Running head: LITERATURE REVIEW 1

Literature Review:

Same-Sex Marriage Issues at UTEP

Kassandra Lozano

University of Texas at El Paso

RWS 1302

Professor Vierra

March 27, 2018

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Abstract

This paper will explore how psychology can influence same-sex marriage. Psychology is a

widely researched major, that has positively influenced our society today. Same-sex marriage has

been a big debate for many years, and at one point in time people would get killed for it. There

has been various protests around the country, and people still seem to not be open-minded and

understand that love is love. There is a survey done that was given to staff who work in the

psychology department at UTEP, which further shows the opinions of how psychology can

influence same-sex marriage. Discrimination towards people who are attracted to the same

gender cause them to get a low self-esteem and feel worthless. This can eventually lead into

depression, which has become a very common disorder in the United States. Depression can also

develop into suicide, and that is a very sad thing for someone to think that they have no other

choice.
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Literature Review:

Same-Sex Marriage Issues at UTEP

The battle for gay rights has been fought for many years, and to this day it seems to be a

widely debatable topic. In the eyes of society, gay people who are fighting for their rights are just

“complaining”, when it is much more than that. People who prefer the same-sex struggle on a

daily basis with harassment or prejudice. Same-Sex marriage within Texas is unconstitutional,

there are students that attend the University of Texas at El Paso whom prefer the same gender

and are negatively impacted by living their love life in the shadows.

This topic will be answered using four research questions.

1. How does psychology influence same-sex marriage amongst students at UTEP?

2. Why are people who prefer the same gender discriminated to a psychological

damaging way in regards to work?

3. How are there struggles in getting equal rights for same-sex marriage in Texas?

4. Does UTEP have an issue with same-sex couples?

Psychology Influences Same-Sex Marriage

Psychology is one of the most influential factors that affect same-sex marriage within the

students enrolled at UTEP. To begin with, psychology is the scientific study of behaviors

(observable actions) and mental/cognitive processing (what happens inside one’s mind), for

example one’s memory, problem solving, and planning is also a process. (Hockenbury p. 3). In

1994, there was article written in UTEP’s newspaper named, “The Prospector”, which is written

by scholar students who are enrolled at UTEP. Alvarado (1994) claims President Clinton swore

to remove the ban of homosexuals who planned on joining the military. He then observed that in

the ROTC, there is only one policy for homosexuals, which is don’t ask, don’t tell. For instance,
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Voigt believes that homosexuals shouldn’t, “be in the military because they’re more feminine”

(p. 1). Being a homosexual student at UTEP and hearing that one cannot join the ROTC because

one acts more like a woman can truly damage someone psychologically because it causes them

to feel demeaned and feel lees about themselves. It creates this idea that they are worth very little

simply because they are not sexually attracted to the opposite sex. In another article, made in

2009 also in the UTEP school newspaper Perez (2009) insisted that California was the first state

to legalize same sex marriage, and finally same-sex couples had “hope” that they will finally be

able to legitimize their relationship with their significant other, and finally be recognized under a

law. He refuted the claim that, after it was legalized, the same Supreme Court wanted to again

eliminate that right, it was hard to believe that still in the 21st century, and “after more than 200

years of struggles for liberation”, people still seem to struggle to equality to their own identity (p.

13). Perez observed that it was simply ridiculous that one has to achieve the popular vote to be

legal. Students at UTEP observed from across the country that same-sex marriage is still a

struggle at that point in time, and this affects them because it makes them feel hopeless and

possibly more insecure with who they are. They have to hide who they are because Texas to this

day was forced to legalize same-sex marriage, but is still socially incorrect in the eyes of those

who live in Texas. According to an article written by Scheff (2001), “shame and lack of

community…could be a component of major depression” (p.1). People who are gay have to live

their life in shame because they have to hide whom they are which can push them into “one of

the tenth leading causes of death” that is suicide, as claimed by MD, JD Louise B. Andrew

(2016) in an article which talks about depression and suicide (para. 1). Students at UTEP are

already stressed with school which can also cause depression, adding on the shame of their

sexual preference just adds more fuel to the fire.

