| Title |
Does Physical Abuse, Sexual Abuse, or Neglect in Childhood Increase the Likelihood of Same-sex Sexual Relationships and Cohabitation? A Prospective 30-year Follow-up
|
|---|---|
| Published in |
Archives of Sexual Behavior, January 2009
|
| DOI | 10.1007/s10508-008-9449-3 |
| Pubmed ID | |
| Authors |
Helen W. Wilson, Cathy Spatz Widom |
| Abstract |
Existing cross-sectional research suggests associations between physical and sexual abuse in childhood and same-sex sexual orientation in adulthood. This study prospectively examined whether abuse and/or neglect in childhood were associated with increased likelihood of same-sex partnerships in adulthood. The sample included physically abused (N = 85), sexually abused (N = 72), and neglected (N = 429) children (ages 0-11) with documented cases during 1967-1971 who were matched with non-maltreated children (N = 415) and followed into adulthood. At approximately age 40, participants (483 women and 461 men) were asked about romantic cohabitation and sexual partners, in the context of in-person interviews covering a range of topics. Group (abuse/neglect versus control) differences were assessed with cross-tabulations and logistic regression. A total of 8% of the overall sample reported any same-sex relationship (cohabitation or sexual partners). Childhood physical abuse and neglect were not significantly associated with same-sex cohabitation or sexual partners. Individuals with documented histories of childhood sexual abuse were significantly more likely than controls to report ever having had same-sex sexual partners (OR = 2.81, 95% CI = 1.16-6.80, p < or = .05); however, only men with histories of childhood sexual abuse were significantly more likely than controls to report same-sex sexual partners (OR = 6.75, 95% CI = 1.53-29.86, p < or = .01). These prospective findings provide tentative evidence of a link between childhood sexual abuse and same-sex sexual partnerships among men, although further research is needed to explore this relationship and to examine potential underlying mechanisms. |
X Demographics
The data shown below were collected from the profiles of 86 X users who shared this research output. Click here to find out more about how the information was compiled.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| United States | 24 | 28% |
| Latvia | 3 | 3% |
| Canada | 2 | 2% |
| Sweden | 1 | 1% |
| New Zealand | 1 | 1% |
| Japan | 1 | 1% |
| Turkey | 1 | 1% |
| Costa Rica | 1 | 1% |
| Russia | 1 | 1% |
| Other | 1 | 1% |
| Unknown | 50 | 58% |
Demographic breakdown
| Type | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Members of the public | 84 | 98% |
| Scientists | 1 | 1% |
| Science communicators (journalists, bloggers, editors) | 1 | 1% |
Mendeley readers
The data shown below were compiled from readership statistics for 132 Mendeley readers of this research output. Click here to see the associated Mendeley record.
Geographical breakdown
| Country | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| United States | 6 | 5% |
| Canada | 1 | <1% |
| Israel | 1 | <1% |
| Greece | 1 | <1% |
| Mexico | 1 | <1% |
| Unknown | 122 | 92% |
Demographic breakdown
| Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Researcher | 25 | 19% |
| Student > Bachelor | 18 | 14% |
| Student > Master | 17 | 13% |
| Student > Ph. D. Student | 15 | 11% |
| Professor > Associate Professor | 11 | 8% |
| Other | 30 | 23% |
| Unknown | 16 | 12% |
| Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
|---|---|---|
| Psychology | 49 | 37% |
| Social Sciences | 20 | 15% |
| Medicine and Dentistry | 19 | 14% |
| Nursing and Health Professions | 5 | 4% |
| Agricultural and Biological Sciences | 4 | 3% |
| Other | 12 | 9% |
| Unknown | 23 | 17% |
Attention Score in Context
This research output has an Altmetric Attention Score of 102. This is our high-level measure of the quality and quantity of online attention that it has received. This Attention Score, as well as the ranking and number of research outputs shown below, was calculated when the research output was last mentioned on 28 March 2024.
All research outputs
#422,575
of 25,791,495 outputs
Outputs from Archives of Sexual Behavior
#250
of 3,784 outputs
Outputs of similar age
#1,228
of 185,415 outputs
Outputs of similar age from Archives of Sexual Behavior
#1
of 21 outputs
Altmetric has tracked 25,791,495 research outputs across all sources so far. Compared to these this one has done particularly well and is in the 98th percentile: it's in the top 5% of all research outputs ever tracked by Altmetric.
So far Altmetric has tracked 3,784 research outputs from this source. They typically receive a lot more attention than average, with a mean Attention Score of 32.9. This one has done particularly well, scoring higher than 93% of its peers.
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We're also able to compare this research output to 21 others from the same source and published within six weeks on either side of this one. This one has done particularly well, scoring higher than 95% of its contemporaries.