Increasing public awareness and acknowledgment of sexual assault has illuminated both the alarming prominence of this issue, as well as its critical impact on health. Of current research investigating the health implications of sexual assault, there is not only little to no recognition of men, but furthermore, health is frequently measured outside of the medical realm and severe consequences (e.g., suicide) are commonly unarticulated. Utilizing the 2022 National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health Survey to conduct secondary data analysis, I investigated gender differences in health outcomes and accessibility to support outlets, as well as the mediating effect of support outlets on health; gender differences were examined among all individuals and solely those who have been sexually assaulted. The overall sample included 4,196 participants (F = 2,394; M = 1,802), and the restricted sample of sexually assaulted individuals included 724 participants (F = 635, M = 89); participants range from ages 31-42. Results of the conducted bivariate analyses suggest that sexually assaulted men and women experience similar health outcomes and encounter similar levels of accessibility to support outlets, unlike the significant differences in health and outlet access among men and women in the overall population. Focusing on the role of support outlets as mediators of poor health, I found a positive relationship between having a support system and happiness. Results express promising relations between the manner in which institutions are managing the problem of sexual assault and how those who have been sexually assaulted perceive these methods. Furthermore, sexually assaulted men and women are being provided the opportunity to more thoroughly understand their health, as they engage in counseling equally and to a greater extent than men and women usually do.

Poster Presentation

Session 1

9:15am – 10:30am
Grand Salon

Sociology

Perceived advancement potential between men and women affects individual outcomes and may affect their aspiration for future career expectations. Gender plays a big role when it comes to job perceptions, affecting opportunities to advance in the workplace, and women being more disadvantaged than men. To further analyze this topic I asked the following research question: Are women more likely to perceive advancement potential when they feel supported by their supervisors than men? I then hypothesized that women who feel support from their supervisors will perceive more advancement potential than men who feel support from their supervisors. Supervisors’ support will be less important for men’s advancement potential. I conducted a secondary data analysis using the 2016 National Study of the Changing Workforce, restricting my sample to 1,516 male and female participants. I estimated two Pearson’s Correlations and my findings indicated no gender differences, having support from their supervisors benefits both males’ and females’ advancement potential perceptions. Assuming this is right and there is no support for my hypothesis. Further research should look into the occupations of these males and females. Looking into the occupations of these individuals will allow us to see the position they started at, their current positions, and how long it took them to get to their current positions. We will also be able to then compare their line of work.

Poster Presentation

Session 2

1:00pm – 2:15pm
Grand Salon

Sociology

Latino men with depression have been ignored for years by society, causing many to go untreated. Previous research has shown that men who struggle with depression do not want to be seen as vulnerable, and at times, prefer to commit suicide than to seek help. Additional research needs to be done on Latino men with mental health issues and their likelihood of seeking treatment or getting support to determine under which circumstances they are more/less likely to get treatment. That is why, I asked: does the educational level that a Latino man has influence his decision to seek treatment for depression? I hypothesized that the higher level of education a Latino man completes, (a) the more likely he will be to seek treatment, (b) receive treatment, and (c) get treatment on his own as opposed to being prompted by someone else. I conducted a secondary data analysis of the 2014 National Survey on Drug Use and Health.  The sample size was 67,901 men and women throughout the United States. I restricted the sample to Latino men who were 26 years or older (n=1,819). I found no support for my first hypothesis, which tested whether Latino men were more likely to seek treatment depending on their level of education, however, there was support for my other two hypotheses. I found that the more education that Latino men complete, the more likely they will receive treatment for depression when they need it, and that Latino men with less education had a higher chance of being prompted to get treatment by someone else than to seek treatment on their own. My findings imply that there should be a focus on mental health issues and treatment for Latino men and the cultural differences that impact their decisions, especially for those with lower levels of education. Policies should also focus on Latinos with lower levels of education.

Poster Presentation

Session 2

1:00pm – 2:15pm
Grand Salon

Sociology

Domestic violence, a pervasive societal concern, affects individuals irrespective of their socioeconomic standing. Examining the potential influence of socioeconomic status on the acquisition of restraining orders and support services is significant because legal protection for victims of domestic violence cannot be overstated. It serves as a crucial mechanism to safeguard their well-being, ensure justice, and break the cycle of abuse. The study’s relevance lies in its potential to contribute to a more equitable and effective legal response to domestic violence, ensuring that legal protections and support services are accessible to all individuals, regardless of their socioeconomic status. The study can uncover potential disparities in the ability of individuals from different socioeconomic backgrounds to access legal protections such as restraining orders and support services. Utilizing a quantitative approach, this study analyzes the demographics of specific communities to understand their socio-economic status in access to restraining orders and support services through Ventura County’s Family Justice Centers (VCFJC) Intake Packet data. We will be examining demographics such as age, ethnicity, gender, income, employment, and education. For income, employment, and education, we will be relying on census data. We anticipate that our study will reveal a significant correlation between lower socioeconomic status and decreased accessibility to obtaining restraining orders and support services in cases of domestic violence, highlighting systemic inequalities in access to legal and social resources for marginalized communities.

