Papers by Esther Rothblum Ph. D.
Journal of Homosexuality, 2021
Studies have compared sexual minority mothers (mostly lesbian) to heterosexual mothers on mental ... more Studies have compared sexual minority mothers (mostly lesbian) to heterosexual mothers on mental health, but little research has compared sexual minority women with and without children. This was the first study to compare sexual minority women who did or did not have children, using a populationbased sample with three age cohorts. Unlike prior convenience studies, this study finds parents more likely to be bisexual, in a relationship with a man, and non-urban. Bisexual parents scored higher than lesbian parents on psychological distress and lower on life satisfaction and happiness; they also reported less connection to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) community. Among lesbians, the oldest non-parents reported more happiness and less psychological distress than the youngest non-parents. Parents with other identities perceived more social support from friends and reported lower levels of internalized homophobia than bisexual parents. The results will help professionals and policymakers understand how parenthood status affects women across sexual identities. KEYWORDS Sexual minority parents; same-sex parenting; lesbian parents; bisexual female parents; mental health; parenthood status; health disparities; age cohorts; population-based study Convenience studies of lesbians conducted in the 1970s and 1980s, which rarely included bisexual women, found them to be demographically different from heterosexual women (c.f. Albro & Tully, 1979; Rothblum, 1989). This was often attributed to the fact that lesbians and heterosexual women were recruited via different sources. However, once population-based studies included items about sexual orientation, these differences persisted, showing that women who were members of sexual minority communities were usually more highly educated, less religious, in relationships of shorter duration, and less likely to have children (c.f. Rothblum, Balsam, Riggle, Rostosky, & Wickham, 2020a, for a review). Whereas parenthood has been the norm for most heterosexual women, it is a minority status for sexual minority women. It was this consistent cultural difference in parenthood status that was the impetus for our research. We wanted to know what it means to be a sexual CONTACT Mark Assink
Helicopter parenting, emotional avoidant coping, mental health, and homophobic stigmatization among emerging adult offspring of lesbian parents
Journal of Family Psychology
Helicopter parents are highly involved parents who hover over and around their child, applying de... more Helicopter parents are highly involved parents who hover over and around their child, applying developmentally inappropriate levels of control and tangible assistance. Previous research with different-sex parent families indicates that helicopter parenting is particularly problematic in emerging adulthood as it may indirectly affect the offspring's mental health through their use of emotional avoidant coping. Knowledge is lacking, however, on the antecedents and consequences of helicopter parenting in lesbian-parent families. The present longitudinal, questionnaire-based study investigated the effect of homophobic stigmatization in adolescence on mental health via helicopter parenting and emotional avoidant coping among 76 (37 females and 39 males) National Longitudinal Lesbian Family Study 25-year-old offspring of lesbian parents. All participants were cisgender, born in the USA, and conceived through donor sperm, with the majority being White, heterosexual, highly educated, and no longer living with their parents. Parents who reported that their offspring experienced homophobic stigmatization in adolescence were likely to enact higher helicopter parenting in emerging adulthood. Then, higher scores on helicopter parenting were associated with offspring's greater use of emotional avoidant coping, which in turn negatively affected the mental health of emerging adult offspring. Discussed in light of Bowen's family differentiation theory, the results suggest that clinicians should examine helicopter parenting in the context of lesbian parents' developmental history and potential tendency to project their own concerns about safety onto their child in order to reduce the distress of experienced homophobic stigmatization.
Journal of Homosexuality, Mar 7, 2017
A U.S. national sample of 295 transgender adults (trans women, trans men, and genderqueer individ... more A U.S. national sample of 295 transgender adults (trans women, trans men, and genderqueer individuals) and their cisgender siblings completed the Bem Sex-Role Inventory about their siblings as well as themselves, which enabled a comparison between self-perceptions and sibling's perceptions of personality characteristics. Self-reported personality characteristics scored as feminine of trans women were not statistically different from those of their cisgender sisters, but were significantly higher than self-reported femininity scores of trans men, genderqueer individuals, and cisgender brothers. Self-reported personality characteristics scored as masculine of trans men did not differ significantly from those of their cisgender brothers, but were higher than those of trans women. Trans men and cisgender brothers were viewed by their siblings in a more sex-typed way than they rated themselves, whereas trans women and A c c e p t e d M a n u s c r i p t 2 2 cisgender sisters were rated by their siblings in a less sex-typed way than they viewed themselves.
