There is, I think, something ethereal about i —the square root of minus one. I remember first hearing about it at school. It seemed an odd beast at that time—an intruder hovering on the edge of reality.

Usually familiarity dulls this sense of the bizarre, but in the case of i it was the reverse: over the years the sense of its surreal nature intensified. It seemed that it was impossible to write mathematics that described the real world in …

I and i

This survey of sexual practices in the United States has been combed by the media for items of interest to the public: monogamous sex is much more widespread in this country than has been thought; infidelity is less frequent than presumed; vaginal intercourse is the defining experience of heterosexual behavior; watching one's partner undress is stimulating to many people; married couples have more sex than single people (unmarried, cohabiting couples have the most sex of all); the majority of couples experience sex twice a week to several times a month; 2.8% of men identify themselves as homosexual and 1.4% of women do so, but a higher percentage of people consider a same-gender experience to have some appeal; 75% of men always experience orgasm compared with 28.6% of women, but more nearly equal numbers of men and women declare themselves satisfied with their sexual experiences. The book is, in fact, a

The Social Organization of Sexuality: Sexual Practices in the United States

We test whether significant differences in mental illness exist in a matched sample of Mental illness and the criminal justice system. In T. L. Scheid T. N. Brown (Eds.), A handbook for the study of mental health: Social contexts, theories. Find 9780521567633 A Handbook for the Study of Mental Health : Social Contexts, Theories, and Systems by Horwitz et al at over 30 bookstores. Buy, rent. A review of mental health problems in fathers following the birth of a child. for the study of mental health:Social contexts, theories, and systems (2nd ed., pp.

A Handbook for the Study of Mental Health: Social Contexts, Theories, and Systems

Global health burden and needs of transgender populations: a review

Drawing on information from four recent national and two state-level population-based surveys, the analyses suggest that there are more than 8 million adults in the US who are lesbian, gay, or bisexual, comprising 3.5% of the adult population. There are also nearly 700,000 transgender individuals in the US. In total, the study suggests that approximately 9 million Americans – roughly the population of New Jersey – identify as LGBT. Key findings from the study include among adults who identify as lesbian, gay, or bisexual, bisexuals comprise a slight majority (1.8% compared to 1.7% who identify as lesbian or gay); women are substantially more likely than men to identify as bisexual; estimates of those who report any lifetime same-sex sexual behavior and any same-sex sexual attraction are substantially higher than estimates of those who identify as lesbian, gay, or bisexual. An estimated 19 million Americans (8.2%) report that they have engaged in same-sex sexual behavior and nearly 25.6 million Americans (11%) acknowledge at least some same-sex sexual attraction.

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How Many People are Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender? - eScholarship

Purpose: This study is one of the first to examine the physical and mental health of transgender older adults and to identify modifiable factors that account for health risks in this underserved population. Design and Methods: Utilizing data from a cross-sectional survey of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender older adults aged 50 and older (N = 2,560), we assessed direct and indirect effects of gender identity on 4 health outcomes (physical health, disability, depressive symptomatology, and perceived stress) based on a resilience conceptual framework. Results: Transgender older adults were at significantly higher risk of poor physical health, disability, depressive symptomatology, and perceived stress compared with nontransgender participants. We found significant indirect effects of gender identity on the health outcomes via fear of accessing health services, lack of physical activity, internalized stigma, victimization, and lack of social support; other mediators included obesity for physical health and disability, identity concealment for perceived stress, and community belonging for depressive symptomatology and perceived stress. Further analyses revealed that risk factors (victimization and stigma) explained the highest proportion of the total effect of gender identity on health outcomes. Implications: The study identifies important modifiable factors (stigma, victimization, health-related behaviors, and social support) associated with health among transgender older adults. Reducing stigma and victimization and including gender identity in nondiscrimination and hate crime statutes are important steps to reduce health risks. Attention to bolstering individual and community-level social support must be considered when developing tailored interventions to address transgender older adults’ distinct health and aging needs.

