Covariates.
We included an array of covariates to eliminate alternative explanations for elevated mortality among heterosexuals harboring antigay prejudice. Specifically, we examined 3 types of individual-level covariates that have been strongly predictive of mortality risk in prior research: demographics, socioeconomic indicators, and current health.17–20 We examined relationships between these covariates and mortality in bivariate models; all covariates were statistically significantly associated with mortality and were therefore retained in the multivariate models.
Demographic controls included respondent’s racial/ethnic identification (White, Black, or other race), gender (male or female), age at interview, marital status (married, widowed, or divorced or separated), and nativity status (indicating whether the respondent was born outside the United States).
We included 2 socioeconomic measures—household income and individual educational attainment—because of the established inverse association between these variables and individual mortality risk.21 Given the skewed distribution of the income variable, we used the natural log of income in our models. The measure of educational attainment corresponded to the respondent’s number of years of formal education.
We included a measure of current health status, which was assessed by a single item: “Would you say your own health, in general, is excellent, good, fair or poor?” Previous research has demonstrated that self-rated health is a valid indicator of health distress as well as the presence of disease and differentiates heightened mortality risk.22 We dichotomized self-rated health into fair or poor health (coded 1) and good or excellent health (coded 0).
In addition to these covariates, we controlled for 2 covariates in specificity analyses. First, we included a measure of racial prejudice to determine whether the results were specific to antigay prejudice or were attributable to prejudice more generally. This was necessary given that both measures of prejudice (racial and antigay) were strongly correlated in the GSS sample (r = 0.31; P < .001). We took the measure of racial prejudice from the 5 items that were consistently available in the GSS. Four of these items asked respondents to indicate the reasons why Blacks have “worse jobs, income, and housing than White people.” Possible answers ranged from “discrimination” to “Blacks have less in-born ability to learn.” The fifth item asked respondents whether there should be laws against interracial marriage. Second, given that religious attitudes are associated with antigay prejudice,23 we also controlled for religiosity, which was operationalized as frequency of prayer (those who prayed several times a week or more were considered to pray frequently).
I get home everyday and sleep until 7pm lol also the coach learned my name already and that's a bad thing because he'll start noticing whenever im absent to practice :l
