Prostate cancer (PCa) treatments are associated with a high incidence of erectile dysfunction (ED... more Prostate cancer (PCa) treatments are associated with a high incidence of erectile dysfunction (ED). Interventions to help men with iatrogenic ED have largely focused on penile tumescence adequate for vaginal penetration. Less research has been undertaken on sex practices other than penile/vaginal intercourse. The aim of this study was to explore forms of sexual practice engaged in by men following treatment for PCa. We focused in particular on anal intercourse (AI) as practiced by both nonheterosexual (i.e., gay-identified men and other men who have sex with men) and heterosexual men. We sought to determine how common AI was subsequent to PCa treatment and how flexible AI practitioners were in their modes (e.g., from insertive to receptive) when faced with iatrogenic ED. An international online survey was conducted in 2010-2011 of men treated for PCa, where participants (N = 558) were asked explicitly about their sexual practices before and after PCa treatment. The outcome measures ...
This study examines different types and sources of social support in relation to psychological di... more This study examines different types and sources of social support in relation to psychological distress levels among older Australian gay men. A national community-based survey was conducted involving 242 gay-identified men aged 50 years and older. In univariable regressions, psychological distress was less likely if men were receiving emotional support, practical support, or had a sense of belonging, and also if they had a greater number of close friends and received some or a lot of support from family and gay friends but not from straight friends. Of all these factors, a multivariable regression showed that receiving emotional support was the only significant independent factor. Emotional support appears to play a greater role in the mental health of older gay men than many other types and sources of support. Ensuring access to emotional support may need to be considered when promoting healthier aging among gay men.
International review of psychiatry (Abingdon, England), Jan 29, 2015
Rates of depression and anxiety are disproportionately high among lesbians and gay men, and stigm... more Rates of depression and anxiety are disproportionately high among lesbians and gay men, and stigma-related stress is thought to be a major factor. While reducing stigma remains a priority, developing ways to assist lesbians and gay men to build resilience to stigma-related stress is also a growing priority among policymakers and health professionals. This article summarizes major conceptual work and research on resilience among lesbians and gay men, including key findings from a nationwide online survey involving 2,793 Australian lesbians and gay men aged 16 years and older that examined demographic and psychosocial factors related to resilience. Research on resilience in gay and lesbian populations is currently a small field but appears to be growing. As recommended in this article, further work is needed to identify circumstances in which lesbians and gay men display resilience to stigma-related stress and to systematically test resilience training programmes that help to prevent ...
Australian and New Zealand journal of public health, Jan 3, 2015
To examine links between same-sex relationship formalisation - such as registered domestic partne... more To examine links between same-sex relationship formalisation - such as registered domestic partnerships and commitment ceremony unions - and mental health among lesbians and gay men, after controlling for differences in other relationship characteristics. Data were collected via an online survey of a national sample of Australian lesbians and gay men aged 16 years and older, with the sample for analysis confined to those in a same-sex relationship (n=1,420). The K10 Psychological Distress Scale was used as an indicator of mental health. Being in a formalised relationship was associated with lower distress for those aged 16-39 years but not for those aged 40+ years; whereas, intending to formalise was associated with higher distress among the older group. These associations remained significant after controlling for cohabitation, feeling able to seek partner emotional support, relationship tenure and financial arrangements. Relationship formalisation appears to be an important protec...
Us ing the Linguistic Category Model (LCM), Fiedler, Semin and Bolten (1989) concluded that langu... more Us ing the Linguistic Category Model (LCM), Fiedler, Semin and Bolten (1989) concluded that language in general undergoes an increase in the level of abstractness when communicated from one person to another. However, Bartlett (1932) observed that the communication of stories may not undergo such a transformation. The research aim was therefore to test Semin et al.’s (1989) conclusion with the communication of stories combing both the LCM and Bartlett’s research. Three different texts were used: a narrative; a narrative with scrambled sentences; and a descriptive text without a storyline. Seventy-two university undergraduates read and then reproduced a text from memory which is read by another subject who also reproduced the text from memory, and so on (method of serial reproduction). It was found that the level of abstractness declined for the two story texts and remained unchanged for the non-story. In addition, the structure of the scrambled story text also changed to better conc...
