Lisa M. Diamond
 | This article's lead section may be too short to adequately summarize the key points. (September 2014) |
Lisa M. Diamond | |
|---|---|
| Nationality | American |
| Education | PhD (1999, in Human Development) and MA (1996, in Human Development) Cornell University, BA (1993, in Psychology) University of Chicago |
| Occupation | University professor |
| Employer | University of Utah |
| Known for | Sexual fluidity |
Lisa M. Diamond is an American feminist and professor of developmental psychology and health psychology at University of Utah Pychology Department and Gender Studies.
Focus of her scientific interest are sexual orientation development, identity, bonding and attachment in relation to psychobiology and adolescent development. She is best known for her 2008 book on female sexual fluidity.[1]
In the book - awarded with 2009 Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Issues Distinguished Book Award - she explains her insight in the female sexuality, from her study of 100 non-heterosexual women she followed over a period of 10 years. She found even ‘bisexual’ does not truly express the versatile nature of many women she followed: sexual fluidity is a more present phenomenon than considered in former decades. Therefore, she calls ‘for an expanded understanding of same-sex sexuality’. Diamond continues her research, with considerable attention of the scientific community and funding from public funds.
Biography
Lisa Diamond's awarenes of feminism began in high school, where Betty Friedan came to gave a talk on feminism. At the University of Chicago she started to become politically active; she also took feminist theory courses. She also came out as a lesbian and started to examine psychological research on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) issues.
Diamond went on to do graduate work at Cornell University on the Human Development program; she received both her M.A. and PhD there. After receiving her PhD, Diamond took a joint appointment in Psychology and Gender Studies at the University of Utah.
Diamond is most famous for her groundbreaking research on female sexuality, namely, for articulating and exploring the phenomenon of sexual fluidity. In addition to noting the lack of research on female same-sex sexuality, Diamond also noticed the relative lack of research on adolescent females. She pursued both of these areas in her research in conducting a ten-year longitudinal study on female bisexuality. She found that women (her study included non-heterosexual women only) were somewhat fluid in their sexuality, that is, they are able to shift sexual orientation, but this shift is not a "choice" as typically portrayed.
Diamond calls herself a "feminist scientist" and she states that "there are a lot of scientists who just cling to the scientific method and believe they are totally objective and I think they are full of bunk".
Diamond wrote the book Sexual Fluidity (2008) to communicate her research to the general public; the book attracted substantial media attention.[2]
Career
Lisa M. Diamond was an Assistant Professor (1999 - 2005), Associate Professor (2005 - 2012) and Professor of Psychology and Gender Studies, University of Utah (2012 - ).
She is a fellow of Society for Personality and Social Psychology (starting Jan 2013) and of Division 44 (LGBT Psychology) of American Psychological Association (starting Jan 2011).
Diamond was awarded with Outstanding Achievement Award by APA Committee on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Concerns in 2011; with Distinguished Book Award by International Association of Relationship Research (IARR) in 2010; with Distinguished Book Award for "Sexual fluidity: Understanding women's love and desire" by American Psychological Association, Division 44 in 2009. She received a number of other honors during her scientific career.
Together with Deborah Tolman she received a $3,810,000 grant for her research on Adolescent Relationship Development, from National Institutes of Health.[3]
Publications
Among other work, she authored:
- Diamond, L. M. (2012). The desire disorder in research on sexual orientation in women: Contributions of dynamical systems theory. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 41, 73-83.
- Diamond, L. M., Hicks, A. M., & Otter-Henderson, K. D. (2011). Individual differences in vagal regulation moderate associations betweeen daily affect and daily couple interactions. Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 37, 731-744.
- Diamond, L. M. & Wallen, K. (2011). Sexual-minority women’s sexual motivation around the time of ovulation. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 40, 237-246.
- Diamond, L.M., Fagundes, C. P., & Cribbet, M. R. (2012). Individual differences in adolescent sympathetic and parasympathetic functioning moderate associations between family environment and psychosocial adjustment. Developmental Psychology.
- Diamond, L. M. (2008). Female bisexuality from adolescence to adulthood: Results from a 10-year longitudinal study. Developmental Psychology, 44, 5-14.
- Diamond, L. M., & Dickenson, J. (2012). The neuroimaging of love and desire: Review and future directions. Clinical Neuropsychiatry, 9, 39-46.
- Diamond, L. M., Hicks, A. M., and Otter-Henderson, K. D. (2008). Every time you go away: Changes in affect, behavior, and physiology associated with travel-related separations from romantic partners. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology,95, 385-403.
Sources
- ^ "Profile: Lisa Diamond", Psychology's Feminist Voices, retrieved Apr 11, 2015.
- ^ Interview with Lisa L. Diamond, Psychology's Feminist Voices Oral History Project, by Leet Granek, Aug 6, 2011, retrieved Apr 11, 2015.
- ^ CURRICULUM VITA LISA M. DIAMOND, Department of Psychology, University of Utah, retrieved Apr 11, 2015.