NCJ Number
184089
Journal
Women & Criminal Justice Volume: 11 Issue: 2 Dated: 2000 Pages: 67-84
Editor(s)
Donna C. Hale
Date Published
2000
Length
18 pages
Annotation
This study surveyed both heterosexual and homosexual female detainees housed at the Baltimore, Maryland, City Detention Center to determine whether lesbian inmates, particularly those with a masculine appearance, were more prone to violent or antisocial behavior than heterosexual females without masculine features and, if so, whether this relationship was a function of biological conditions or sociological influences.
Abstract
A total of 41 female detainees volunteered to be interviewed and to complete a self-report survey regarding their backgrounds, criminal activities, and medical and psychological problems. Females were classified as masculine if they had unusual hair growth, large musculature, deep voice, irregular menstrual cycle, difficulty becoming pregnant or maintaining a pregnancy, high aggressiveness, and a mandatory feature each respondent herself considered to be masculine. Results indicated that lesbian detainees had more masculine traits and more feelings of hostility and anger, and experienced more physical child abuse than heterosexual detainees. Although they did not report significantly more violent crimes, they were more often detained for longer periods of time. While self-reported symptoms of attention deficit and conduct disorders were more prevalent in lesbian detainees, other conditions of biological origin were not related to sexual preference. The author concludes that lesbian detainees are treated more harshly by the criminal justice than heterosexual detainees and that further research is needed to examine the various biological and social contributors to behavioral and attitudinal differences. 42 references, 6 notes, and 2 tables