Date of Award
1997
Document Type
Dissertation
Degree Name
Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)
Department
Psychology
Abstract
This study investigated the effects of a gay and lesbian panel and a videotape on homophobia and negative attitudes toward women. The sample consisted of 96 undergraduate students from a variety of introductory courses at a midwestern university. Participants were randomly assigned to one of four groups: (1)Educational videotape with posttest; (2)Educational videotape with pretest and posttest; (3) gay and lesbian panel with posttest; and (4) gay and lesbian panel with pretest and posttest. The dependent variables included scores of homophobia (Index of Attitudes toward Homosexuals; Hudson & Ricketts, 1980) and scores of attitudes toward women (Attitudes toward Women-Simplified; Spence, Helmreich, & Stapp, 1973). Four null hypothesis were examined. The first investigated the relationship of homophobic attitudes and attitudes toward women utilizing a Pearson r statistic. The second hypothesis investigated changes in attitude scores after a briefEducational intervention utilizing t-tests. The third null hypothesis investigated the relationship of demographic variables with attitude scores and change in attitude scores utilizing a multiple regression analysis. The fourth null hypothesis investigated the effects of intervention, testing, and the interaction of intervention and testing utilizing a two-way analysis of variance. Additionally, one qualitative question was asked of participants regarding the most impactful aspects of the intervention strategies experienced. It was found that: (1) there is a slight relationship between homophobic attitudes and negative attitudes toward women; (2) both a gay and lesbian panel and anEducational videotape are effective in reducing homophobia, but not in reducing negative attitudes toward women; (3) demographic variables of race/ethnicity and sex are related to negative attitudes toward women; and (4) neither testing, intervention strategy, nor interaction were found to be responsible for changes in attitude. Additionally, hearing from actual gay people may be an impactful aspect of briefEducational interventions for reducing homophobia.
Recommended Citation
Huffey, Bradley Benjamin, "The Effects Of Two Brief Intervention Strategies On Homophobia And Negative Attitudes Toward Women" (1997). All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 891.
https://scholars.indianastate.edu/etds/891