Richard O De Visser
Biographic Data
| ID | 146931 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Richard O De Visser |
| GIVEN NAMES | Richard |
| FAMILY NAME | O De Visser |
| SIGNATURE | DE VISSER R O |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Sussex |
| ORCID | 0000-0003-1174-1499 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 63 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 366 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 63 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 1998 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 9 |
The influence of individual characteristics and social factors on not drinking alcohol during ‘Dry January’
BACKGROUND: Many one-month alcohol-free challenges (AFCs) have been established to encourage and support lower alcohol intake. Completion of AFCs is known to be influenced by characteristics of individuals. This study explored the relative importance of individual characteristics compared to use of support provided by the AFC, and social factors including interactions with drinkers. METHODS: We conducted a prospective study with a one-month follo…
Longitudinal Associations Between Sexual Regulatory Focus and Sexual Health and Well-Being
Sexual health and well-being (SHWB) encompasses physical and emotional aspects beyond disease absence. Research has shown that sexual decisions and behaviors are informed by predominant motives for pleasure or safety, with some individuals prioritizing health protection and risk avoidance (i.e., predominant focus on prevention) and others sexual pleasure and rewards (i.e., predominant focus on promotion) with casual partners. This longitudinal st…
Individual and social factors influence dietary practices during ‘Meat Free Monday’
With more people adopting or aspiring to meat-free diets, it is important to consider engagement with campaigns such as 'Meat Free Monday' (MFM). This study had three aims: (1) to explore the diversity within the population of people engaged with MFM; (2) to explore whether dietary identity and behaviour match, and whether this predicts subsequent dietary behaviour; and (3) to identify predictors of greater numbers of meat-free Mondays and all me…
The complex social, cultural and psychological drivers of the ‘chemsex’ experiences of men who have sex with men
I’m Not as Gay as Some Other Queer People”
Research has highlighted the constraints imposed on bi + people as they navigate sexual and romantic encounters within a society which privileges exclusive attraction to one gender. For bi + men, these expectations are complicated by hegemonic masculine norms which dictate the boundaries of gender expression. This qualitative study explores how bi + men navigate the boundaries of normative gender and sexual expression in constructing a bisexual-m…
Messages focused on the effect of alcohol on the immune system boosted intention to adhere to alcohol intake guidelines during Covid-19 lockdown
Research shows that personal relevance may affect the impact of alcohol-related health information. This study explored alcohol consumption during the UK Covid-19 lockdown, and whether a message emphasising the effect of alcohol on the immune system was more effective in altering intentions to follow low-risk drinking guidelines than other messages about the effects of alcohol on health. From April to June 2020, 953 drinkers completed an online q…
Parenting in the “extreme”
Safety and Pleasure Motives Determine Perceived Risks and Rewards in Casual Sex
People differ in their predispositions to value safety maintenance (i.e., disease prevention regulatory focus) or pleasure pursuit (i.e., pleasure promotion regulatory focus). Extending recent research, results of a cross-sectional study with participants living in Portugal and Spain ( N = 770) showed that these individual differences resulted in a trade-off between potential health risks and pleasure rewards in sexual practices and experiences w…
I Feel More Masculine Having Sex with a Woman Than Being Fucked by a Man”
Prior research with heterosexual and gay men suggests that heteronormative, hegemonic masculine norms influence sexual behaviors, including in relation to sexual health, and in sex between men, positioning in anal intercourse. This qualitative study offers an in-depth account of how bisexual men's beliefs about masculinity and about the gendered nature of certain sexual behaviors may influence their experiences of sex with women and men, and the …
Remote consultations in primary care
The use of Remote Consultations (RCs) in primary care expanded rapidly during the Covid-19 pandemic: their ongoing use highlights a need to improve experiences of them. We interviewed 17 adults in the UK, including a sub-sample of five people with a First Language other than English (FLotE). Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis identified five major themes: (1) RCs are convenient, but they require appropriate technology and appropriate condit…