The past research on serial reproductions of stories has shown that when a story is passed along ... more The past research on serial reproductions of stories has shown that when a story is passed along in writing from one person to others in a communication chain, information that confirms culturally shared stereotypes is more likely retained than information that challenges them. Lyons and Kashima (in press) explained this in terms of Grice's communication maxims. That is, information consistent with culturally shared stereotypes, which belong to the cultural common ground of all people concerned, may be seen to be more relevant and truthful than information inconsistent with them. Nevertheless, it is still unclear whether this occurs when information is transmitted in conversation as well. This is because face-to-face conversations are much more flexible than written communication. Given that immediate feedback is available from listeners, and efficient exchange of information possible, communicators of stereotype relevant information may be able to depart from culturally shared ...
This toolkit provides the first comprehensive set of guidelines for tailoring mood-disorder e-the... more This toolkit provides the first comprehensive set of guidelines for tailoring mood-disorder e-therapies to the needs of same-sex attracted people. It gives developers of e-therapies a set of practical recommendations for adjusting e-therapies to more effectively accommodate lesbians and gay men. These recommendations are supported by in-depth research that was designed specifically to inform this toolkit. Summaries of this research are provided in the toolkit and detailed findings are available in published research articles. This toolkit also provides information on the mental health-related challenges that are often faced by same-sex attracted people and links readers to key resources and organisations for further information. Checklists and other tools are included as aids for developers to assess the inclusiveness and relevance of e-therapies to lesbians and gay men. In short, this toolkit contains an extensive set of tools and explains why and how they could be implemented. Suc...
Mental health problems are comparatively high among young gay men. While large numbers live in ur... more Mental health problems are comparatively high among young gay men. While large numbers live in urban areas, there are also many living in regional and rural areas where sources of support may be limited. The study presented here aimed to identify key differences in the mental health and wellbeing of Australian urban and rural/regional young gay men, including challenges related to stigma and social support. We conducted a national online survey involving 1,034 gay-identified men aged 18-39 years. Linear regressions were conducted, controlling for sociodemographic differences between urban and rural men. In all, rural men reported significantly poorer mental health, including greater psychological distress, lower positive mental health, lower self-esteem, and lower satisfaction with life. Rural men also expressed significantly greater concern around acceptance from others of their sexual orientation, greater motivation to conceal their sexual orientation, lower social support, and a ...
Background: According to Minority Stress Theory (MST), additional stress that gay and lesbian adu... more Background: According to Minority Stress Theory (MST), additional stress that gay and lesbian adults (GL) face from stigma and discrimination leads to poorer health outcomes. Despite evidence that broadly supports MST, the various links between stigma, health, and resilience have yet to be examined in detail. Methods: 2793 Australian GL aged 16–89 years participated in a nationwide survey. Findings. Experiences of stigma/discrimination significantly predicted poorer physical and mental health, measured using the SF-36. Links between stigma/discrimination and health were substantially moderated by scores on the Brief Resilience Scale, but not for all forms of discrimination. High socioeconomic status and community involvement were among a range of factors for resilience. Interestingly, lesbians were significantly more resilient with age, but not gay men. Discussion. Focus will be given to explaining the roles of stigma and resilience in the health of individuals who face minority str...