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Psychological Damage

People who prefer the same-sex as them usually go through crazy amounts of

discrimination which psychologically damages them as a person. A place where there are high

encounters of discrimination towards homosexuals is at their own work environment. For

example, Dawson (2005) explains Title VII of Civil Rights Act of 1964 as it “prohibits

discrimination in all areas of employment on the basis of race, colour, religion, sex, or national

origin” (p. 46). This act protects all those identifiers but sexual orientation, which means one

cannot legally go to court and say someone is discriminating their sexual preference. Sexual

discrimination includes criticism, rude comments, and negative connotations to make someone

feel upset. When people who are attracted to the same-sex experience discrimination a work it

can cause them to, “create a distraction that keeps an employee fully engaged in their work” (p.

46). This affects the ability of the employee to perform their job in the correct manner. These

experiences that a worker goes through on a daily basis can result in a negative job satisfaction

which can ultimately lead to “have a negative effect on health and well-being of the individual”

(p. 46). Employees should become more open-minded and accepting towards people and their

sexual preference to avoid these life-ending issues. Another example following the ideas about

suicide is presented by Almeida (2009), whom elaborates that, “persons of the same sex, or who

identify as lesbian, gay, or bisexual are more likely than heterosexual adolescents to experience

depressive symptoms, suicidal ideation, and make suicide attempts” (p. 1001). The reason for

adolescents to reach the point to end their own life is because of the high-levels of emotional

agony they receive from being harmfully discriminated. For instance, Lee (1995) describes that

male workers who are gay or bisexual earn about, “11% to 27%” less than a male who is straight,

who have the same work experience, education, occupation, marital status, and religion (p. 726).
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Having to face this crucial statistic can lead a male to feel as if they will never be enough based

on their sexual orientation. A graphic image that can be found on page 14 demonstrates how

LGBT people are tired of living in fear. They want to express that emotion during the one day

they can finally come out, and not feel so lonely. They start to build hope, for just one day that

they will eventually be recognized as regular civilians. People who have learned helplessness

tend to usually experience low self-esteem and feel like a failure. This impacts them

psychologically because it can negatively impact the way they carry themselves and think that

they can never receive better just because of who they decide to fall in love with.

Same-Sex Marriage in Texas

There are various struggles for same-sex couples in Texas, simply because same-sex

marriage is legal, but just to an extent, because there is still large amounts of discrimination. It

creates a struggle in order to legitimize a relationship, which can harm the couple and create

issues within them. Gotta (2011) conceded a study that examined the variations within lesbians,

gay men, and heterosexuals within two points in history which are 1975 and 2000, utilizing the

“responses of 6,864 participants from two archival data sets” (p. 353). She noted that usually

same-sex couples are usually incapable to rely on “socially prescribed gender-linked division”

(p. 354) of certain household tasks, which then causes them to arrange their own system on how

to divide labor tasks. Gotta compiled the data she collected from these individuals and

discovered that, “same sex couples remain much more egalitarian than heterosexual couples” (p.

367) and gay couples seem to have less worries about cheating within the relationship. She

realized that there has been a slow change over time within the fact that there has been in

increase on equality within different types of couples and their duties. Having issues in a

relationship because it is not “correct” to be with someone in the state of Texas can cause
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intimacy and insecurity issues. These issues can soon lead into high distress levels causing

people to have trust issues and feel pressure to live a “double-life”. According to a student who

attends UTEP, Santana-Melgoza (2008) suggested that Independence Day, is a day that as a

society we look back to the struggles to gain independence as a country, and all the sacrifices that

were made by our ancestors. He reminds us that same-sex couples in California have a “small

window” of opportunity to finally get married and be “recognized federally”, is still an issue.

According to Governing (2018), there is “37 states” out of 50 who have legalized gay marriage.

The other 13 states that have not legalized same-sex marriage were forced to make it legal.

People who live in Texas, get to see all these other states that have finally legalized same-sex

marriage, while they wait for hopefully one day, they will finally be able to get legally married

and not be socially discriminated. This influences people in Texas to live in a life behind closed

doors and causes them to feel like a disgrace. Texas is one of the states whom is extremely

against gay couples, because it is not “right”. People will begin to perceive themselves lower

than what their actual value is in society, which can ultimately lead to depression.