Do different sources of sexuality education contribute differently to sexual health and well-being outcomes? Examining sexuality education in Spain and Portugal
Sexuality education (SE) can be acquired through different sources. In a cross-sectional online study with Spanish and Portuguese participants ( N = 595), we examined differences between formal traditional sources (i.e., mandatory SE received in schools), formal modern sources (e.g., SE received in courses), informal traditional sources (e.g., talks with friends and family), and informal modern sources (e.g., pornography and online content) and t…
The influence of individual and cultural factors on perceptions of alcohol control strategies among university students in Europe
Alcohol control strategies vary between countries and reflect differences in drinking cultures. This study explored how perceived effectiveness of alcohol control strategies varies according to individual characteristics and country of residence. A cross-sectional online survey was completed by 1910 university students in Denmark, England, Germany, Italy, Portugal, and Switzerland. It assessed the perceived effectiveness of 11 alcohol control str…
Condom Use Beliefs Differ According to Regulatory Focus
Reports worldwide have been showing increasing rates of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and condomless sex in recent years. Research has identified several individual and situational variables that can determine the decision to use condoms or forgo their use. We argue that such a decision can also be shaped by motives related to pleasure and safety (i.e., regulatory focus in sexuality). Using open ended questions, we asked 742 Portuguese a…
Prevent2Protect Project
The way people perceive risks and make decisions about their health is regulated by two motivational systems—prevention of harm or promotion of pleasure. People more focused on prevention strive to avoid negative outcomes and enact more health-protective behaviors. In contrast, people more focused on promotion strive to attain positive outcomes and take more risks with their health. Building upon recent evidence extending this framework to sexual…
Understanding the impact of academic difficulties among medical students
Sexual Difficulties, Problems, and Help-Seeking in a National Representative Sample
Gender social roles
Social role beliefs are important to study as they shape individual's pattern of thinking about their roles as categorized gender-specific or egalitarian in society. The present study investigated cross-cultural variations in individualistic versus collectivist cultures as well as underlying dimensions of the Social Roles Questionnaire using two independent samples of students (N = 1111). From United Kingdom, 108 men (Mage = 23.98, SD = 7.66) and…
Understanding Motivation to Adhere to Guidelines for Alcohol Intake, Physical Activity, and Fruit and Vegetable Intake Among U.K. University Students
BACKGROUND: To encourage people to lead healthier lifestyles, governments in many countries publish guidelines for alcohol intake, physical activity (PA), and fruit and vegetable (FV) intake. However, there is a need for better understanding of whether people understand such guidelines, consider them useful, and adhere to them. University students are a group worthy of attention because although they are less likely than older adults to exceed U.…
With or Without You
Look after me too’
This qualitative retrospective recall study utilised nine in-depth, semi-structured interviews with adoptive mothers involved with an online support group often used by adoptive parents facing difficulties. The aim was to explore their transition to adoptive motherhood. The study was unusual because it covered a lengthy period, from pre-adoption and the motivation to adopt to 12 months post child placement and used Reflexive Thematic Analysis to …
Beyond “Meat Free Monday”
Temporary abstinence during Dry January
Background: Temporary alcohol abstinence conveys physiological benefits. Less well-known are its effects on well-being and general self-efficacy (GSE), and how use of support during alcohol abstinence challenges affects success rates.Methods: In this study, 4232 adults participating in ‘Dry January’ completed a baseline questionnaire and a 1-month follow-up questionnaire. Key follow-up variables related to whether respondents completed the abstin…
Unwanted Sex Due to Intoxication among Australians Aged 16–69 Years
Intoxication can be a factor in unwanted sex, but research on the extent of the issue in both women and men is limited. We assessed the prevalence, correlates, and 10-year time-trends of unwanted sex due to intoxication among a representative sample of 4,279 women and 3,875 men aged 16-69 years in Australia and considered how these vary by gender. In 2012-13, 16% of women and 10% of men reported ever having had a sexual experience when they "did …
