Gender Backlash and the Moderating Role of Shared Racial Group Membership

Research suggests that White women often experience more gender backlash than women of color in response to expressions of agency. We consider whether this differential in backlash is driven by the match or mismatch of the race of both perceivers and targets. Much of the existing work in this space examines the perspective of White perceivers, which might underestimate racial minority women's susceptibility to backlash if backlash occurs primarily in same-race interactions. We examine how the racial group memberships of targets and perceivers jointly affect backlash against gender-norm violating women. In analyses of Dr. Christine Blasey-Ford's accusations of sexual assault against Brett Kavanaugh and Anita Hill's accusations against Clarence Thomas during their respective U.S. Supreme Court confirmation hearings, an archival analysis of the 2016 U.S. presidential election, and two experiments, we find that perceivers of different races tend to express more backlash toward racial in-group than out-group women.

Gendered racial boundary maintenance: Social penalties for White women in interracial relationships

Throughout American history, formal laws and social norms have discouraged interracial romantic relationships. Interracial relationships blur the boundaries between racial groups, challenging the essentialized racial categories that define Whiteness as an exclusive, high status identity. Whites, who are the most resistant to interracial marriage of any racial group, have used their dominant position in American society to enforce norms against interracial relationships. Despite the importance of racial homogamy to White identity and status, we argue that gender roles make violating norms against intimate intergroup contact more costly for women than men, leading to Whites' greater resistance to interracial relationships involving White women. In a representative American sample using a natural quasi-experiment, as well as 3 follow-up lab experiments, we find that White women face differential social penalties for intimate intergroup contact-being perceived as gender deviant and low status within the group. By contrast, having a racial out-group partner did not influence status perceptions of men or Black women. Status perceptions of both individuals in the couple predicted attitudes toward the couple as a unit, leading to greater prejudice toward interracial relationships involving White women than White men. This research demonstrates the existence of a gendered double standard for intimate intergroup contact among Whites, revealing that gender norms play a critical role in the maintenance of American racial boundaries. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

Osteosynthesis for clavicle fractures: How close are we to penetration of neurovascular structures?

INTRODUCTION

Risks associated with drill plunging are well recognised in clavicle osteosynthesis. To date no studies have described plunge depth associated with clavicle osteosynthesis.

PRIMARY AIM

To determine whether plunge depth associated with clavicle osteosynthesis is great enough to penetrate neurovascular structures and whether surgical experience reduces the risk of neurovascular injury METHOD: Cadaveric clavicles were pressed into spongy phenolic foam to allow measurement of drill bit penetration beyond the far cortex (plunge depth). 15 surgeons grouped according to experience were asked to drill a single hole in the medial, middle and lateral clavicle in 2 specimens each. Each surgeon used fully a charged standard Stryker drill with a new 2.6mm drill bit and guide. Plunge depths were measured in 0.5mm increments. Depth measurements were compared amongst groups and to previously documented distances to neurovascular structures as outlined by Robinson et al. Kruskal-Wallis test was used for overall comparison and Mann-Whitney U test was used for comparing the groups individually.

RESULTS

Mean plunge depth across all groups was 3.4mm, (0.5-6.5), 4.0mm (1mm-8.5mm) and 4.0mm (0.5mm-15mm) in the medial, middle and lateral clavicle. Plunge depths were greater than previously documented distances to the subclavian vein at the medial clavicle on nine occasions. Plunge depths in the middle and lateral clavicle were well within the previously documented distances from neurovascular structures. There was no correlation between level of experience and median plunge depth (p=0.18). However, inexperienced surgeons plunged 1mm greater than intermediate and experienced surgeons (p=0.026). There was one significant outlier; a 15mm plunge depth by an inexperienced surgeon in the lateral clavicle.

CONCLUSION

Clavicle osteosynthesis has a relatively high risk of neurovascular injury. Plunge depths through the clavicle often exceed the distance of neurovascular structures, especially in the medial clavicle. A thorough understanding of the anatomy of these neurovascular structures and methods to prevent excessive plunging is important prior to undertaking clavicle osteosynthesis.

Victim and perpetrator accounts of interpersonal conflict: autobiographical narratives about anger

Subjects furnished autobiographical accounts of being angered (victim narratives) and of angering someone else (perpetrator narratives). The provoking behavior was generally portrayed by the perpetrator as meaningful and comprehensible, whereas the victim tended to depict it as arbitrary, gratuitous, or incomprehensible. Victim accounts portrayed the incident in a long-term context that carried lasting implications, especially of continuing harm, loss, and grievance. Perpetrator accounts tended to cast the incident as a closed, isolated incident that did not have lasting implications. Several findings fit a hypothesis that interpersonal conflicts may arise when a victim initially stifles anger and then finally responds to an accumulated series of provocations, whereas the perpetrator perceives only the single incident and regards the angry response as an unjustified overreaction. Victim and perpetrator roles are associated with different subjective interpretations.

