Research

Areas of Interest

photo esther rothblum My research and writing over the past years have focused on women's mental health and relationships with a specific focus on (1) sexual orientation, (2) the stigma of weight and (3) academic procrastination. Some publications from these three research areas are listed below, in alphabetical order by title. If you click on the title, the pdf version of the publication will appear.

If you click on my attached c.v., all publications co-authored with students have asterisks next to the students' names. You can also see a list of books I have edited on the BOOKS site.

Sexual Orientation

My research has focused on methodological issues, including factors unique to lesbians as well as ways that gender and sexual orientation intersect. I like to do projects that compare lesbians, gay men, and bisexuals (LGBs) to their heterosexual siblings. There has been little research on sexual orientation that uses appropriate comparison groups, and I began this methodology in order to study the feasibility of using siblings for demographic and mental health comparisons.

An ongoing project compares lesbian and gay couples who were united in a civil union during the first year this legislation was available in Vermont (July 2000 to July 2001) with their same-sex friends who did not have civil unions, and with their married heterosexual siblings. Our research team focused on demographic and relationship information, presence of children, social support from friends and family, and gender roles (e.g., division of housework and finances).

Our research team also compared same-sex couples who in 2004 were either married in Massachusetts, had domestic partnerships in California, or had civil unions in Vermont.

I am also interested in ways that lesbians connect with each other in non-sexual ways. I have published an edited book on lesbian ex-lovers and an edited book on lesbian communities, and investigated ways that lesbians, bisexual women, and heterosexual sisters define their communities.

I am editor of the Journal of Lesbian Studies.

Click on the links below for pdf versions of my publications on sexual orientation:

A Model of Predictors and Outcomes of Outness Among Lesbian and Bisexual Women

An Overview of Same-Sex Couples in Relation Ships: A Research Area Still at Sea

"Boston Marriage" among Lesbians: Are We a Couple If We Aren't Having Sex?

Brothers and Sisters of Lesbians, Gay Men, and Bisexuals as a Demographic Comparison Group: An Innovative Research Methodology to Examine Social Change

Comments on "Lesbians' Sexual Activities and Efforts to Reduce Risks for Sexually Transmitted Diseases"

Comparison of Same-Sex Couples Who Were Married in Massachusetts, Had Domestic Partnerships in California, or Had Civil Unions in Vermont

The complexity of Butch and Femme among sexual minority women in the 21st century

Depression Among Lesbians: An Invisible and Unresearched Phenomenon

Expanding the Research Infrastructure for Lesbian Health

Exploring gender identity and community among three groups of transgender individuals in the United States: MTFs, FTMs, and genderqueers

Finding a Large and Thriving Lesbian and Bisexual Community: The Costs and Benefits of Caring

Finding a "Word for Myself": Themes in Lesbian Coming-Out Stories

From Science Fiction to Computer-Generated Technology: Sampling Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Individuals

The Geography of Civil Union Households

Heterosexual, Lesbian, and Gay Male Relationships: A Comparison of Couples in 1975 and 2000

How Did You Hear About the Study? Or, How to Reach Lesbian and Bisexual Women of Diverse Ages, Ethnicity, and Educational Attainment for Research Projects

"I Only Read About myself on Bathroom Walls": The Need for Research on the Mental Health of Lesbians and Gay Men

Lesbian and Bisexual Mothers and Nonmothers: Demographics and the Coming-Out Process

Lesbian Baby Boomers at Midlife

Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Siblings

Lesbian, gay male, bisexual, and heterosexual siblings: Discrepancies in income and education in three US samples

Lesbian Sex at Menopause: as Good as or Better Than Ever

Lesbians and Their Sisters as a Control Group: Demographic and Mental Health Factors

Lesbians in Academia

The Longest "Legal" U.S. Same-Sex Couples Reflect on Their Relationships

Mental Health Impact of Child Sexual Abuse, Rape, Intimate Partner Violence, and Hate Crimes in the National Lesbian Health Care Survey

Mental Health of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Heterosexual Siblings: Effects of Gender, Sexual Orientation, and Family

Money, Housework, Sex, and Conflict: Same-Sex Couples in Civil Unions, Those Not in Civil Unions, and Heterosexual Married Siblings

Narratives of Same-Sex Couples Who Had Civil Unions in Vermont: The Impact of Legalizing Relationships on Couples and on Social Policy

National Lesbian Health Care Survey: Implications for Mental Health Care

Pioneers in Partnership: Lesbian and Gay Male Couples in Civil Unions Compared With Those Not in Civil Unions and Manied Heterosexual Siblings

Poly-Friendship

Relationship Satisfaction, Affectivity and Gay-Specific Stressors in Same-Sex Couples Joined in Civil Unions

Removing the Stigma- Fifteen Years of Progress

Same-sex couples in civil unions compared with same-sex couples not in civil unions and heterosexual siblings: An overview

Same-Sex Marriage and Legalized Relationships: I Do, or Do I?

