PRISON HOMOSEXUALITY - LOCUS OF CONTROL AND FEMININITY

• NCJ Number: 18891
• Author(s): H K PORTER
• Date Published: 1969
• Length: 77 pages
• Sale Source: UMI Dissertation Services; National Institute of Justice/
• Publication Type: Thesis/Dissertation
• Language: English
• Country: United States of America
• Note: DISSERTATION - MICHIGAN STATE UNIVERSITY

Annotation

RESULTS OF A STUDY WHICH ATTEMPTED TO CORRELATE SEVERAL PERSONALITY AND BACKGROUND CHARACTERISTICS WITH THE HOMOSEXUAL BEHAVIOR OF PRISON INMATES.

Abstract

MANY EXPLANATIONS OF MALE HOMOSEXUALITY INCLUDE THE IDEAS THAT HOMOSEXUALS ARE MORE EFFIMINATE THAN OTHER MALES AND/OR THAT THEY ARE MORE PASSIVE. THE PASSIVITY MAY BE HIDDEN BY AN AGGRESSIVE, HYPERMASCULINE FACADE. YOUTHFULNESS IS THOUGHT TO BE AN IMPORTANT VARIABLE IN PRISON HOMOSEXUALITY. THE INTERNAL-EXTERNAL CONTROL SCALE, CPI FE SCALE, A BODY PARTS SATISFACTION TEST, AND A FIGURE PREFERENCE TEST WERE GIVEN TO 96 PRISON INMATES DIVIDED INTO 3 GROUPS: 24 EFFEMINATE-PASSIVE HOMOSEXUALS, 29 MASCULINE-AGGRESSIVE HOMOSEXUALS, AND 43 NONHOMOSEXUALS. IT HAD BEEN HYPOTHESIZED THE GROUPS WOULD DIFFER IN TEST PERFORMANCES AND AGE OF FIRST PRISON ADMISSION. NO STATISTICAL SUPPORT WAS FOUND FOR THE HYPOTHESIZED DIFFERENCES BETWEEN GROUPS ON ANY OF THE VARIABLES. DESPITE THE ASSUMED IMPORTANCE OF DIFFERENCES IN ROLE BEHAVIORS, THE DIFFERENCES WERE NOT REFLECTED IN THE PERSONALITY VARIABLES STUDIED. THE GROSSNESS OF THE AGGRESSIVE-PASSIVE DICHOTOMY AND THE VARIABILITY OF HUMAN NEED SATISFACTION ARE POSSIBLE EXPLANATIONS FOR THE LACK OF RELIABLE PERSONALITY DIFFERENCES. (AUTHOR ABSTRACT)