practical implications of SMS stress findings.

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By: Burks AC1, Cramer RJ2, Henderson CE3, Stroud CH3, Crosby JW3, Graham J4.

• 1Sam Houston State University, Huntsville, TX, USA acb038@shsu.edu.
• 2University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, USA.
• 3Sam Houston State University, Huntsville, TX, USA.
• 4University of New Mexico, Albuquerque, USA.
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