Poster Presentation

Session 2

1:00pm – 2:15pm
Grand Salon

Sociology

Since the advent of video games in the 1970s, men have dominated the field of play. Past research has established that the male-oriented landscape has created a field wherein women are less likely to identify as video game players– or gamers–than men. However, this research has not explored how the type of video game– such as singleplayer, cooperative, or multiplayer games– may moderate the relationship between gender and gamer identity. My research question asks if men are more likely to identify as gamers than women, and does gameplay style moderate this relationship? I hypothesize that men will identify as gamers more than women, but when comparing gameplay styles, women will have a higher likelihood of identifying as gamers when playing multiplayer or co-operative games than singleplayer games, whereas men will show no difference between gamestyles . Using the 2013 survey “The Civic Network,” I conducted secondary data analysis on a sample of 3,887 men and women between the ages of 16-29. Of the participants, 3,236 respondents identified as video game players in some capacity and thus were utilized for this research. Utilizing multiple T-tests and ANOVA analyses, I found that men were more likely to identify as gamers than women. I also found that there was a significant relationship between gameplay style and gamer identity. Regardless of gender, respondents showed a higher likelihood of identifying as gamers when participating in multiplayer or co-operative games than when playing singleplayer games. This research suggests that there are factors beyond gender that may moderate willingness to identify as a gamer, such as interactivity with other players, the ways in which interactivity occurs, and how gameplay is taking place. Further research should be conducted to explore how other factors may shape gendered interaction and involvement with video games and gamer identity.

Poster Presentation

Session 2

1:00pm – 2:15pm
Grand Salon

Sociology

Gender differences in household labor highlight the inequalities in the distribution of responsibilities in the home between men and women, acknowledging these disparities can help break away from unequal gender roles. Women continue to do more household labor, even with their increased involvement in the labor force, however we lack research on the role that plays on their mental and physical health in comparison to men. I ask, are women who do more housework than their spouse adversely affected in their mental and physical health more so than men who do more housework than their spouse. I hypothesize that the division of labor in the household has a greater effect on a woman mentally and physically than men and will use a means comparison test to compare the impact that household chores have on mental and physical health by gender. I used the 2016 National Study of the Changing Workforce which consisted of 1,542 adult U.S. employees, then restricted my sample to only men and women in married or partnered relationships who reported doing all household chores in their relationship. I thought I was going to find that women who reported doing all household labor would be more affected by all aspects of their mental and physical health than men. However, instead I found that this was only significant for a women’s physical health when being measured by cooking, cleaning, and childcare and alternatively, men’s mental health was more impacted than women’s. I believe this has to do with the gender norms and the act of “women” based household labor negatively effecting a man’s performance of masculinity, as well as the expected societal pressures that a woman faces to withhold household standards.

Poster Presentation

Session 2

1:00pm – 2:15pm
Grand Salon

Sociology

Women are pressured by society to meet the standards of traditional gender stereotypes, and carry out the majority of household duties such as cleaning, cooking, laundry and being nurturing to their family. Research has studied the gender gap in the division of labor in couples who both remotely worked from home and it has been found that women were more likely to spend more time on household chores than men did. Building on this research, I asked if women who work remotely from home and whose spouse/partner who works inside the home compared to men who work remotely from home, whose spouse/partner works outside the home spend more time on household chores? I hypothesize that women will spend more time completing household chores compared to men when working remotely from home. I used the 2016 National Study of the Changing Workforce and my sample consisted of 9 males and 17 females who all worked remotely from home while their spouse worked outside the house. They were all in a heterosexual relationship and were currently living with their partner. The sample was asked to self rate, whether their partner or themselves  spent more time on household chores. I find support for my hypothesis due to the results found in the means comparison and test; there is a significant difference between the amount of time women and men spend on household chores while working from home. My findings conclude that women spend more time on household chores while working from home when compared to men who work remotely from home, whose spouse/partner works outside the home. My study narrows the gap of knowledge between both variables and highlights how deeply rooted the issue of gender inequality is in household duties. With the new found knowledge, researchers can come up with strategies to fight this inequality in households.

