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Introduction: Evidence from 3 randomized controlled trials in South Africa, Uganda and Kenya showing that male circumcision can reduce heterosexual transmission of HIV from infected females to their male sexual partners by up to 60% has led to a dramatic increase in the demand for circumcision in most African countries hard-hit by the HIV pandemic. Among communities where circumcision is not routinely practiced, this has created anxieties around possible deleterious effects of circumcision on erectile function. Most studies that have been conducted to explore the relationship between male circumcision and erectile function have yielded conflicting results (6-8, 14, 15). This study aimed to compare erectile function in circumcised and uncircumcised men in Lusaka, Zambia. Aim/objectives: To compare erectile function in circumcised and uncircumcised adult men aged 18 years and above in Lusaka, Zambia. Methods: Design: In this cross sectional survey, a total of 478 participants (242 circumcised and 236 uncircumcised) comprising patients, health workers and other men visiting the 4 study sites between 1/6/13 and 30/9/13 were handed the IIEF-5 questionnaire to complete. Information about participants’ age, relationship status, education level, smoking, alcohol use and medication use was also collected. The study included sexually active men older than 18 years living in Lusaka, Zambia. Males younger than 18 years, those lacking sexual experience and, those with serious mental and physical conditions were excluded from the study. Setting: Outpatient departments of 4 primary health care facilities in Lusaka, Zambia. Main Outcome Measure: Erectile function scores were calculated for the 2 groups. Normal erectile function was defined as an IIEF-5 score ≥22 (out of a possible maximum score of 25) points. Results: Circumcised men had higher average erectile function scores compared to their uncircumcised counterparts, U=23062.50, Z=3.64, p<0.001. The prevalence of ED was lower in circumcised men (56%) compared to that in uncircumcised ones (68%), 2 (N182) =7.52, df=1, p<0.05. Erectile function scores were similar in those circumcised in childhood compared to those circumcised in adulthood, 2 (N242) =0.29, df=1, p=0.59. The groups did not differ significantly in age, relationship status, smoking, alcohol use and medication use. However, a statistically significant difference was observed in education levels with the circumcision group showing higher levels, 2 (N478)=19.05, df=6, p<0.005. Conclusion: The higher erectile function scores in circumcised men observed in this study show that circumcision does not confer adverse effects on erectile function in men. Circumcision can thus be considered without concern about worsening erectile function. However, a prospective study in a similar cultural context is needed to confirm these findings.

‘Gay identity’ is an often taken-for-granted concept in research. When researchers refer to gay men’s identities, the term is used in relation to sexuality, as a labelling process, and operationalised through reference to homosexual relationships. But what do those relationships mean to gay men? What does ‘being gay’ mean to gay men? Those questions, for the most part, remain unaddressed. My review of literature shows that ‘being gay’ has been commonly equated to ‘being homosexual’ and, although sexual relationships are one of the most common themes in research about gay men, studies often investigate them from epidemiological perspectives. In this thesis, I draw attention to the limits of those perspectives and explore the contributions that sexual, erotic, and romantic connections make to gay men’s sense of identity. From a narrative approach, this thesis is concerned with how self-identified gay men give meanings to their romantic, erotic, and sexual relationships and how those meanings become entangled with their sense of who they are. To conduct this study, I interviewed ten gay men of different ages and backgrounds living in the United Kingdom, each of whom provided narrative data during unstructured one-to-one, one-off interviews. Drawing upon a narrative structural analysis, my findings are presented in two ways: first in the form of idiographic narratives concerning five participants and, secondly, as an overarching analysis with central themes identified across participants’ narratives. My findings show that gay men construct a sense of identity through their sexual, erotic, and romantic relationships and that being gay pervades the self in a way that affects their entire life stories. This study concludes by challenging the conception of ‘being gay’ as a sexual orientation because it describes in sexual terms an identity that is not only, not always, and not predominantly sexual.

The aim of this study is to explore language skills in a population of unemployed young men aged 18-24 years registered on the Employment Zone (EZ) programme in Wales. Three phases of data collection were conducted between 2007 and 2010. In Phase 1 quantitative data were gathered on language and non-verbal IQ using standardised assessment tools. A structured interview was also administered to gather quantitative and qualitative information on contextual factors. In Phases 2 and 3, participants were folio wed-up with a telephone interview to investigate their employment status a) six months and b) two years following participation in Phase 1. Data from Phase 1 (N= 76) describe prevalence of language impairment which was found to be considerably above the 1 % prevalence reported as existing in the UK general population and the 2.02% - 19% reported in children (up to 88%). The specific nature of language impairment was evaluated using an assessment of non-verbal IQ, finding a high level of specific language impairment (34%) and nonspecific language impairment (54%). Self-report data on contextual factors were found to be comparable with those recorded in previous studies. Data on language skills were compared to employment outcomes in Phase 2 (n = 73) using t-tests. Associations between higher listening skills and ability to gain employment approached significance, and higher speaking skills were significantly associated with ability to gain employment, both with a medium effect size. Preliminary evidence from Phase 3 (n = 23) describe long-term employment outcomes, to inform potential future research. The results of this study provide evidence for the first time that there is an under-identification of language impairments in the study population, and generates provisional data on associations between language skills and ability to gain employment. This study sets the foundations for further research and policy development in the fields of communication impairments as well as unemployment. It therefore may contribute towards improved employment outcomes for people with communication impairments.