Same-Sex Couples at UTEP

UTEP does not seem to have an issue with couples who are the same-sex. In agreement

with Castañeda (2010), an article that was written in “The Prospector” claims that, “some

schools would not allow students to take a date of the same sex, or students felt they could not

attend because of the negative social stigma” (p. 1). UTEP hosts an annual Queer Prom on

campus in order to give those students who were judged for liking the same gender as them in

past schools. They are aware that there is still issues with same-sex couples in this state, but want

to make a difference and make sure that those students don’t feel “embarrassed to be themselves”

(p. 8). This event gives homosexuals a day to finally come out and feel liberated from being in
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the shadows, but after this magical night, they must go back into those shadows because same-

sex couples are not seen as morally correct within Texas. Another UTEP student that also

contributed to UTEP’s newspaper, Rivera (2010) elaborates on the idea that, “love is love,

whether it is gay or straight” (p. 12). There should not be any laws against who one loves, at the

end of the day it is their life. She recognizes some gay couples have been together for years, and

sees how much strength there is in their love because, “there are odds against them…love

between two people is forbidden, taboo, illegal” (p. 12). This can cause issues for gay couples at

UTEP because they will always feel the judgement as they pass by other people who just stare

with negativity. An issue that can come about in same gender relationships according to Collins

(2008), a student at UTEP writing in the newspaper is, “fear of harassment for their sexual

orientation can prevent gay or lesbians from seeking help in an abusive relationship” (p. 12). Gay

people seem to fear the judgement for their sexual orientation, which limits them on who they

can come to for help when in a harmful relationship. This can cause an individual to feel even

worse about themselves which can result to low self-esteem and negative thoughts about what

love is. Their mind will be trained to think the way they are treated is okay because they can

obtain the help necessary. As stated by Perez (2008), “on July 17, the center officially opened its

doors to the community and office services, such as peer counseling, HIV and STD testing,

support groups for gay youth” (p. 3). There was an organization opened named the GLBTQ

Center of El Paso, which is help for people from this community. People have realized the

struggles that GLBTQ’s go through and want to provide the help necessary for them to life a

healthier and easier life. For them to find ways to cope to the discrimination, for talk about their

relationships without being ashamed of themselves.

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Primary Research

The research that was conducted was a survey, the purpose of this survey was to figure

out if there was any same-sex discrimination issue occurring at UTEP. Additionally, the reason to

organize the research was to recognize the different ideas on the subject being studied, to be able

to develop further test out the position that is being taken, and to be able to get first-hand

accounts of the facts. This survey was given out to 20 teachers and staff in the Psychology

Building, and they all were asked the same questions which are found on page 13 along with the

results.

The results that were found were predictable. Majority of people knew that all 50 states

have legalized same-sex marriage since it became a federal law in 2015. With the exclusion of 2

answers, everyone believed that same-sex couples have difficulties adopting children because

they are not seen as proper parents. Every single person was aware that being gay is supposedly a

choice not something someone is born with. Question 5 was an open ended question, overall the

main response that was received was that psychology is important in understanding the

discrimination they receive, because it gives them a chance to get help and illuminate how they

are impacted to help others understand the difficulties. Question 6 was also an open ended

question, majority of the responses claimed that society will probably never achieve the full

100% acceptance, but we are heading towards it. Society will never completely accept same-sex

couples because there will always be prejudice. A sufficient amount of the people interviewed

agreed that gay men are more judged than gay women. Overall, UTEP does not have an issue

with same-sex couples, however the state of Texas has it legal only to an extent.
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Conclusion

In a final analysis, discrimination towards any person in general for whatever reason will

never be okay. No one has to be gay in order to be prejudiced, it happens with anything that is

perceived about a certain person. Living a life in the shadows only makes a person become an

outcast and feel miserably alone. Same-sex couples are the ones who are usually judged to a

point it makes them extremely ashamed and insecure. It later leads onto depression, and in most

cases depression can cause someone to commit suicide. Someone who thinks they have no other

choice, but to leave permanently is honestly dreadful. Everyone’s life has value, no matter what

they have done or what they do, no one deserves to feel worthless. People already have enough

stress due to family or school, to have more because of who they love, it’s not fair. At the end of

the day, whom we love is our choice, and nobody should ever feel as if they are less of a person

because of it.
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References

Almeida, J., Johnson, R. M., Corliss, H. L., Molar, B. E., & Azrael, D. (2009). Emotional distress

among LGBT youth: The influence of perceived discrimination based on sexual

orientation.38(7), 1001-1004.