Poster Presentation

Session 2

1:00pm – 2:15pm
Grand Salon

Sociology

Prior research has shown diversity of health outcomes among the older Latino/as, and pointed to factors like language barriers, lack of insurance, and economic resources in explaining this diversity.  The primary goal of my research was to explore the differences in aging acceptance among older Latino/as in the United States, and the role of masculinity and femininity in aging acceptance. Scholars has said that because masculinity calls for men to be physical demanding of labor, with the limited access to health care, and have substandard and overcrowded living conditions and femininity to be the homemakers, and nurturers. I hypothesized that Latina women are more accepting of aging then Latino men are because they feel they must care for themselves to stay as healthy as possible to be able to care for the family. I ask, “Among Latino/as, what are the differences between men and women in the way they accept aging?” To answer this question, I conducted a secondary data analysis using the Hispanic Established Populations for the Epidemiologic Study of the Elderly (HEPESE) Wave 8, 2012-2013. This study included 737 respondents that were of 50+ years old, that identified as male or female of Latino/a origin and live in the United States. The data was conducted by interview in the language that the respondents were most comfortable with, and I have restricted my sample to those who answered for themselves, and those who had a proxy with them while answering. I estimated a means comparison test compare females with males on how healthy they saw themselves, and how many times they visited the doctor in prior year. After conducting my test, I found that my results were marginally statistically significant. I was able to show that women do attend the doctors more often, but not as many as I had assumed. My findings suggest policy makers will need to consider interventions that take into account gender, for exampling by teaching men how important it is that they accept that they are aging and seek medical attention as soon as possible to have a better quality of life.

Poster Presentation

Session 2

1:00pm – 2:15pm
Grand Salon

Sociology

This research project explores the realities of men and women that marry at a young age and their life satisfaction following divorce from that marriage. It is known that the repercussions of divorce often include deteriorated physical and psychological conditions predominantly found within those that do not initiate the decision (Frisby, Butterfield, Dilow, Martin, and Weber 2012). This can be stemmed from the notion that divorce is often viewed in a negative connotation; it is seen as a decision that contradicts the traditional marital standards of society, a decision that appears as an “easy” way out from dissolution of marriage (Ellison, Wolfinger, and Ramos-Wada 2012). In consideration, the research question for this project examines the relationship between gender, marrying at a young age, and life satisfaction post divorce. I hypothesize that women that marry at a young age and divorce at a young age will experience higher levels of life satisfaction compared to men following divorce. I conduct a secondary data analysis of The National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health). It is a longitudinal study that follows the lives of more than twenty-thousand adolescents in grades seventh through twelfth grade. The focus for this research is on the Third Wave (2001-2002). In this period, the sample was aged 18-26 years old. The data was restricted to analyze men and women who had married once and whose marriage resulted in divorce. Such restrictions resulted in a sample size of 63 participants. Variables in this study account for gender and divorce status, and measured life satisfaction. A means comparison test was conducted to measure the relationship between gender and life satisfaction. Results amounting in a significant value of 0.746 which is > p-value of 0.05 and a mean difference of -.0769.The results failed to reject the null hypothesis of the study, finding that there is no significant relationship between gender and life satisfaction among those who married and divorced young. Proceeding forward, future research should aim to account for distinct ethnic/racial groups and see if there is variation between the groups to further develop literature and findings.

Poster Presentation

Session 2

1:00pm – 2:15pm
Grand Salon

Sociology

Juvenile incarceration is when a child (boy or girl) under 18 years of age commits delinquent crimes and he or she is punished. Their punishments can include incarceration time which is when juveniles are placed in a correctional facility. Much research has been conducted on incarcerated juveniles and whether juveniles after release will receive a higher level of education or not. This study in particular is important because it shows the importance of educational achievements and how that can be a turning point for juvenile offenders. While studies often examine gender roles in juvenile incarceration and educational levels there is still missing research on how juvenile incarceration affects someone’s reach to a higher educational level. Therefore, my research question was: How does juvenile incarceration affect educational levels and how does that vary by gender? I hypothesize that boys who have been in juvenile incarceration centers before will earn lower levels of education than girls who have been in juvenile incarceration centers. I conducted my study by using the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent to Adult Health (Add Health), 1994-2008. My sample size included 217 participants who were females or males who had been convicted as juveniles and had completed a higher level of education. To test my hypothesis, I used a T-Test, and my findings were not significant (P=.475). What my findings mean for the importance of my topic is that further research needs to be done.

Poster Presentation

Session 1

9:15am – 10:30am
Grand Salon

Sociology