This is a companion report to Private Lives 2 (2012) which is a national study of the health and ... more This is a companion report to Private Lives 2 (2012) which is a national study of the health and wellbeing of LGBT Australians (n = 3853). A Closer Look at Private Lives 2 focuses on the mental health data from Private Lives 2. It looks, in detail, at variations in psychological distress and resilience between LGBT and mainstream communities and variations within LGBT communities according to gender identity, sexual identity, age and socio-economic status. It also looks at the relationships between LGBT Australian's mental wellbeing and their experiences of heterosexist discrimination, drug use, LGBT and mainstream community engagement and health service use. The report concludes with an evidence-based LGBT mental health policy and program framework informed by the principles of justice, equity and diversity.
Prostate cancer (PCa) treatments are associated with a high incidence of erectile dysfunction (ED... more Prostate cancer (PCa) treatments are associated with a high incidence of erectile dysfunction (ED). Interventions to help men with iatrogenic ED have largely focused on penile tumescence adequate for vaginal penetration. Less research has been undertaken on sex practices other than penile/vaginal intercourse. The aim of this study was to explore forms of sexual practice engaged in by men following treatment for PCa. We focused in particular on anal intercourse (AI) as practiced by both nonheterosexual (i.e., gay-identified men and other men who have sex with men) and heterosexual men. We sought to determine how common AI was subsequent to PCa treatment and how flexible AI practitioners were in their modes (e.g., from insertive to receptive) when faced with iatrogenic ED. An international online survey was conducted in 2010-2011 of men treated for PCa, where participants (N = 558) were asked explicitly about their sexual practices before and after PCa treatment. The outcome measures ...
The Journal of rural health : official journal of the American Rural Health Association and the National Rural Health Care Association, 2015
Depression and anxiety are common among young gay men, particularly in comparison with their hete... more Depression and anxiety are common among young gay men, particularly in comparison with their heterosexual counterparts. Little is known about the mental health and well-being of those living in rural areas, where access to support and opportunities for connecting with other gay men may be relatively limited. We examined differences in the well-being of young rural and urban Australian gay men, including mental health, resilience, stigma-related challenges, and social support. A national online survey was conducted involving 1,034 Australian gay-identified men aged 18-39 years. All analyses adjusted for sociodemographic differences between the rural and urban samples. On average, rural men had significantly lower self-esteem, lower life satisfaction, lower social support, and were significantly more likely to be psychologically distressed, concerned about acceptance from others, and to conceal their sexual orientation compared to urban gay men. While resilience among the rural group ...
Researchers, policymakers, and health agencies have tended to treat gay men as a relatively homog... more Researchers, policymakers, and health agencies have tended to treat gay men as a relatively homogeneous population, with little attention given to its many subcultural identities. In this study, we focused on young gay men and investigated a range of health-related differences according to common subcultural identities, such as Bear, Cub, and Twink. In a nationwide cross-sectional online survey of 1,034 Australian gay men aged 18-39 years, 44% reported a subcultural identity, the two most common being Cub (9%) and Twink (20%). Logistic and linear regression analyses compared Cub- and Twink-identified men and those without a subcultural identity (Non-identified) on a range of health-related outcomes. After adjusting for differences in age and body mass index (BMI), Twink-identified men had the highest risk profile overall, including significantly higher rates of smoking tobacco and alcohol consumption. They were also significantly more likely to report engaging in receptive anal sex....
ABSTRACT Cultural stereotypes are formed in society partly through interpersonal communication. R... more ABSTRACT Cultural stereotypes are formed in society partly through interpersonal communication. Recent experimental work suggests that interpersonal communication is sufficient to produce stereotype-like shared group impressions when people communicate their impressions interpersonally. In this experiment, we extended this by examining the effects of mode of communication - computer mediated communication (CMC) versus face-to-face (FTF) - and communication network structure on stereotype formation in a four-person group. Communication network structure was constructed by restricting the channels of dyadic communication, so that in the square condition, each person communicated with everyone else, whereas in the star condition, only one person communicated with everyone else. Relative to CMC, FTF tended to maintain the information differential between those who had firsthand information and those who received information second hand. In the star network, information was retained more than in the square network, though group impressions were more consensual in the denser square than in the star.
