Comparing Information versus Empathy in Decreasing Homophobic Attitudes: An Intervention Study Senior Research Project Steven Minett Hanover College

Important Key Terms GLBT- Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Homophobia- Refers to discrimination or stigma towards the GLBT community in its various forms Empathy- “vicarious emotional response to the perceived emotional experience of others” – Empathy has been shown to be a factor effective in facilitating positive attitude change towards stigmatized individuals 2

Victims of Homophobia In 1998, Matthew Shepard, a 21 year-old University of Wyoming student was kidnapped, robbed, pistol-whipped, and left tied to a fence for eighteen hours in near-freezing temperatures. 3

Statistical Information Demonstrating Homophobia Herek’s (1988) survey (N = 2,000) found homosexuals: reported having experienced harassment: 90% of males 75% of females reported having experienced threats of violence: 50% of males 33% of females reported having experienced direct physical violence: 20% of males 10% of females 4

Harassment of GLBT Community: Statistics Hershberger and D’Augelli’s (1995) survey (N = 200) also reported high levels of victimization based on their sexual orientation: – verbal insults (80%) – physical assault (17%) 5

Recent Data Depicting Discrimination Percentage of GLBT individuals estimated to be 3-5% of the total population The FBI reported that 17% of the 7,462 reported hate crime incidences were crimes related to sexual orientation. The U.S. Dept of Health and Human Services estimate between 20-40% of homeless youth identify as GLBT Gay Suicide Attempts – 4x more likely to attempt to commit suicide than their heterosexual peers – 1/3 teenaged suicide attempts are by a GLBT individual 6

The Importance of Allies As a member of the GLBT community this study has a great deal of personal importance to me. Having supportive, GLBT allies made a huge difference in my life as the first person I came out to was part of Hanover’s student life staff. 7

How Can Psychologists Help Facilitate Ally Attitudes? There is a need for more widely available factual information regarding the GLBT community. Such information helps combat homophobia in the public and to create effective educational programs and psychological interventions. The information is also a way to foster more empathy in various segments of our communities. 8

General Research Question Can we identify effective methods for intervening in a college community, to encourage members to become allies? 9

Intervention Programs Safe Zone Ally Training Widely-used in Colleges Grassroots education regarding GLBT issues Encourages non-GLBTs to become allies of GLBT Good basis, but something more formal is needed 10

Study Design Pre-test and post-test intervention study. Three intervention groups: – Information-only Exposure (Intellectual) – Information and Empathy Exposure (Emotional) – Neutral Exposure (Control) 11

Specific Hypothesis Both the Information-only and the Information and Empathy interventions will show significant increases in empathy and positive attitudes as compared to the control group. The Information and Empathy group will show the most significant increases in empathy. 12

Materials One video for each condition : – “The Gay Gene” (Information-only) – “Ugly Ducklings: A Documentary” (Information and Empathy) – “Buffy the Vampire Slayer” (Control) 13

Materials – Modified CAMI The Community Attitude Toward the Mentally Ill Scale (CAMI), adapted for content – “I am annoyed by GLBT people who feel sorry for themselves” – “Homosexuals are a burden on society” (Taylor, S.M. & Dear, M.J., 1981) 14

Materials - ATLG Gregory Herek developed a survey he named the “Scale Items for Attitudes Towards Lesbians and Gay Men (ATLG).” – “I would not be too upset if I learned that my son were a homosexual” – “Female homosexuality is a threat to many of our basic institutions” (Herek, 1988) 15

Procedure For each group the surveys were given to all participants pre-/post-intervention: – Study Description/Consent Obtained – Surveys (ATLG and Modified CAMI) – Video (one of the three conditions) – Surveys; Demographics – Debriefing 16

Participants Total number of participants (n = 34) – Information only (n = 11) – Information and Empathy (n = 13) – Control (n = 10) Age range: years (mean age = 20.5 years) 70.6 % of participants were female – 24 female – 10 male 17

Analysis Cronbach’s Alpha – Pre CAMI:.90 – Post CAMI:.91 – Pre ATLG:.95 – Post ATLG:.96 2 x 3 mixed ANOVA – Time (pre-/post-intervention) – Exposure (three different video groups) 18

Analysis Continued Cross-tabulation/pair-wise comparisons for pre- /post- difference within each condition – Subtracted the post survey scores from the pre survey scores for each survey for each condition – Looked at the percentages of participants whose scores showed: Decrease No Change Increase 19

20 Results: Modified CAMI 20

Results: ATLG 21

Discussion Videos did not perfectly capture components – Had to rely on what already exists in culture – None directly designed to intervene on attitudes Ceiling Effect – Negative attitudes could not be actively sought out – 26/34 participants began with scores of 4 or higher – Participants had high levels of previous contact Self-Selection Bias Demand characteristics 22

Future Directions Larger Sample Size Using more precisely targeted videos Utilizing Contact Theory 23

24 Judy Sheppard Matthew’s mother, Judy Shepard, gives public lectures to combat homophobia. Audiences continue to illustrate the need for more education and psychological interventions to decrease homophobia. 24

Results: Modified CAMI 25

Results: ATLG 26

27 Results: Modified CAMI 27

Results: ATLG 28