In-law relationships when a child is homosexual.

The purpose of this study is to review related literature concerning in-law relationships and begin an empirical exploration of the relationship between parents of gay men and lesbians and their child's significant other. Three hundred forty-seven parents of lesbians and gay men were surveyed regarding their sexuality, religiosity, socioeconomic status, attitude toward homosexuality, years they have known their child was homosexual, number of other children in the family, and acceptance of their homosexual child's significant other. A model was designed and tested via analysis of covariance structures in the LISREL VII package (Joreskog & Sorbom, 1989). Results suggest that the proposed model and the model estimated for the data are not significantly different, indicating support for the model. Future research issues are offered.

Response of parents to learning that their child is homosexual and concern over AIDS: a national study.

This study was a survey of 402 parents of gay and lesbian children from the northeastern, southern, midwestern, and western regions of the United States. Of particular interest was parental response to the knowledge of their child's homosexuality and the AIDS outbreak. Although parents suffered emotional upset upon learning of their children's homosexuality, many progressed through a five-stage grief process that ended with acceptance. Fear of the spread of AIDS, that their offspring might contract AIDS, or that their child might suffer from the backlash related to AIDS were concerns for most parents. Attitudes toward AIDS were not very different between mothers and fathers. However, older parents were more likely to have more positive attitudes toward AIDS than younger parents, and liberal parents were more likely to have a more positive outlook than their conservative counterparts.

Sex-role orientation of gay fathers versus gay nonfathers.

This study compared the sex-role orientation of 30 gay fathers and 30 gay nonfathers from the Northeastern, Midwestern, Southern, Southwestern, and Western United States. Scores from the Bem Sex-role Inventory were analyzed by a chi squared test of independence. Analysis indicated that gay men who father children are no more masculine than gay men who do not father children. The myth linking masculinity and gay fatherhood was refuted, and these findings were presented as further evidence that sexual behavior and sex-role orientation are unrelated phenomena and develop out of separate experiences.

Sex role endorsement among homosexual men across the life span.

This study assessed the sex role endorsement of homosexual men at different ages across the life span. A sample of homosexual men from dignity chapters in the northeastern, midwestern, southern, southwestern, and western United States was mailed a demographic questionnaire and th Bem Sex Role Inventory. Respondents were classified into four age brackets and categorized as androgynous, masculine, feminine, and undifferentiated. A pattern of diverse sex role endorsement was found from adolescence to maturity in which gay men were equally androgynous, masculine, feminine, and undifferentiated at each age level. This finding contradicted an earlier study of heterosexual men that reported increasing numbers of androgynous males with age. The contrast suggests that the sex role endorsement of gay men may be very different from their heterosexual counterparts. It was further suggested tht gay men are capable of meshing masculine and feminine aspects of their personalities early as well as later in life, that gay men do not comprise a homogeneous group, and that the stereotype of cross-gender role endorsement is unfounded.

Ritalin, Benzedrine and Dexedrine do not transform F 1706 rat cells.

Ritalin (methylphenidate hydrochloride), Benzedrine (amphetamine sulfate), and Dexedrine (dextroamphetamine sulfate) were examined for oncogenicity using a serial line of Fischer rat embryo cells, which was previously shown to be a sensitive and accurate indicator of chemicals carcinogenic for rodents. At the concentrations tested, none of the 3 drugs induced transformation in Fischer rat embryo cells.

Transforming potential of the anticancer drug adriamycin.

A Fischer rat embryo cell system in vitro, which had been shown to be highly accurate in identifying chemical carcinogens and to have application in the study of chemicals having anticancer properties, was used to study the anticancer drug adriamycin. At a nontoxic dose adriamycin not only did not protect the cells from transformation by the carcinogen 3-methylcholanthrene, but was found in two separate experiments to act on its own as a transforming agent.