Prostate cancer (PCa) treatments are associated with a high incidence of erectile dysfunction (ED... more Prostate cancer (PCa) treatments are associated with a high incidence of erectile dysfunction (ED). Interventions to help men with iatrogenic ED have largely focused on penile tumescence adequate for vaginal penetration. Less research has been undertaken on sex practices other than penile/vaginal intercourse. The aim of this study was to explore forms of sexual practice engaged in by men following treatment for PCa. We focused in particular on anal intercourse (AI) as practiced by both nonheterosexual (i.e., gay-identified men and other men who have sex with men) and heterosexual men. We sought to determine how common AI was subsequent to PCa treatment and how flexible AI practitioners were in their modes (e.g., from insertive to receptive) when faced with iatrogenic ED. An international online survey was conducted in 2010-2011 of men treated for PCa, where participants (N = 558) were asked explicitly about their sexual practices before and after PCa treatment. The outcome measures ...
This study examines different types and sources of social support in relation to psychological di... more This study examines different types and sources of social support in relation to psychological distress levels among older Australian gay men. A national community-based survey was conducted involving 242 gay-identified men aged 50 years and older. In univariable regressions, psychological distress was less likely if men were receiving emotional support, practical support, or had a sense of belonging, and also if they had a greater number of close friends and received some or a lot of support from family and gay friends but not from straight friends. Of all these factors, a multivariable regression showed that receiving emotional support was the only significant independent factor. Emotional support appears to play a greater role in the mental health of older gay men than many other types and sources of support. Ensuring access to emotional support may need to be considered when promoting healthier aging among gay men.
International review of psychiatry (Abingdon, England), Jan 29, 2015
Rates of depression and anxiety are disproportionately high among lesbians and gay men, and stigm... more Rates of depression and anxiety are disproportionately high among lesbians and gay men, and stigma-related stress is thought to be a major factor. While reducing stigma remains a priority, developing ways to assist lesbians and gay men to build resilience to stigma-related stress is also a growing priority among policymakers and health professionals. This article summarizes major conceptual work and research on resilience among lesbians and gay men, including key findings from a nationwide online survey involving 2,793 Australian lesbians and gay men aged 16 years and older that examined demographic and psychosocial factors related to resilience. Research on resilience in gay and lesbian populations is currently a small field but appears to be growing. As recommended in this article, further work is needed to identify circumstances in which lesbians and gay men display resilience to stigma-related stress and to systematically test resilience training programmes that help to prevent ...
Australian and New Zealand journal of public health, Jan 3, 2015
To examine links between same-sex relationship formalisation - such as registered domestic partne... more To examine links between same-sex relationship formalisation - such as registered domestic partnerships and commitment ceremony unions - and mental health among lesbians and gay men, after controlling for differences in other relationship characteristics. Data were collected via an online survey of a national sample of Australian lesbians and gay men aged 16 years and older, with the sample for analysis confined to those in a same-sex relationship (n=1,420). The K10 Psychological Distress Scale was used as an indicator of mental health. Being in a formalised relationship was associated with lower distress for those aged 16-39 years but not for those aged 40+ years; whereas, intending to formalise was associated with higher distress among the older group. These associations remained significant after controlling for cohabitation, feeling able to seek partner emotional support, relationship tenure and financial arrangements. Relationship formalisation appears to be an important protec...
Us ing the Linguistic Category Model (LCM), Fiedler, Semin and Bolten (1989) concluded that langu... more Us ing the Linguistic Category Model (LCM), Fiedler, Semin and Bolten (1989) concluded that language in general undergoes an increase in the level of abstractness when communicated from one person to another. However, Bartlett (1932) observed that the communication of stories may not undergo such a transformation. The research aim was therefore to test Semin et al.’s (1989) conclusion with the communication of stories combing both the LCM and Bartlett’s research. Three different texts were used: a narrative; a narrative with scrambled sentences; and a descriptive text without a storyline. Seventy-two university undergraduates read and then reproduced a text from memory which is read by another subject who also reproduced the text from memory, and so on (method of serial reproduction). It was found that the level of abstractness declined for the two story texts and remained unchanged for the non-story. In addition, the structure of the scrambled story text also changed to better conc...
