This qualitative phenomenological study explored the experience of polyamory from the perspective of heterosexual polyamorous women through a mononormative framework. Interpretive phenomenology was used because it gives participants the opportunity to express this phenomenon on their own terms. This study focused on understanding the experience of heterosexual polyamorous women in the following areas: (1) understanding the decision to participate in polyamorous relationships, (2) exploring the boundaries heterosexual women use to regulate and maintain multiple relationships, and (3) giving these women the opportunity to refute assumptions and stereotypes associated with identifying themselves as polyamorous. Eight women whom identified as heterosexual and polyamorous participated in semi-structured telephone interviews. Data form these interviews were analyzed using an interpretive phenomenological approach. Open coding and in-vivo coding were used to organize similar experiences into concepts that were then organized into themes and subthemes that emerged from the data. From this study, researchers gained insight into how polyamorous heterosexual woman make meaning of this phenomenon and offer recommendations for clinical professionals to use when working with this population. / Master of Science / Polyamory has been practiced for centuries in many different cultures (Labriola, 1999; Klesse, 2006; Robinson, 2013). Previous research on polyamorous relationships has focused primarily on homosexual males. There has been limited research on polyamorous relationships from the woman's perspective and no research focused exclusively on heterosexual women who identify as polyamorous. This study explored the lived experience of heterosexual polyamorous women in polyamorous relationships using interpretive phenomenology. This included understanding the decision to participate in polyamorous relationships, exploring the boundaries heterosexual women use to regulate and maintain multiple relationships, and giving these women the opportunity to refute assumptions and stereotypes associated with identifying themselves as polyamorous. The results of this research study provide insight into this perspective on polyamory and offer recommendations for clinical professionals to use when working with this population.

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Brigham Young University. Dept. of Counseling Psychology and Special Education, 2006. / Includes bibliographical references (p. 78-83).

Thesis (M.A.)--Humboldt State University, 2007. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 55-70). Also available via Humboldt Digital Scholar.

The present study examined the viability of a model of biased language use (e.g., Maass et al., 1989; Maass et al., 1996) as a measure of anti-lesbian prejudice among heterosexual women. As a matter of methodological and psychometric exploration, four alternative methods of scoring linguistic abstraction were employed.One hundred eighty-one female university undergraduates provided abstraction ratings for a series of seven fictitious news clippings, adapted from von Hippel et al. (1997), four of which depicted either heterosexual or lesbian women engaging in behaviors that were either socially favorable or unfavorable and lesbian stereotypic or counterstereotypic. Participants also completed a "Memory Test" devised for this study, a demographic questionnaire, and the ATL Subscale of the ATLG (Herek, 1988, 1994).The prediction that the linguistic expectancy bias (LEB; e.g., Maass, 1999) would be observed in the present intergroup context was not supported. The overall pattern of results suggested some stability across scoring methods. A number of implications of the findings are considered, with a focus on methodological concerns and applications to practice. / Department of Counseling Psychology and Guidance Services

Thesis (Ph. D.)--Oregon State University, 2000. / Typescript (photocopy). Includes bibliographical references (leaves 188-198). Also available on the World Wide Web.

This dissertation explores lesbian experience, or the psychological meaning of being lesbian from the point of view of women who call themselves lesbian. The researcher suspended the binary paradigm of sex and gender, and argued that lesbians' identity development must be understood against the background of how patriarchy understands the category 'woman' through history. Towards this purpose the pOSition of women in the West, as well as contemporary images and literature about lesbians, was reviewed. On the basis of this review questions about lesbian gender construction, lesbian identity development and lesbian individuation were identified. In order to access the psychological meaning of being lesbian, or lesbian experience from the inside out, the dream-series of three lesbians constituted an empirical basis for further exploration. These dream-series were amplified with intensive face-to-face interviews, transcribed, and subjected to a hermeneutic-phenomenological inductive method. Common inter-case concerns were identified and synthesized. In dialogue with the literature reviewed, twenty-two statements of meaning about being lesbian were distilled. These revealed two possible constructions of gender for primary lesbians. In addition, primary lesbians involved in the research demonstrated remarkable flexibility with respect to their gender orientations and gender identifications, were in the process of integrating with and differentiating from different aspects of their masculine and feminine potentials, and developed and negotiated their gender identities in relationship to both their lovers and friends. The explication also revealed that participants identified with archetypal aspects of the father that their fathers' did not express, and desired archetypal aspects of the mother that their mother's did not express. Finally, in so much as the method distinguished ~ sex, sexual identity and sexual orientation from gender, gender identity, gender identification and gender orientation, it may prove useful for exploring gender in heterosexual relating.