Alvarado, T. (February 3, 1994,). UTEP's ROTC matches military's sexual Policy. The

Prospector. Retrieved from https://theprospector.newspaperarchive.com/el-paso-

prospector/1994-02-03/

Andrew, L. B. (February 12, 2016). Depression and suicide. Medscape, Retrieved

from https://emedicine.medscape.com/article/805459-overview

Castañeda, B. (2010, ). Students get second chance at prom. The Prospector, pp. 1. Retrieved

from https://theprospector.newspaperarchive.com/el-paso-prospector/2010-04-29/

Collins, D. (2008, ). Law forum, activities raise LGBT awareness. The Prospector, pp. 12.

Retrieved from https://theprospector.newspaperarchive.com/el-paso-prospector/2008-04-

10/page-12/

Dawson, G. A. (2005). Equal opportunities international. Emerald Insight, 24(3/4), 46-49.

Retrieved from https://www.emeraldinsight.com/doi/pdfplus/10.1108/02610150510788060

Gotta, G., Green, R., Rothblum, E., Solomon, S., Balsam, K., & Schwartz, P. (2011).

Heterosexual, Lesbian, and Gay Male Relationships: A Comparison of Couples in 1975 and

2000. Family Process, 50(3), 353-376. 10.1111/j.1545-5300.2011.01365.x

Hockenbury, S. E. (2010). Discovering psychology (7th ed.). Washington D.C.: Worth

Publishers Macmillan Learning.

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Lee Badgett, M. V. (1995). The wage effects of sexual orientation discrimination. Sage

Journals, 48(4) Retrieved

from http://journals.sagepub.com/doi/pdf/10.1177/001979399504800408

Murray, B. (2018). We will not live in fear [image]. Retrieved from

https://www.bestproducts.com/fun-things-to-do/g2776/best-gay-pride-parades-festivals-

events/

Perez, I. (2008, ). Community members question credentials of new center director. The

Prospector, pp. 3. Retrieved from https://theprospector.newspaperarchive.com/el-paso-

prospector/2008-07-30/page-3/

Perez, I. (March 12, 2009, ). You should support gay marriage. The Prospector Retrieved

from https://theprospector.newspaperarchive.com/el-paso-prospector/2009-03-12/page-13/

Rivera, C. (2010, ). Love is love: A queer perspective. The Prospector, pp. 12. Retrieved

from https://theprospector.newspaperarchive.com/el-paso-prospector/2010-02-09/page-12/

Santana-Melgoza, V. (July 2, 2008, ). Liberty and justice for all can be tricky

proposition. Perspectives Retrieved from https://theprospector.newspaperarchive.com/el-

paso-prospector/2008-07-02/page-2/

Scheff, T. J. (2001). Shame and community: Social components in depression.64(3) Retrieved

from https://guilfordjournals.com/doi/10.1521/psyc.64.3.212.18457

State same-sex marriage state laws map. (2018). Governing the States and Localities, Retrieved

from http://www.governing.com/gov-data/same-sex-marriage-civil-unions-doma-laws-by-

state.html
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Graph 1

Questions asked:
1. How many states have legalized same sex marriage?
a. 50
b. 25
c. 12
d. 37
2. True or false: Same-sex marriage couples have difficulty adopting kids because they are
seen as incapable of being “good” role models?
a. True
b. False
3. Do people who are discriminated by being attracted to the same gender get
psychologically impacted?
a. Yes
b. No
4. Are you aware that people who believe in being “gay” is simply a choice, not something
that someone is born with?
a. Yes
b. No
5. Why is psychology so important in order to understand same-sex couples and their
struggles in everyday life?
6. It is possible that at one point people will finally be able to accept same-sex couples and
not discriminate them for their sexual preference?
7. True or False: Men who are gay are judged more than women who are gay.
a. True
b. False
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Graphic Image 1

In the picture demonstrated above, there is a woman walking down the annual Pride Fest

that is given amongst many cities throughout the United States. This event is a day where people

can speak their mind and get together with people who feel the same. She holds a rainbow to

represent the LGBT flag, with words that state “we will not live in fear”. The purpose of her

holding that sign is because, she wants people to understand that gay people are tired of being so

scared of judgement to a point they must hide in the shadows. This picture represents the voice

of many other people who do not want to come to light about the discrimination they receive and

the shame they carry on a daily basis.