The past research on serial reproductions of stories has shown that when a story is passed along ... more The past research on serial reproductions of stories has shown that when a story is passed along in writing from one person to others in a communication chain, information that confirms culturally shared stereotypes is more likely retained than information that challenges them. Lyons and Kashima (in press) explained this in terms of Grice's communication maxims. That is, information consistent with culturally shared stereotypes, which belong to the cultural common ground of all people concerned, may be seen to be more relevant and truthful than information inconsistent with them. Nevertheless, it is still unclear whether this occurs when information is transmitted in conversation as well. This is because face-to-face conversations are much more flexible than written communication. Given that immediate feedback is available from listeners, and efficient exchange of information possible, communicators of stereotype relevant information may be able to depart from culturally shared ...
This toolkit provides the first comprehensive set of guidelines for tailoring mood-disorder e-the... more This toolkit provides the first comprehensive set of guidelines for tailoring mood-disorder e-therapies to the needs of same-sex attracted people. It gives developers of e-therapies a set of practical recommendations for adjusting e-therapies to more effectively accommodate lesbians and gay men. These recommendations are supported by in-depth research that was designed specifically to inform this toolkit. Summaries of this research are provided in the toolkit and detailed findings are available in published research articles. This toolkit also provides information on the mental health-related challenges that are often faced by same-sex attracted people and links readers to key resources and organisations for further information. Checklists and other tools are included as aids for developers to assess the inclusiveness and relevance of e-therapies to lesbians and gay men. In short, this toolkit contains an extensive set of tools and explains why and how they could be implemented. Suc...
Mental health problems are comparatively high among young gay men. While large numbers live in ur... more Mental health problems are comparatively high among young gay men. While large numbers live in urban areas, there are also many living in regional and rural areas where sources of support may be limited. The study presented here aimed to identify key differences in the mental health and wellbeing of Australian urban and rural/regional young gay men, including challenges related to stigma and social support. We conducted a national online survey involving 1,034 gay-identified men aged 18-39 years. Linear regressions were conducted, controlling for sociodemographic differences between urban and rural men. In all, rural men reported significantly poorer mental health, including greater psychological distress, lower positive mental health, lower self-esteem, and lower satisfaction with life. Rural men also expressed significantly greater concern around acceptance from others of their sexual orientation, greater motivation to conceal their sexual orientation, lower social support, and a ...
Background: According to Minority Stress Theory (MST), additional stress that gay and lesbian adu... more Background: According to Minority Stress Theory (MST), additional stress that gay and lesbian adults (GL) face from stigma and discrimination leads to poorer health outcomes. Despite evidence that broadly supports MST, the various links between stigma, health, and resilience have yet to be examined in detail. Methods: 2793 Australian GL aged 16–89 years participated in a nationwide survey. Findings. Experiences of stigma/discrimination significantly predicted poorer physical and mental health, measured using the SF-36. Links between stigma/discrimination and health were substantially moderated by scores on the Brief Resilience Scale, but not for all forms of discrimination. High socioeconomic status and community involvement were among a range of factors for resilience. Interestingly, lesbians were significantly more resilient with age, but not gay men. Discussion. Focus will be given to explaining the roles of stigma and resilience in the health of individuals who face minority str...
This is a companion report to Private Lives 2 (2012) which is a national study of the health and ... more This is a companion report to Private Lives 2 (2012) which is a national study of the health and wellbeing of LGBT Australians (n = 3853). A Closer Look at Private Lives 2 focuses on the mental health data from Private Lives 2. It looks, in detail, at variations in psychological distress and resilience between LGBT and mainstream communities and variations within LGBT communities according to gender identity, sexual identity, age and socio-economic status. It also looks at the relationships between LGBT Australian's mental wellbeing and their experiences of heterosexist discrimination, drug use, LGBT and mainstream community engagement and health service use. The report concludes with an evidence-based LGBT mental health policy and program framework informed by the principles of justice, equity and diversity.
