Bridging Disciplinary Boundaries (January 11 - 14, 2007)

Purpose: Antigay attitudes are highly correlated with antigay behaviors, including physical attacks. In fact, alarming numbers of lesbian, gay, and bisexual people are subjected to discrimination, harassment, and violence because of their sexual orientation. Given the correlation between antigay attitudes and behaviors, this systematic review was conducted to determine what, if any, empirically validated interventions exist for improving heterosexuals' attitudes toward homosexuals. Methods: Studies for inclusion in the analyses were identified through searches of the PsycINFO, Social Services Abstracts, and Sociological Abstracts electronic databases for the preceding ten years. Only studies that included at least one intervention designed to improve the heterosexual participants' attitudes toward homosexuals and that were published in peer-reviewed journals were included. Search parameters were broad and included wildcards. In all, 17 empirical studies intended to improve heterosexuals' attitudes toward lesbian, gay, or bisexual individuals were reviewed. Characteristics of the studies with regard to participants, interventions, methodologies, attitude measures, and outcomes are reported. The studies are also rated for their level of empirical support using criteria developed by the American Psychological Association's Division 12 Task Force for evaluating empirically validated therapies. Finally, challenges of the research and applications to social work practice are discussed. Results: None of the interventions qualified as “well-established” as no single intervention was subjected to two independent experiments. Nor did any of the interventions meet the criteria for “probably efficacious treatments.” Most fell short at this level because they were not tested in a between group design experiment. Only four of the reviewed studies utilized random assignment. Two of these, however, utilized outcome measures that were developed by one or more of the investigators and the validity of these instruments were not sufficiently established. Additionally, one of these did not conduct between group comparisons and there was insufficient power to support such analyses. The other one did not report participant attrition nor did it control for possible pretest effects. Of the two randomized studies that utilized measures with previously established validity and reliability, one did not have sufficient power to conduct its analyses. The other did not adequately describe its methodology, nor did it report attrition or control for possible pretest effects. With regard to the sociopolitical context within which these experiments were conducted, a substantial and apparently politically powerful proportion of the population believes homophobia and/or heterosexism should be embraced rather than challenged. Specific examples of attempts to inhibit research on this population are presented. Implications: It remains to be seen whether any short-term interventions can create lasting shifts in attitudes that translate into behavioral changes toward the minority sexual orientation. It seems likely that attitude shift is a cumulative process resulting from repeated exposure to consistent information that is deemed credible. Thus, the interventions discussed herein may contribute to that process but they should be further tested with well-designed, methodologically sound experiments. Institutionalized heterosexism, however, may present considerable obstacles to researchers and practitioners attempting to address the social inequalities facing this population.