Psychological Science, 2001
Lesbians and their heterosexual sisters were compared on demographic variables and mental health ... more Lesbians and their heterosexual sisters were compared on demographic variables and mental health subscales, so that the feasibility of using heterosexual sisters as a control group for lesbians could be investigated. Lesbians were significantly more educated, more likely to live in urban areas, and more geographically mobile than their heterosexual sisters. Heterosexual sisters were more likely than lesbians to be married and homemakers, to have children, and to identify with a formal religion. There was no difference in mental health, but lesbians had higher self-esteem. When all respondents were included, bisexual women had significantly poorer mental health than did lesbians and heterosexual women. This is the first study to use sisters as a control group in lesbian research.
Exploring gender identity and community among three groups of transgender individuals in the United States: MTFs, FTMs, and genderqueers
Health Sociology Review, Oct 1, 2008
Abstract A United States sample of 166 transgender adults including 50 male-to-females (MTFs), 52... more Abstract A United States sample of 166 transgender adults including 50 male-to-females (MTFs), 52 female-to-males (FTMs), and 64 genderqueers (neither completely female nor completely male), were surveyed about identity development, levels of disclosure of ...
Journal of Lgbt Health Research, Jun 1, 2007
Previous findings from mental health research with transsexuals may not apply to all groups of co... more Previous findings from mental health research with transsexuals may not apply to all groups of contemporary transgender individuals. Fur thermore, much prior research included very small samples, was often limited to transsex uals in clinical or surgical settings, and fo cused overwhelmingly on MTF individuals. Few of the studies had adequate comparison groups of nontransgendered individuals. This study was planned as a large, national sample of transwomen, transmen, genderqueers, and non transgendered brothers and sisters. Using Siblings as a Comparison Group This study used a sibling methodology. This is similar to that used in studies of lesbians, gay men, and bisexuals (LGBs) and their heterosexual siblings (Rothbluffi, Balsam, &; Mickey, 2004; Rothblum & Factor, 2001), which found that siblings are comparable on parental 14
Sex Roles, 2012
In our review of the literature on women and weight bias (Fikkan and Rothblum 2011), we attempted... more In our review of the literature on women and weight bias (Fikkan and Rothblum 2011), we attempted to cull findings from multiple disciplines that demonstrate the impact (social, educational, and financial) of the stigma of women's weight. We undertook this for two purposes: the first was to address a gap in the weight bias literature, which tends to make only a side note mention that fat women suffer worse penalties than do fat men; the second, to raise the point that feminist scholars, though highly attuned to pressures on women to be thin, have spent less time discussing the disparate impact for women of being fat, despite the mounting evidence of how much weight bias impacts women. We offered some of our own thoughts on the persisting neglect of this topic among feminist writers, despite previous calls to action (Rothblum 1992, 1994). Given the dearth of attention to what has become one of the most frequent types of discrimination against women (Puhl et al. 2008), we asked: "is fat a feminist issue?" We were delighted with the response from the commentators and the thoughtful exploration they devoted to our question and to this issue within feminist scholarship. Here, we briefly summarize some of the main themes identified by these writers, offer our own thoughts on these themes and repeat their call to action for further study of this important area of women's lives.
Handbook of short-term therapy groups, 1983
Women working with women, 1984
Handbook of social skills training and research, 1985
Contemporary directions in psychopathology, 1986
Lesbians at midlife, 1991
New directions for teaching and learning, 1993
Ethical decision making in therapy, 1995
Dyke life: From growing up to growing old, 1995
Handbook of social and evaluation anxiety, 1990
Encyclopedia of career decision and work issues, 1992
Gays, lesbians, and their therapists, 1991
Dyke life: From growing up to growing old, 1995
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Papers by Esther Rothblum Ph. D.