Prostate cancer (PCa) treatments are associated with a high incidence of erectile dysfunction (ED... more Prostate cancer (PCa) treatments are associated with a high incidence of erectile dysfunction (ED). Interventions to help men with iatrogenic ED have largely focused on penile tumescence adequate for vaginal penetration. Less research has been undertaken on sex practices other than penile/vaginal intercourse. The aim of this study was to explore forms of sexual practice engaged in by men following treatment for PCa. We focused in particular on anal intercourse (AI) as practiced by both nonheterosexual (i.e., gay-identified men and other men who have sex with men) and heterosexual men. We sought to determine how common AI was subsequent to PCa treatment and how flexible AI practitioners were in their modes (e.g., from insertive to receptive) when faced with iatrogenic ED. An international online survey was conducted in 2010-2011 of men treated for PCa, where participants (N = 558) were asked explicitly about their sexual practices before and after PCa treatment. The outcome measures ...
The Journal of rural health : official journal of the American Rural Health Association and the National Rural Health Care Association, 2015
Depression and anxiety are common among young gay men, particularly in comparison with their hete... more Depression and anxiety are common among young gay men, particularly in comparison with their heterosexual counterparts. Little is known about the mental health and well-being of those living in rural areas, where access to support and opportunities for connecting with other gay men may be relatively limited. We examined differences in the well-being of young rural and urban Australian gay men, including mental health, resilience, stigma-related challenges, and social support. A national online survey was conducted involving 1,034 Australian gay-identified men aged 18-39 years. All analyses adjusted for sociodemographic differences between the rural and urban samples. On average, rural men had significantly lower self-esteem, lower life satisfaction, lower social support, and were significantly more likely to be psychologically distressed, concerned about acceptance from others, and to conceal their sexual orientation compared to urban gay men. While resilience among the rural group ...
Researchers, policymakers, and health agencies have tended to treat gay men as a relatively homog... more Researchers, policymakers, and health agencies have tended to treat gay men as a relatively homogeneous population, with little attention given to its many subcultural identities. In this study, we focused on young gay men and investigated a range of health-related differences according to common subcultural identities, such as Bear, Cub, and Twink. In a nationwide cross-sectional online survey of 1,034 Australian gay men aged 18-39 years, 44% reported a subcultural identity, the two most common being Cub (9%) and Twink (20%). Logistic and linear regression analyses compared Cub- and Twink-identified men and those without a subcultural identity (Non-identified) on a range of health-related outcomes. After adjusting for differences in age and body mass index (BMI), Twink-identified men had the highest risk profile overall, including significantly higher rates of smoking tobacco and alcohol consumption. They were also significantly more likely to report engaging in receptive anal sex....
ABSTRACT Cultural stereotypes are formed in society partly through interpersonal communication. R... more ABSTRACT Cultural stereotypes are formed in society partly through interpersonal communication. Recent experimental work suggests that interpersonal communication is sufficient to produce stereotype-like shared group impressions when people communicate their impressions interpersonally. In this experiment, we extended this by examining the effects of mode of communication - computer mediated communication (CMC) versus face-to-face (FTF) - and communication network structure on stereotype formation in a four-person group. Communication network structure was constructed by restricting the channels of dyadic communication, so that in the square condition, each person communicated with everyone else, whereas in the star condition, only one person communicated with everyone else. Relative to CMC, FTF tended to maintain the information differential between those who had firsthand information and those who received information second hand. In the star network, information was retained more than in the square network, though group impressions were more consensual in the denser square than in the star.
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Papers by Anthony Lyons