Objectives: High prevalence of bacterial vaginosis (BV) has been reported in lesbians but most studies were based in sexually transmitted infection clinic settings; therefore, we wished to determine the prevalence and risk factors of BV in lesbians and heterosexual women in a community setting in the UK. Methods: A cross-sectional study recruiting lesbian women volunteers from community groups, events, clubs and bars. Heterosexual women were recruited from a community family planning clinic. They self-swabbed to create a vaginal smear, which was Gram-stained and categorised as BV, intermediate or normal flora. They completed a questionnaire about age, ethnic group, smoking, genital hygiene practices and sexual history. Results: Of 189 heterosexuals and 171 lesbians recruited, 354 had gradeable flora. BV was identified in 43 (25.7%) lesbians and 27 (14.4%) heterosexuals (adjusted OR 2.45, 95% CI 1.25 to 4.82; p¿=¿0.009). Concordance of vaginal flora within lesbian partnerships was significantly greater than expected (27/31 (87%) couples, ¿¿=¿0.63; p<0.001). Smoking significantly increased the risk of BV regardless of sexuality (adjusted OR 2.65; p¿=¿0.001) and showed substantial concordance in lesbian partnerships but less than for concordance of flora. Conclusions: Women who identified as lesbians have a 2.5-fold increased likelihood of BV compared with heterosexual women. The prevalence is slightly lower than clinic-based studies and as volunteers were recruited in community settings, this figure may be more representative of lesbians who attend gay venues. Higher concordance of vaginal flora within lesbian partnerships may support the hypothesis of a sexually transmissible factor or reflect common risk factors such as smoking.

Thesis (M.A.)--University of North Texas, 2000. / Title from PDF title page (viewed on Dec. 9, 2004). Includes bibliographical references (p. 93-98).

To date, little research has explored the utility of inter-personal confrontation as a strategy for the reduction of homonegative attitudes and/or behaviours among heterosexual women. Consequently, the purpose of the current study was to explore three unique aspects of such confrontations among a sample of heterosexual women from the University of Saskatchewan. These three aspects were: 1) to what extent do high- and low-prejudiced womens reactions to confrontations of subtle homonegative behaviour differ; 2) what differences exist in the way that heterosexual women respond to bias directed towards gay men than to bias directed towards lesbian women; 3) what effect does the vested interest of a confronter have on heterosexual womens reaction to confrontations of homonegative behaviour. A 2(target condition) X 2(modern homonegativity endorsement) X 4(confronter type) between-subjects design was used wherein 286 female volunteers completed a questionnaire booklet developed for the project. The questionnaire booklet asked participants to first imagine themselves in a scenario where they would be confronted for engaging in subtle homonegative behaviour and to then indicated how they would think, feel, and behave in response to such a confrontation. The results indicated that low-prejudice participants reacted with greater negative-self directed affect (e.g., guilt) and compunction (e.g., apologize for behaviour) than high-prejudice participants when confronted by either a gay man or lesbian woman. Such reactions are important as they mark the initiation of a self-regulatory cycle that allows the individual to avoid such biased behaviour in the future. Limitations of the study and directions for future research concerning inter-personal confrontations of homonegativity are also presented.

To date, little research has explored the utility of inter-personal confrontation as a strategy for the reduction of homonegative attitudes and/or behaviours among heterosexual women. Consequently, the purpose of the current study was to explore three unique aspects of such confrontations among a sample of heterosexual women from the University of Saskatchewan. These three aspects were: 1) to what extent do high- and low-prejudiced womens reactions to confrontations of subtle homonegative behaviour differ; 2) what differences exist in the way that heterosexual women respond to bias directed towards gay men than to bias directed towards lesbian women; 3) what effect does the vested interest of a confronter have on heterosexual womens reaction to confrontations of homonegative behaviour. A 2(target condition) X 2(modern homonegativity endorsement) X 4(confronter type) between-subjects design was used wherein 286 female volunteers completed a questionnaire booklet developed for the project. The questionnaire booklet asked participants to first imagine themselves in a scenario where they would be confronted for engaging in subtle homonegative behaviour and to then indicated how they would think, feel, and behave in response to such a confrontation. The results indicated that low-prejudice participants reacted with greater negative-self directed affect (e.g., guilt) and compunction (e.g., apologize for behaviour) than high-prejudice participants when confronted by either a gay man or lesbian woman. Such reactions are important as they mark the initiation of a self-regulatory cycle that allows the individual to avoid such biased behaviour in the future. Limitations of the study and directions for future research concerning inter-personal confrontations of homonegativity are also presented.