Victim and perpetrator accounts of interpersonal conflict: Autobiographical narratives about anger

Subjects furnished autobiographical accounts of being angered (victim narratives) and of angering someone else (perpetrator narratives). The provoking behavior was generally portrayed by the perpetrator as meaningful and comprehensible, whereas the victim tended to depict it as arbitrary, gratuitous, or incomprehensible. Victim accounts portrayed the incident in a long-term context that carried lasting implications, especially of continuing harm, loss, and grievance. Perpetrator accounts tended to cast the incident as a closed, isolated incident that did not have lasting implications. Several findings fit a hypothesis that interpersonal conflicts may arise when a victim initially stifles anger and then finally responds to an accumulated series of provocations, whereas the perpetrator perceives only the single incident and regards the angry response as an unjustified overreaction. Victim and perpetrator roles are associated with different subjective interpretations.

Natural history of flexion deformity of the hip in myelodysplasia

For definition of the incidence and natural history of hip flexion contracture, 5,147 serial measurements of the range of hip extension in 966 patients with spina bifida were analyzed. Contractures were generally present in the first few months of life (physiologic flexion posture); this then diminished during the first 27 months in all but those with thoracic lesions. Hence, surgical management is seldom appropriate until after that age. In general, contractures reappear or worsen between the ages of 3 and 6 years, but few patients with sacral lesions develop this deformity. Our findings also demonstrate that hip flexion contracture is not merely due to muscle imbalance, sitting posture, or these factors in combination.

Hand function in patients with spina bifida cystica

The Jebsen-Taylor hand function test was performed on 143 patients with myelomeningocele, 8-35 years of age. Compared with normal individuals, matched for sex and age, patients with myelomeningocele demonstrated impaired hand function. Thoracic level and high lumbar level patients exhibited poorer hand function than low lumbar and sacral level patients. Patients who required more than three shunt operations for continued control of hydrocephalus were more likely to have abnormal hand function. Awareness of such deficiencies should enable orthopedic surgeons, therapists, and parents to establish realistic functional expectations and management aims for these children.

The significance of spasticity in the upper and lower limbs in myelomeningocele

One hundred and nine children with myelodysplasia were evaluated and classified according to the level and type of paralysis and its effect on functional ability. Thirty-one per cent of the patients were paralysed at the thoracic level, 26% at the upper lumbar level, 30% at the lower lumbar level and 13% at the sacral level. Fifty-four per cent of these patients demonstrated the classic flaccid paralysis in the lower limbs with normal upper limbs; 9% were flaccid in the lower limbs, but were spastic in the upper; 24% were spastic in the lower limbs; 13% were spastic in the upper and lower limbs. Patients with spastic lower limbs required more orthopaedic procedures, more days in hospital and in casts, and were less likely to walk than those with flaccid paralysis. Patients with spastic upper limbs were less likely to be independent in activities of daily living and were more likely to require special schools than patients with normal upper limbs. In addition to the spinal cord level of the lesion, the degree of spasticity is important in the evaluation, treatment and prognosis of myelodysplastic patients.

Walking ability after transplantation of the iliopsoas. A long-term follow-up

Of 47 patients with spina bifida who had had transplantation of the iliopsoas more than 10 years previously, 32 (68%) were community walkers, 3 were household walkers and 12 were non-walkers. Comparison with other published reports showed that, at the very least, the patients reviewed had not had their walking ability jeopardized by the inevitable loss of hip flexor power. Furthermore, all but three of the community walkers were able to climb and descend stairs. There was a high proportion of non-walkers in those patients whose operation had been performed in the first year of life and such early surgery is no longer recommended. We also found that the pre-operative assessment of muscle power had, in some patients, been inaccurate. Finally, we found that, at review, the power of the transferred muscles was poor, suggesting that transplantation is beneficial because it achieves permanent and major reduction in hip flexor power; this usually prevents recurrent hip flexion deformity and dislocation.

Walking ability in mature patients with spina bifida

The ambulatory status of 50 patients, aged 15 years and older, with spina bifida is assessed and related to the level of the lesion, the stability and presence of deformity at the hip joints, and the presence of pelvic obliquity and of scoliosis. A retrospective study was made of these variables for the year the child began walking and, when applicable, the year the child stopped walking. More than two-thirds of the group were community ambulators. Lesion review, and there were no household or nonfunctional ambulators. Lesion levels of the ambulators ranged from T11 to S2-S3, whereas lesion levels of the nonambulators ranged from T12 to L3-L4/L4. Most of the hips were not dislocated because the patients had undergone early surgery to restore muscle balance at the hip and, thus, to prevent dislocation. Some had undergone surgery to reduce hip dislocation, although it appears that such surgery is unnecessary for those with high lesions who use long calipers and whose hips require only flexion and extension ability in ambulation. Surgery resulted in significant limitation of flexion range at the hip in one instance only. Those ambulators with high lesions were compared with nonambulators, almost all of whom also had high lesions. The combination of hip flexion deformity, pelvic obliquity, and scoliosis is likely to preclude walking as is the presence of any one of these factors to a severe degree.