Voted Out: The Psychological Consequences of Anti-Gay Politics

by Glenda M. Russell

Overview

When, in 1992, the citizens of Colorado ratified Amendment 2, effectively stripping lesbians, gay men, and bisexuals of protection from discrimination under the state's constitution, the vote divided the state and left the gay population disspirited and angry. Their psychological predicament offered an opportunity to examine the precise intersection at which the individual meets social oppression.
Voted Out is the first to document the psychological impact of anti-gay legislation on the gay community, illustrating the range of reactions, from depression, anger, and anxiety to a sense of empowerment and a desire to mobilize, which such legislation can engender. It also offers a detailed account of an innovative team approach to the qualitative coding and analysis process. Blending traditional quantitative methods with more innovative qualitative analyses, it provides a valuable opportunity to compare quantitative and qualitative data focused on the same issue within one volume.
The volume specifically addresses researchers' use of the results of their research beyond publication and the ways in which research undertaken to examine a social issue can be returned to the community.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780814775448
Publisher:	New York University Press
Publication date:	09/01/2000
Series:	Qualitative Studies in Psychology , #17
Pages:	332
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.87(d)

About the Author

Glenda M. Russell is a Senior Research Associate at the Institute for Gay and Lesbian Strategic Studies in Amherst, MA. She is coauthor of Conversations about Psychology and Sexual Orientation (also available from NYU Press).

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

"A remarkable and innovative use of psychological methods to study and understand crucial social problems . . . Voted Out offers us a new model for action research."

-Bonnie R. Strickland,University of Massachusetts at Amherst and former President, American Psychological Association

"One of the quandaries that the plaintiffs in the court challenge to Amendment 2 faced at the outset was how to obtain an immediate injunction to prevent the amendment from taking effect when there was no proof that the enforcement of Amendment 2 would cause irreparable harm. This well-written book provides that proof: without ever having taken legal effect, Amendment 2 took an enormous psychological toll."

-Jean E. Dubofsky,lead attorney for plaintiffs in Romer v. Evans (the case in which the U.S. Supreme Court held Amendement 2 unconstitutional)

"Russell's data is moving and powerful, and I would expect this book to become an essential referent for gay rights activists in the future."

-SIGNS

Editorial Reviews

"A remarkable and innovative use of psychological methods to study and understand crucial social problems . . . Voted Out offers us a new model for action research."

Bonnie R. Strickland

"One of the quandaries that the plaintiffs in the court challenge to Amendment 2 faced at the outset was how to obtain an immediate injunction to prevent the amendment from taking effect when there was no proof that the enforcement of Amendment 2 would cause irreparable harm. This well-written book provides that proof: without ever having taken legal effect, Amendment 2 took an enormous psychological toll."

Jean E. Dubofsky

"Russell's data is moving and powerful, and I would expect this book to become an essential referent for gay rights activists in the future."

SIGNS

"One of the quandaries that the plaintiffs in the court challenge to Amendment 2 faced at the outset was how to obtain an immediate injunction to prevent the amendment from taking effect when there was no proof that the enforcement of Amendment 2 would cause irreparable harm. This well-written book provides that proof: without ever having taken legal effect, Amendment 2 took an enormous psychological toll."

-Jean E. Dubofsky,lead attorney for plaintiffs in Romer v. Evans (the case in which the U.S. Supreme Court held Amendement 2 unconstitutional)

”A remarkable and innovative use of psychological methods to study and understand crucial social problems . . . Voted Out offers us a new model for action research."

-Bonnie R. Strickland,University of Massachusetts at Amherst and former President, American Psychological Association

"Russell's data is moving and powerful, and I would expect this book to become an essential referent for gay rights activists in the future."

- SIGNS

From the Publisher

The data and analysis is presented with sufficient depth and thoughtfulness to allow the readers to form their own opinions and impressions...the psychological portrait it presents of the LGB community...is both revealing and important.
— Journal of Lesbian Studies Vol. 6, Number 1, 2002

David C. Croson