The Role of Gender Nonconformity and Assertiveness
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City University of New York (CUNY) CUNY Academic Works All Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects 6-2014 LGBTQ Experiences with the Courts: The Role of Gender Nonconformity and Assertiveness Alexis Forbes Graduate Center, City University of New York How does access to this work benefit ou?y Let us know! More information about this work at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu/gc_etds/208 Discover additional works at: https://academicworks.cuny.edu This work is made publicly available by the City University of New York (CUNY). Contact: [email protected] LGBTQ EXPERIENCES WITH THE COURTS: THE ROLE OF GENDER NONCONFORMITY AND ASSERTIVENESS by ALEXIS A. FORBES A dissertation submitted to the Graduate Faculty in Psychology in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, The City University of New York 2014 ii © 2014 ALEXIS A. FORBES All Rights Reserved iii iv Abstract LGBTQ EXPERIENCES WITH THE COURTS: THE ROLE OF GENDER NONCONFORMITY AND ASSERTIVENESS by Alexis A. Forbes Adviser: Professor Kevin Nadal, PhD Using lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) and non-LGBTQ participants, a pair of studies explored the influence of LGBTQ identity and gender nonconformity (GNC) in experiences of discrimination in court settings. A one-way ANOVA tested whether LGBTQ participants were more likely to score low on the treatment in court scale. Additionally, two separate multiple regression analyses tested whether high scores on the Gender Nonconformity Scale (GNCS; Forbes & Nadal, under review), were associated with low scores on a measure of treatment in court. It was discovered that LGBTQ identity did not have a statistically significant effect on factor in treatment ratings. However, the higher an individual’s score on the GNCS, the more likely it was that they would report negative court experiences. Additionally, the LGBTQ participants scored statistically significantly higher in GNC than non-LGBTQ participants did. The findings suggest that, with their higher levels of GNC, LGBTQ people may be more likely to encounter discrimination in the courts than non-LGBTQ people. For Study 2 it was theorized that assertiveness was a form of GNC for cisgender females and, using a multiple regression analysis, tested the three-way interaction between participants’ sex assigned at birth and scores on the assertiveness and GNCS measures. Interestingly, the congruity between gender presentation (i.e., masculine or feminine) and assertiveness score was a better predictor of v treatment than was the congruity between sex assigned at birth and assertiveness (i.e., female with low assertiveness scores). The implications for including measures of GNC as a standard for LGBTQ research are discussed. vi Dedication For Jared Kean McIntyre and his loving family. vii Acknowledgments I would like to express the deepest appreciation to my committee chair Dr. Kevin Nadal, who has the model attitude, scholarship, and ambition of a contemporary academic. His style of advising allowed me to grow my interests in research concurrent with my passion for helping ethnic and sexual minorities. Without his guidance, patience, and practical advice, this dissertation would not have been possible. I would also like to thank my committee members, lore m. dickey, Michelle Fine, Will Rountree, and Brett Stoudt for their contributions to my work. I dedicate my dissertation work to my friends who have become my family and to my family who have become my friends. A special feeling of gratitude to my best friend, Adrienne Babb for giving me the perfect type of support and validation that I needed throughout this process. I thank my brother Andrew for his jokes, social commentary, and for our great conversations. This dissertation is also dedicated to Colin McFadden for being the hardest working member of Team Forbes-McFadden and providing reminders of my motivations and goals when I desperately needed them. I also dedicate this dissertation to my cousin, Anthony Castillio, for becoming the brother and friend that I was always meant to have. Thank you to my close friends, Kathryn, Steve, Sarah, and Lauren for brightening up my graduate school world on a regular basis. A special thanks goes out to my very good friend, Jacqueline Austin, for her optimism and for sharing the fancy things that NYC offered to us. Thanks to the rest of the class of 2030, Sara, Michelle, and Jason for giving me a place to feel welcomed, appreciated, and indispensable. viii Table of Contents List of Tables ................................................................................................................... xiii List of Figures ....................................................................................................................xv Chapter 1: Introduction to the Study ....................................................................................1 Organization of the Dissertation ....................................................................................1 Background ....................................................................................................................1 Overview ........................................................................................................................2 Conceptual Underpinnings of the Study ........................................................................3 Purpose of the Study ......................................................................................................7 Chapter 2: Literature Review ...............................................................................................9 The Role of the Courts in the United States ................................................................10 Procedural Justice ............................................................................................................. 10 Sex, Gender, and LGB Identity....................................................................................12 Gender Nonconformity ..................................................................................................... 16 Transgender Identity and Experience ............................................................................... 20 Discrimination against LGBTQ and GNC ...................................................................21 Economic Consequences of Discrimination ..................................................................... 23 Employment Discrimination Litigation ............................................................................ 24 Mental Health Outcomes of Antigay and Transphobic Violence and Victimization ..30 Mental Health of LGBTQ Youth ...................................................................................... 31 Mental Health of LGBTQ Adults ..................................................................................... 33 Discrimination against LGBTQ in the Justice System ................................................35 ix Discrimination in Family Court ........................................................................................ 39 Measuring Gender Nonconformity ..............................................................................47 Gender Nonconformity and Assertiveness ..................................................................50 Assertiveness..................................................................................................................... 51 Summary ......................................................................................................................53 Chapter 3: Study 1 Research Methodology .......................................................................55 Participant Recruitment ...............................................................................................55 Data Collection and Instrumentation ...........................................................................56 Design Controls ...........................................................................................................60 Procedure .....................................................................................................................61 Hypotheses ...................................................................................................................61 Hypothesis 1.1................................................................................................................... 62 Hypothesis 1.2................................................................................................................... 62 Hypothesis 1.3................................................................................................................... 62 Data Analysis ...............................................................................................................62 Chapter 4: Study 1 Results .................................................................................................65 Organization of Data Analysis .....................................................................................65 Sample Demographics .................................................................................................65 Descriptives and Correlations ......................................................................................67 Gender Nonconformity Scale (GNCS) and 8 subscales ................................................... 68 Treatment in court (TIC) scale .........................................................................................