M.A. / Shame and guilt are two terms which have been used synonymously in the psychological literature for many decades. It has only recently, however, been realized that there are fundamental differences in not only the experience, but also the elicitation of these two self-conscious emotions. Studies of the elicitation and experience of not only shame and guilt, but other self-conscious emotions too, represent a relatively new domain in psychology. The study of self-conscious emotions is thus fertile ground for further research. Tracy and Robins are two of the first researchers to present a comprehensive causal theory of self-conscious emotions. Their theory utilizes research from the field of cognition. Causal attributions are those aspects of cognition whereby an individual will explain the cause of an event or situation in terms of either dispositional or situational factors. It is hypothesized then that the attribution of either the disposition or the situation will result in either shame or guilt respectively. This study has utilized Tracy and Robins’ (2004) causal theory of self-conscious emotions as the foundation to investigate which casual attributions are utilized by males and females in the experience of shame and guilt. Tracy and Robins do not distinguish between the attributions used by males and females despite literature indicating gender differences in self-conscious emotions and causal attributional styles. This study involved 525 first year students from the University of Johannesburg. The instruments used for this study include the Test of Self-Conscious Affect and the Multidimensional Multiattributional Causality Scale. Moderated hierarchical multiple regression was used to investigate the moderating effect of gender on the attribution of shame and guilt. For shame the study found that as expected, ability was positively related to shame. Unexpected however, was that effort, luck, and context were also positively related to shame. Save for luck, in which males and females showed similar levels of intensity for high levels of luck, females experienced shame with greater intensity than males in terms of ability, effort, and context attributional styles. For guilt the study found that as expected, effort was positively related to guilt. For effort, females experienced more guilt than males do. Unexpectedly, however, was the finding that (for both genders) ability was positively related to guilt with females experiencing guilt with greater intensity than males. Also unexpected was the finding that for luck and context, only males experienced more guilt as luck and context were attributed as the cause of an event (females, as expected, experienced less guilt). It is recommended that future studies: Use a random sample to ensure the results can be generalized onto other populations; Create a sample where there are equal numbers of male and female participants to allow for accurate comparisons; Capture the cultural affiliation of the participant; Consider using samples across different age-groups; Use open-ended questions with the TOSCA to assess the healthy components of guilt; Standardize terms and phrases of the MMCS so that it is applicable to a South African context.

