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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Predictors of the Sexual Well-being of Individuals Diagnosed with Herpes and Human Papillomavirus

Research suggests that having a sexually transmitted infection (STI) such as genital herpes and human papillomavirus (HPV) can negatively affect sexual well-being. However, there is little research examining factors associated with poorer sexual well-being among individuals with a STI. 

This study investigated the extent to which stigma experiences, individual characteristics, and STI characteristics were associated with multiple aspects of sexual well-being among individuals diagnosed with herpes and/or HPV. Participants were an average of 36 years old (SD = 11.58) and included 188 individuals with herpes and/or HPV who completed measures of sexual activity, sexual problems, and sexual cognitive-affective factors. 

The results showed that experiences of stigmatization were the most important predictors of sexual well-being. Participants who perceived were stigmatized by others as well as those who internalized negative social attitudes to a greater extent reported poorer sexual well-being across all dimensions, over and above individual and STI characteristics. The implications of these findings for sexual health professionals are discussed.

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By:  Foster LR1, Byers ES2.

• 1Department of Psychology, University of New Brunswick, P.O. Box 4400, Fredericton, NB, E3B 5A3, Canada.
• 2Department of Psychology, University of New Brunswick, P.O. Box 4400, Fredericton, NB, E3B 5A3, Canada. byers@unb.ca.
• Arch Sex Behav. 2016 Feb;45(2):403-14. doi: 10.1007/s10508-014-0388-x. Epub 2014 Nov 19. 

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Taint: An Examination of the Lived Experiences of Stigma & Its Lingering Effects for Eight Sex Industry Experts

As part of a larger study examining the effects of the design of the off-street sex industry on sex worker's health and safety practices, eight sex work experts who had experience as sex workers and as advocates and service providers were interviewed to garner their community engagement expertise in shaping the research. 

During narrative interviews, these experts discussed how stigma influenced their personal lives and their social justice work among sex workers. Their insights into stigma are unique to the literature because our experts simultaneously confronted direct instances of stigma that were a part of their personal and professional lives, sometimes concealing their sex work histories during the course of their professional support and advocacy work. 

As a result of this concealment, and because of how sex workers are sometimes mistreated, experts experienced stigma vicariously (indirectly) when their own sex work histories were not apparent. As a result of these experiences, participants became proficient at managing discrediting information about themselves when in the presence of those they mistrusted. They supported sex workers through stigmatising ordeals by using knowledge gained from these intersecting direct and vicarious experiences stigma, continuously building capacity within themselves and among other sex workers to resist stigma.

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By:   Bowen R1, Bungay V1.

• 1 School of Nursing , UBC , Vancouver , Canada. 

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A Pilot Study of a Group-Based HIV and STI Prevention Intervention for Lesbian, Bisexual, Queer, and Other Women Who Have Sex with Women in Canada

Limited research has evaluated interventions to reduce HIV and sexually transmitted infection (STI) vulnerability among lesbian, bisexual, and queer (LBQ) women, and other women who have sex with women. The Queer Women Conversations (QWC) study examined the effectiveness of a group-based psycho-educational HIV/STI intervention with LBQ women in Toronto and Calgary, Canada. 

We conducted a nonrandomized cohort pilot study. Participants completed a pre-test, post-test, and 6-week follow-up. The primary outcome was sexual risk practices, while secondary objectives included intrapersonal (self-esteem, STI knowledge, resilient coping, depression), interpersonal (safer sex self-efficacy), community (community connectedness, social support), and structural (sexual stigma, access to healthcare) factors. 

The study was registered at http://clinicaltrials.gov. Forty-four women (mean age 28.7 years) participated in a weekend retreat consisting of six consecutive sessions tailored for LBQ women. Sessions covered a range of topics addressing behavioral and social-structural determinants of HIV/STI risk, including STI information, safer sex negotiation skills, and addressing sexual stigma. 

Adjusted for socio-demographic characteristics, sexual risk practices, barrier use self-efficacy, STI knowledge, and sexual stigma scores showed statistically significant changes 6 weeks post-intervention. Initial increases in safer sex self-efficacy, social support, and community connectedness were not sustained at 6-week follow up, highlighting the need for booster sessions or alternative approaches to address social factors. 

Study results may inform HIV/STI prevention interventions, sexual health care provision, and support services tailored for LBQ women.

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By: Logie CH1,2, Lacombe-Duncan A1, Weaver J1, Navia D3, Este D4.

• 1Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
• 2Women's College Research Institute, Women's College Hospital, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
• 3Department of Anthropology, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
• 4Faculty of Social Work, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta, Canada.

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