Homosexual identity: commitment, adjustment, and significant others.

Abstract

As a continuation of the work of Schwartz, Fearn, and Stryker (1966), the following hypothesis, and a number of causal models associated with it, are tested: commitment to a deviant identity is positively correlated with (a) psychological adjustment, and (b) a report of significant others supportive of that identity. Data from 2,497 male homosexuals in the United States, the Netherlands, and Denmark support the hypothesis. Four causal models are rejected through the use of multiple regression and correlation analysis. Two models are supported. Psychological adjustment and a report of supportive significant others are directly related to homosexual commitment but not to each other.