Romantic Jealousy
Whereas sexually dimorphic evolutionary models argue for clear sex differences in responses to jealousy-evoking scenarios, social cognitive models emphasize the importance of other factors. This paper explores variables associated with responses to a commonly-used jealousy-evoking scenario in a population-representative sample. Data from 8,386 Australian men and women aged 16-69 were weighted to match the population. The results provided some sup…
Sociosexual Attitudes and Quality of Life in (Non)Monogamous Relationships
That's not masculine
In recent years increasing attention has been given to how different masculinities are expressed in young men's health behaviour. To examine whether men can use competence in key health-related masculine domains to compensate for other non-masculine behaviour, group discussions were conducted with men aged 18-21 living in London, England. The analysis revealed the ways in which competence in traditionally masculine health-related domains produces…
Sexual practices at last heterosexual encounter and occurrence of orgasm in a national survey
In order to examine factors associated with orgasm in heterosexual encounters, we analyzed data from the Australian Study of Health and Relationships, a national telephone survey of sexual behavior and attitudes and sexual health knowledge carried out in 2001-2002 with a representative sample of 19,307 Australians aged 16 to 59. Respondents were asked whether at their last sexual encounter they gave or received manual stimulation and oral sex, ha…
Developing an Interpretative Phenomenological Approach to Focus Group Data
Interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) is an approach to qualitative research that is now well-established in British psychology. This approach is concerned with understanding people's experiences of the world and of themselves. The aims of IPA studies have been met most frequently through the use of one-on-one interviews. Relatively few studies have used focus group discussions as the basis for IPA studies, but focus groups may provide r…
It Takes a Man to Put Me on the Bottom
In anal intercourse between gay men, men who are typically insertive ("tops") are often perceived as, and may identify as, more masculine than those who are typically receptive ("bottoms"). "Versatile" men, who may adopt either position, may be perceived as more gender balanced and may transcend the gender-role stereotypes associated with self-labeling as top or bottom. The aim of this study was to explore how gay men's beliefs about masculinity …
A Profile of Pornography Users in Australia
There are societal concerns that looking at pornography has adverse consequences among those exposed. However, looking at sexually explicit material could have educative and relationship benefits. This article identifies factors associated with looking at pornography ever or within the past 12 months for men and women in Australia, and the extent to which reporting an "addiction" to pornography is associated with reported bad effects. Data from t…
Mister In-between
The study of young men's health-related behaviour offers an opportunity to examine the links between masculine identity and social behaviour. This article presents a case study of a 19-year-old man living in London, who describes himself as different to his peers on several important dimensions, including his engagement in health-related behaviours. The case study demonstrates the importance of health-related social behaviours such as drinking, d…
Young men's ambivalence toward alcohol
Man up
This study adopted a discursive approach to explore how not drinking alcohol (non-drinking) is construed in relation to masculine identity among 12 undergraduate interviewees. Three prominent discourses were revealed. First, non-drinking was constructed as something strange requiring explanation. Second, contradictory discourses constructed non-drinking as, simultaneously, unsociable yet reflective of greater sociability. Third, non-drinking was …
Personal and Social Factors Influencing Age at First Sexual Intercourse
There are too many gay categories now”
“Masculine capital” refers to the social power afforded by the display of traits and behaviors that are associated with orthodox, stereotypical masculinity. Men who are concerned with their masculine identity may utilize these traits and behaviors to increase their overall masculine capital, and to mitigate “failures” in other domains of masculinity. However, their success at accruing and trading masculine capital may be limited, because differen…
Perceptions of gay men’s masculinity are associated with their sexual self-label, voice quality and physique