Since the 1970s, there have been numerous studies of the personality disorders, and psychological and behavioural characteristics of men who assault their female partners. The goal of these studies has been to describe and better understand potential underlying processes that result in female partner assault. These studies have revealed that men who assault their female partners are not a homogeneous group. They appear to be comprised of subgroups without personality disorders, those with different personality disorders, and differ on psychological and behavioural characteristics. The literature most strongly supports the theoretical typology o f Holtzworth-Munroe and Stuart (1994), yet this theoretical typology requires further validation research. This thesis was an empirical test of this typology. The typology was tested by collecting quantitative data on personality disorders and psychological and behavioural characteristics in a large sample of men who assault their female partners, and used statistical procedures to test whether the hypothesized subgroups existed in the sample. The statistical procedure used to test the presence of subgroups was cluster analysis, which can derive groups of individuals within a sample. The differences between possible subgroups identified in the cluster analysis were further tested using standard statistical procedures (discriminant function analysis and analysis of variance). The results of these procedures were compared to the Holtzworth-Munroe and Stuart (1994) theoretical typology and previous research. The findings of the current study failed to support the Holtzworth-Munroe and Stuart (1994) theoretical typology. Holtzworth-Munroe and Stuart (1994) hypothesized the population of spousal assaulters was comprised of the family-only (50%), the dysphoric-borderline (25%), and the generally violent-antisocial (25%) spousal assaulter. The current study found three groups of spousal assaulters: Low-Level Antisocial (66%), Moderate Pathological (21%), and Severe Pathological (13%). These three groups showed consistent increases across groups in the average number and percentages of personality disorders from the Low Level Antisocial (LLA) to the Moderate Pathological (MP) and Severe Pathological (SP) groups. The increases in the average number and percentages of personality disorders were paralleled by significant increases from the L L A to the M P and SP group in five o f the eight external variables Holtzworth-Munroe and Stuart (1994) hypothesized spousal assaulters vary upon. The reasons for failure to support the Holtzworth-Munroe and Stuart (1994) typology were differences between the current study and the Holtzworth-Munroe and Stuart (1994) typology on (a) personality disorder types, (b) psychological and behavioural variables, and (c) psychopathology. The current study findings were similar to some previous and more current research findings of (a) some groups of generalized psychopathology, (b) some groups that include a combination o f antisocial and borderline personality disorders, (c) some groups that include narcissistic personality disorder, and (d) some groups that are best described as inbetween the Holtzworth-Munroe and Stuart (1994) family-only and generally violent-antisocial groups. Some of the differences between the current study findings and previous typology research appear to be related to a focus in research on attempting to validate the Holtzworth- Munroe and Stuart (1994) typology. Research prior and subsequent to the development of their model had found the presence of other personality disorders (e.g., narcissistic), yet these findings have not been incorporated into typology models. This is prudent, given that there has not been a great deal o f research on typologies o f men who assault their female partners. Some authors have speculated that differences in typology study findings may be related to differences in study samples (e.g., Gortner, Gollan, & Jacobson, 1997). Due to this possibility, numerous comparisons were made between the current study and previous research on study sample characteristics. Methodological and interpretive issues were reviewed. Although the current study included the highest proportion of First Nations research participants (24.2%) compared to previous research, this group was not different than the rest of the research participants, with one exception. Their higher average number of previous convictions may be related to racial bias in the reporting of crime. A number of future research directions were suggested. The most prominent recommendation is for a large study including the range of samples (e.g., spousal assault treatment and community recruited) that may clarify the differences in previous research and the current study findings. / Education, Faculty of / Educational and Counselling Psychology, and Special Education (ECPS), Department of / Graduate

當代女性及性別史權威學者曼素恩 (Susan Mann) 曾鄭重提出社會性別作為一種分析角度的重要性，以性別視角切入研究歷史，有助我們進一步了解歷史。"傳統社會女性為受害者" 的觀念已逐漸淡出主流學術界，以女性作為主要分析對象的性別史研究，成果甚豐。然而，研究性別史必須仔細地考察古代兩性關係及權力分配等議題，例如曼素恩指出在中國歷史文化研究的領域之中，我們應重視 "男性氣概"、男性的人際關係等課題。事實上，中國男性史的研究已日漸進入學者的視線，足證 "男性氣概" 的研究深具發展潛力。有見及此，本研究希望在前人的研究基礎上繼續開拓。另外，必須注意的是，過往男性研究較側重於採用男性文本及視野作為主要探討對象，似乎未有留意女性文本中有關男性的書寫。雷金慶 (Kam Louie)曾以五四前後女作家為分析對象，析論當時女性筆下如何塑造 "男性氣概"，是極具開拓性的探索。誠然，明清女性作品的探究已引起學術界的重視，一眾學者亦頗為致力於呈現明清女性作家的主體性 (subjectivity) 及能動性 (agency)。那麼，明清時期數量極其豐富的女性著作之中，女性有否對傳統男性人格加以討論？她們對社會中的男性角色有何看法？她們的著述中又如何塑造不同的男性形象？然而，此等書寫並未普遍為學者所注意，前人從女性著作切入來看男性人格的研究仍然相當缺乏。故此，本文之寫作盼能補苴罅漏。本研究將以兩個主要方向分析明清女性營建的男性人格，包括探討明清女性以男性家人為對象的男性角色論述，以及她們在各種詩篇和論史文章中所塑造的男性形象、以至對 "女中丈夫" 形象的建構。基於男性史的研究方興未艾，可以發揮的空間極其寬闊，因此筆者希望在這方面努力。筆者期望本文可以對明清時期性別史、男性性別認知、兩性關係、家庭史及古代女性著作研究作出增補與貢獻。進一步來說，由於明清女性筆下對傳統男性人格曾有多番論述，我們可以清楚認識到男性人格的構建，不一定只由男性來完成，當中或許有不少女性的聲音，正如傳統社會對女性的人格期許，同樣包含男女兩性的取態一樣。本文認為，以女性文本來探究她們對男性人格的看法，對於我們理解明清時期的兩性角色期望將有極大的啓發性。

This study utilized a cross-sectional design to report quantitative results. Equal numbers of African American men, religious and non-religious, were sought out for comparison. Participants must have identified as African American, been 30 years of age or older, and lived within 10 miles of Carbondale, IL during the time of the study. African American men are at an increased risk of developing many diet-related disparities. This study aimed to see if religion influenced these factors.

This research report is submitted to the Faculty of Humanities, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg in partial fulfilment of the degree of Masters of Arts in Research Psychology

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