Karen
Franklin, Ph.D.
A Pattern of Abuse
August 25, 1998, Section F, Page 7
Science Desk - "Health Watch"
Nearly one-quarter of community college students who took part in a
survey admitted to harassing people they thought were gay, a new study
says.
The survey of nearly 500 students,
said to be the first of its kind, was presented last week at the
American Psychological Association convention in San Francisco.
Previous studies had mostly focused on the victims of such crimes.
The study by Dr. Karen Franklin,
a forensic psychologist at the Washington Institute for Mental Illness
Research and Training, found that 24 percent of those surveyed admitted
to antigay name calling.
"Indeed, assaults
on gay men and lesbians were so socially acceptable that respondents
often advocated or defended such behavior out loud in the classrooms,
while I was administering my survey," Dr. Franklin wrote.
Among
men, 18 percent said they had physically assaulted or threatened
someone they thought was gay or lesbian. And 32 percent admitted they
were guilty of verbal harassment. The figures were lower for women.
Dr.
Franklin's study reported that almost half the students said they would
assault again and either lacked remorse or saw nothing wrong with their
behavior.
Many explained their actions as
self-defense, which Dr. Franklin said was based on their perception
that gays are sexual predators.
Others were thrill seekers or simply went along with their peers.
Students
who held back from harassing gay people did not necessarily show more
tolerance than the assailants. Many feared getting in trouble, she said.
Return to Top
Return
to Media & Consultant Services