Like all other men, gay men may utilise stereotypically masculine attributes and behaviours in an attempt to accrue ‘masculine capital’, a term referring to the social power afforded by the display of traits and behaviours associated with orthodox, ‘hegemonic’ masculinity. Previous research findings suggest that gay sexual self-labels – conveying position preferences in anal intercourse between men – voice quality and muscularity may contribute t…
I'm Not a Very Manly Man
During the last fifteen to twenty years interest has been growing in the study of masculinities. This article presents a discussion of material from in-depth interviews with two men who took part in a larger study of masculinity and health-related behavior. These two young men spontaneously referred to themselves during in-depth interviews as not being a 'manly man' or a 'man's man.' Consideration of what these men said provides interesting insig…
The importance of authenticity for student non-drinkers
Our article illustrates the importance of authenticity to student non-drinkers. Semi-structured interviews focussing on the lived experiences of five non-drinking students were subjected to interpretative phenomenological analysis. We present four inter-related themes: 'Retaining authenticity by not drinking', 'Tainting the self by drinking alcohol', 'Feeling trapped by superimposition and self-exposition' and 'Doing what you want to do with your…
Associations Between Religiosity and Sexuality in a Representative Sample of Australian Adults
Not just bi the bi
In the literature about bisexuality few studies consider bisexual people’s beliefs about bisexuality and none examine essentialist beliefs about bisexuality. In the present study 244 participants (bisexual n = 58, lesbian/gay n = 54 and heterosexual n = 132) from the UK were asked via online questionnaire about their attitudes towards bisexuality, homosexuality and heterosexuality, and how stable they perceived bisexuality, homosexuality and hete…
I don’t want to be seen as a screaming queen”
It has been argued that gay men who live in Western societies must negotiate masculine identities against a cultural backdrop where the most desirable and locally hegemonic masculinity is heterosexual. However, contemporary masculinity theories conceptualize masculinities as increasingly inclusive of gay men. The purpose of this study was to use a discourse-dynamic approach to studying masculine subjectivity to identify how gay men in England and…
The Impact of Sexual Coercion on Psychological, Physical, and Sexual Well-Being in a Representative Sample of Australian Women
Do different sources of sexuality education contribute differently to sexual health and well-being outcomes? Examining sexuality education in Spain and Portugal
Sexuality education (SE) can be acquired through different sources. In a cross-sectional online study with Spanish and Portuguese participants ( N = 595), we examined differences between formal traditional sources (i.e., mandatory SE received in schools), formal modern sources (e.g., SE received in courses), informal traditional sources (e.g., talks with friends and family), and informal modern sources (e.g., pornography and online content) and t…
Beyond “Meat Free Monday”
Sociosexual Attitudes and Quality of Life in (Non)Monogamous Relationships
Gender social roles
Social role beliefs are important to study as they shape individual's pattern of thinking about their roles as categorized gender-specific or egalitarian in society. The present study investigated cross-cultural variations in individualistic versus collectivist cultures as well as underlying dimensions of the Social Roles Questionnaire using two independent samples of students (N = 1111). From United Kingdom, 108 men (Mage = 23.98, SD = 7.66) and…
Unwanted Sex Due to Intoxication among Australians Aged 16–69 Years
Intoxication can be a factor in unwanted sex, but research on the extent of the issue in both women and men is limited. We assessed the prevalence, correlates, and 10-year time-trends of unwanted sex due to intoxication among a representative sample of 4,279 women and 3,875 men aged 16-69 years in Australia and considered how these vary by gender. In 2012-13, 16% of women and 10% of men reported ever having had a sexual experience when they "did …
Romantic Jealousy
Whereas sexually dimorphic evolutionary models argue for clear sex differences in responses to jealousy-evoking scenarios, social cognitive models emphasize the importance of other factors. This paper explores variables associated with responses to a commonly-used jealousy-evoking scenario in a population-representative sample. Data from 8,386 Australian men and women aged 16-69 were weighted to match the population. The results provided some sup…
Sexual Difficulties, Problems, and Help-Seeking in a National Representative Sample
Look after me too’
