Date Available

7-30-2020

Year of Publication

2020

Degree Name

Master of Science (MS)

Document Type

Master's Thesis

College

Education

Department/School/Program

Kinesiology and Health Promotion

First Advisor

Dr. Kristen P. Mark

Abstract

Bi-negative discrimination, negative attitudes, and beliefs regarding bisexual individuals are at least partially responsible for mental and physical distress in the bisexual community (Friedman et al., 2014). Romantic relationships can act as a buffer against negative health outcomes as well as increase overall well-being (Dush & Amato, 2005). However, research has shown that binegitive attitudes can impact a person’s willingness to begin relationships with bisexual individuals (Fienstein et al., 2014). This study aimed to explore the impact of positive identity on relationship satisfaction of bisexual women in relationships with men. In particular, we investigated five possible facets of positive identity: (a) authenticity of identity, (b) social justice of identity, (c) self-awareness identity, (d) intimacy, and (f) sense of community and their potential links to relationship satisfaction. A total of 263 bisexual women participated in the study. In order to answer research question, a series of bivariate correlations followed by a multivariate regression utilizing LGB-PIM subscale scores as the independent variable (authenticity, social justice, self-awareness, intimacy, and sense of community) and important demographic characteristics (as control variables) to predict the dependent variable, relationship satisfaction. In this study, intimacy was the only significant predictor of relationship satisfaction for bisexual women in relationships with men. These findings contribute to what is known about intimacy within the context of intimate relationships specifically for bisexual women in relationships with men.

Digital Object Identifier (DOI)

https://doi.org/10.13023/etd.2020.350

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