Sexual Orientation and Sex in Women's Lives: Conceptual and Methodological Issues

Siblings and Sexual Orientation: Products of Alternative Families or the Ones Who Got Away?

Social and Demographic Characlerislics of Gay, Lesbian, and Helerosexual Adults with and Without Children

"Somewhere in Des Moines or San Antonio": Historical Perspectives on Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Mental Health

A Study of Transgender Adults and Their Non-Transgender Siblings on Demographic Characteristics, Social Support, and Experiences of Violence

Teaching Lesbian Studies

Three-Year Follow-Up of Same-Sex Couples Who Had Civil Unions in Vermont, Same-Sex Couples Not in Civil Unions, and Heterosexual Married Couples

Transforming Lesbian Sexuality

Victimization Over the Life span: A Comparison of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Heterosexual Siblings

When Lesbians Aren't Gay: Factors Affecting Depression Among Lesbians

Where is the ‘Women’s Community?’ Voices of Lesbian, Bisexual, and Queer Women and Heterosexual Sisters

Who Fills Out a "Lesbian" Questionnaire?

"Will the Real Lesbian Couple Please Stand Up?" Lesbian Relationships

Weight and Stigma

I have conducted research on weight and employment discrimination, women’s weight in an international context, and the ways in which fat women cope with the stigma of weight.

Click on the links below for pdf versions of my publications on weight and stigma:

A Comparison of Lesbians, Gay Men, and Heterosexuals on Weight and Restrained Eating

A Comparison Study of United States and African Students on Perceptions of Obesity and Thinness

Beauty Mandates and the Appearance Obsession: Are Lesbians Any Better Off?

Compensating for Stigma: Obese and Nonobese Women's Reactions to Being Visible

Contradictions and Confounds in Coverage of Obesity: Psychology Journals, Textbooks, and the Media

Coping with Prejudice and Discrimination Based on Weight

Diversity and Size Acceptance: Lessons from the Lesbian Experience

Do Obese Women Have Poorer Social Relationships Than Nonobese Women? Reports by Self, Friends, and Coworkers

Effects of Clients' Obesity and Gender on the Therapy Judgments of Psychologists

Fat Studies

Gay and Lesbian Body Images

Gender Differences in Internal Beliefs About Weight and Negative Attitudes Towards Self and Others

Gender Differences in Social Consequences of Perceived Overweight in the United States and Australia

"I'll Die for the Revolution but Don't Ask Me Not to Diet": Feminism and the Continuing Stigmatization of Obesity

Is Fat a Feminist Issue? Exploring the Gendered Nature of Weight Bias

Lesbians and Physical Appearance: Which Model Applies?

Outcomes of Weight-Loss Programs

Results of the NAAFA Survey on Employment Discrimination

Stereotypes of Obese Female Job Applicants

The Relationship between Obesity, Employment, Discrimination, and Employment-Related Victimization

The Relationship of Body Image, Feminism and Sexual Orientation in College Women

The Stigma of Women's Weight- Social and Economic Realities

Weight Bias in Employment

Women and Weight: An International Perspective

Women and Weight: Fad and Fiction

Procrastination

A former research area of mine focused on academic procrastination, fear of failure, and risk-taking. I am still receiving many reprint requests for this research.

Click here for a copy of the PASS (Procrastination Assessment Scale for Students)

Click here for PASS scoring instructions

Click on the links below for pdf versions of my publications on these topics:

Academic Procrastination Frequency and Cognitive-Behavioral Correlates

Affective, Cognitive, and Behavioral Differences Between High and Low Procrastinators

Fear of Failure: The Psychodynamic, Need Achievement, Fear of Success, and Procrastination Models

Ivy Halls and Glass Walls: Barriers to Academic Careers for Women and Ethnic Minorities

Leaving the Ivory Tower: Factors Contributing to Women's Voluntary Resignation from Academia

Procrastination Assessment Scale-Students (Pass)

Procrastination Assessment Scale- Students

Procrastination: Overcoming

Psychological Antecedents of Student Procrastination