This qualitative retrospective recall study utilised nine in-depth, semi-structured interviews with adoptive mothers involved with an online support group often used by adoptive parents facing difficulties. The aim was to explore their transition to adoptive motherhood. The study was unusual because it covered a lengthy period, from pre-adoption and the motivation to adopt to 12 months post child placement and used Reflexive Thematic Analysis to …
Employment, accommodation, finances and combination therapy
The research reported here is of a study of the psychosocial impact of living with HIV/AIDS in Australia focusing on employment, accommodation and income in the environment of new treatments for HIV/AIDS. Many people experience profound changes to their lifestyle as a result of living with HIV/AIDS. In addition to detrimental changes in their health, many people experience major changes in their employment, accommodation, finances and relationshi…
Australian and South African Undergraduates' HIV-Related Knowledge, Attitudes, and Behaviors
Poverty, disease progression and employment among people living with HIV/Aids in Australia
A national survey of 925 people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) in Australia is used to examine the relationship between disease progression, employment status, poverty and economic hardship. While disease progression has some impact on economic hardship, employment status is found to be the strongest determinant of both poverty and economic hardship. The most commonly cited reasons for leaving work were psychosocial (71%), with declining health cit…
Personal and Social Factors Influencing Age at First Sexual Intercourse
When always isn't enough
Condoms are most effective when they are applied before intercourse. This study assessed the prevalence of 'condom cheats'--instances of condom use in which the condom is put on after initial penetration. As part of a prospective study of safer sexual behaviour, 103 heterosexual tertiary students completed a condom use diary over a period of up to 6 months. Of the 464 condoms used by study participants, 13% were put on after initial penetration. …
Use of alternative therapies by people living with HIV/Aids in Australia
Few studies of use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) among people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA) have been conducted since combination antiretroviral (ARV) drug therapy became widespread. In the context of changing ARV treatment options, it is important to consider the prevalence and correlates of use of CAM. In this study, a sample of 924 Australian PLWHA completed a self-administered survey that included questions on use of CAM. Hal…
Sex in Australia
Delayed application of condoms, withdrawal and negotiation of safer sex among heterosexual young adults
The aim of this study was to examine delayed application of condoms and withdrawal among heterosexual young adults. Seven focus group discussions were conducted with heterosexual men and women aged 18-25 in Melbourne, Australia. The data revealed that delayed application of condoms and withdrawal are widespread. Delayed application of condoms can be divided into two categories--condom use 'after limited unprotected penetration' and condom use 'fo…
Smoking and erectile dysfunction
Erectile dysfunction is a significant health concern affecting around one in 10 Australian men aged 16-59 years. Current smoking is significantly associated with erectile dysfunction in Australian males. This association was strengthened as the number of cigarettes smoked increased. Health promotion programmes could use the link between smoking and erectile dysfunction to help reduce smoking levels among men
Sexual practices at last heterosexual encounter and occurrence of orgasm in a national survey
In order to examine factors associated with orgasm in heterosexual encounters, we analyzed data from the Australian Study of Health and Relationships, a national telephone survey of sexual behavior and attitudes and sexual health knowledge carried out in 2001-2002 with a representative sample of 19,307 Australians aged 16 to 59. Respondents were asked whether at their last sexual encounter they gave or received manual stimulation and oral sex, ha…
Mister In-between
The study of young men's health-related behaviour offers an opportunity to examine the links between masculine identity and social behaviour. This article presents a case study of a 19-year-old man living in London, who describes himself as different to his peers on several important dimensions, including his engagement in health-related behaviours. The case study demonstrates the importance of health-related social behaviours such as drinking, d…
Alcohol consumption and masculine identity among young men