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Physical and Mental Health of Transgender Older Adults: An At-Risk and Underserved Population

Purpose: Based on resilience theory , this paper investigates the influence of key health indicators and risk and protective factors on health outcomes (including general health, disability, and depression) among lesbian, gay male, and bisexual (LGB) older adults. Design and Methods: A cross-sectional sur vey was conducted with LGB older adults, aged 50 and older (N = 2,439). Logistic regressions were conducted to examine the contributions of key health indicators (access to health care and health behaviors), risk factors (lifetime victimization, internalized stigma, and sexual identity concealment), and protective factors (social support and social network size) to health outcomes, when controlling for background characteristics. Results: The findings revealed that lifetime victimization, financial barriers to health care, obesity, and limited physical activity independently and significantly accounted for poor general health, disability, and depression among LGB older adults. Internalized stigma was also a significant predictor of disability and depression. Social support and social network size served as protective factors, decreasing the odds of poor general health, disability, and depression. Some distinct differences by gender and sexual orientation were also observed. Implications: High levels of poor general health, disability , and depression among LGB older adults are of major concern. These findings highlight the important role of key risk and protective factors, which significantly influences health outcomes among LGB older adults. Tailored interventions must be developed to address the distinct health issues facing this historically disadvantaged population.

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The Physical and Mental Health of Lesbian, Gay Male, and Bisexual (LGB) Older Adults: The Role of Key Health Indicators and Risk and Protective Factors

A ging and health needs of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) older adults are rarely addressed in services, policies, or research, even though diversity is a defining feature of our aging global population. Although there have been tremendous gains in health during the last century, many historically disadvantaged groups within our aging population continue to experience higher levels of illness, disability, and premature death. It is imperative to understand the diverse population of LGBT older adults in order to ensure

The Aging and Health Report: Disparities and Resilience Among Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Older Adults

Purpose: Older adults living with HIV infection may be doubly stigmatized, as they are branded by both age as well as HIV status. Through semistructured interviews, this study sought to examine whether older adults with HIV/AIDS experience both ageism and HIV stigma and how those experiences manifest in their lives. Design and Methods: This was a qualitative study in which 25 in-depth interviews were completed with adults aged 50 years and older who were living with HIV or AIDS. Purposive sampling was used to recruit these individuals who shared their experiences. Open coding and axial coding of interview transcripts were completed on all interviews, resulting in the development of a framework of these experiences. Results: The majority (68%) of the respondents experienced both ageism and HIV-associated stigma. The experiences were often separate, although some interrelated stigma did occur. Nine themes emerged from the interviews, including rejection, stereotyping, fear of contagion, violations of confidentiality, and internalized ageism. All themes fell into four categories: social discrimination, institutional discrimination, anticipatory stigma, and other. Implications: The research identified themes that may be sources of felt as well as enacted stigma and discrimination related to both aging and HIV. This concept of double jeopardy exists in the lives of the majority of people interviewed and has relevance to the creation of appropriate intervention

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“You're Awfully Old to Have This Disease”: Experiences of Stigma and Ageism in Adults 50 Years and Older Living With HIV/AIDS

Purpose: Lesbian, g ay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) people are a health disparate population as identified in Healthy People 2020. Yet, there has been limited attention to how LGBT older adults maintain successful aging despite the adversity they face. Utilizing a Resilience Framework, this study investigates the relationship between physical and mental health-related quality of life (QOL) and covariates by age group. Design and Methods: A cross-sectional survey of LGBT adults aged 50 and older (N = 2,560) was conducted by Caring and Aging with Pride: The National Health, Aging, and Sexuality Study via collaborations with 11 sites across the U.S. Linear regression analyses tested specified relationships and moderating effects of age groups (aged 50–64; 65–79; 80 and older). Results: Physical and mental health QOL were neg atively associated with discrimination and chronic conditions and positively with social support, social network size, physical and leisure activities, substance nonuse, employment, income, and being male when controlling for age and other covariates. Mental health QOL was also positively associated with positive sense of sexual identity and negatively with sexual identity disclosure. Important differences by age group emerged and for the old–old age group the influence of discrimination was particularly salient. Implications: This is the first study to examine ph ysical and mental health QOL, as an indicator of successful aging, among LGBT older adults. An understanding of the configuration of resources and risks by age group is important for the development of aging and health initiatives tailored for this growing population.

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Charles A. Emlet

Papers

Physical and Mental Health of Transgender Older Adults: An At-Risk and Underserved Population

The Physical and Mental Health of Lesbian, Gay Male, and Bisexual (LGB) Older Adults: The Role of Key Health Indicators and Risk and Protective Factors

The Aging and Health Report: Disparities and Resilience Among Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Older Adults

“You're Awfully Old to Have This Disease”: Experiences of Stigma and Ageism in Adults 50 Years and Older Living With HIV/AIDS

Successful Aging Among LGBT Older Adults: Physical and Mental Health-Related Quality of Life by Age Group