Concern about excessive alcohol consumption among young men demands an understanding of why some young men drink excessively while others do not. The aim of this study was to identify how young men's patterns of alcohol consumption are related to their beliefs about masculinity, and the importance of drinking to their masculine identities. Thirty-one individual interviews and five group discussions were conducted with an ethnically- and socioecon…
Annual IPA Conference Brighton, 5–6 July, 2007
Associations Between Religiosity and Sexuality in a Representative Sample of Australian Adults
The Impact of Sexual Coercion on Psychological, Physical, and Sexual Well-Being in a Representative Sample of Australian Women
Young men's ambivalence toward alcohol
Demographic and Psychosocial Features of Participants in Bondage and Discipline, “Sadomasochism” or Dominance and Submission (BDSM)
That's not masculine
In recent years increasing attention has been given to how different masculinities are expressed in young men's health behaviour. To examine whether men can use competence in key health-related masculine domains to compensate for other non-masculine behaviour, group discussions were conducted with men aged 18-21 living in London, England. The analysis revealed the ways in which competence in traditionally masculine health-related domains produces…
I'm Not a Very Manly Man
During the last fifteen to twenty years interest has been growing in the study of masculinities. This article presents a discussion of material from in-depth interviews with two men who took part in a larger study of masculinity and health-related behavior. These two young men spontaneously referred to themselves during in-depth interviews as not being a 'manly man' or a 'man's man.' Consideration of what these men said provides interesting insig…
Developing an Interpretative Phenomenological Approach to Focus Group Data
Interpretative phenomenological analysis (IPA) is an approach to qualitative research that is now well-established in British psychology. This approach is concerned with understanding people's experiences of the world and of themselves. The aims of IPA studies have been met most frequently through the use of one-on-one interviews. Relatively few studies have used focus group discussions as the basis for IPA studies, but focus groups may provide r…
‘That's OK. He's a guy’
Although drinking and drunkenness have traditionally been considered masculine behaviours, young women's alcohol consumption has increased in recent years. This mixed methods study was conducted to examine the extent to which young people endorse gender double-standards for alcohol use--i.e., less acceptance of drinking and drunkenness in women than men--and how these influence men's and women's alcohol consumption. A sample of 731 English univer…
“Man points”
OBJECTIVE: Health behaviors are important resources for the development and display of masculine identity. The aim of this mixed-method study was to examine how "masculine capital" is accrued via traditionally masculine behaviors and used to permit nonmasculine behavior. METHODS: An online survey assessing personal importance of gender identity, gender role stereotypes, and beliefs about the gender of various health behaviors was completed by 731…
Man up
This study adopted a discursive approach to explore how not drinking alcohol (non-drinking) is construed in relation to masculine identity among 12 undergraduate interviewees. Three prominent discourses were revealed. First, non-drinking was constructed as something strange requiring explanation. Second, contradictory discourses constructed non-drinking as, simultaneously, unsociable yet reflective of greater sociability. Third, non-drinking was …
Experiences of Infertility in British and Pakistani Women
The psychosocial impact of infertility is affected by cultural factors. In this cross-cultural qualitative study we explored the experience of infertility among six women living in Pakistan and eight living in the UK. Although infertile women in the UK and Pakistan had many shared experiences related to their own desires for motherhood and the hopes of others, they also faced unique psychosocial challenges shaped by cultural context. Based on our…
Not just bi the bi
In the literature about bisexuality few studies consider bisexual people’s beliefs about bisexuality and none examine essentialist beliefs about bisexuality. In the present study 244 participants (bisexual n = 58, lesbian/gay n = 54 and heterosexual n = 132) from the UK were asked via online questionnaire about their attitudes towards bisexuality, homosexuality and heterosexuality, and how stable they perceived bisexuality, homosexuality and hete…
Psychology (53 works) · Medicine (32 works) · Sociology (32 works) · Social Psychology (24 works) · Developmental psychology (21 works) · Psychiatry (17 works) · Sexuality, Behavior, and Technology (17 works) · Demography (15 works) · Gender Studies (15 works) · Qualitative research (15 works)