26:T43e,

Prior research has explored the consequences of the sudden transition to remote work during the pandemic. Less is known, however, about how the mental distress of individuals who changed work locations during the pandemic differed from that of those who consistently worked from home or consistently worked on-site, nor to what extent these differences varied across worker characteristics, such as gender and caregiving obligations. This study addresses these gaps using data from the Pew Research Center’s American Trends Panel survey and a Stress Process Model framework. Results show that those who transitioned into working from home during the pandemic reported greater mental distress than those who consistently worked from home or on-site. This association was larger among women with school-aged children. These findings suggest that structural changes in work location during the pandemic were more strongly related to mental distress. Moreover, the finding that this distress was unevenly distributed by gender and caregiving obligations has important implications.

27:T441,

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) people disproportionately report high exposure to adverse childhood experiences (ACEs). In this study, we examine the ways that LGBTQ people with high ACEs also describe experiencing adverse communication with family systems about mental health, childhood sexual abuse (CSA), and their gender identity. From interviews with a racially diverse sample of 82 LGBTQ people in South Texas, we analyze how this adverse communication—including gaslighting, silence, denial and ignoring—is attentive to courtesy stigma dynamics. This adverse communication impacts transgender people, cisgender LGBTQ people, and Black or Latinx LGBTQ people differently; for example, Black and Latinx LGBTQ people discussed adverse communication about mental health and therapy within their families that prioritized the respectability of the family. These findings provide insight into family dynamics and communication practices in the lives of LGBTQ people, particularly at the intersections of multiple marginalized identities.

28:T53e,

The growing field of mattering has established that a sense that we matter is crucial to well-being and that it is informed by interactions with close others. However, few studies investigate how mattering may be shaped by our work relationships. Since many adults spend much of their time performing paid work, addressing this research gap may provide insights for enhancing employee well-being. This study uses data from the 2021 Baylor Religion Survey, collected during the early months of 2021, and a sample of employed U.S. adults (n = 564) to test how a worker’s perceived respect from their employer and their closeness to coworkers relate to their general sense of mattering, as well as whether mattering may act as a mediator between work relationships and psychological distress (assessed as symptoms of depression and anxiety). Results indicate that feeling highly respected by one’s employer and one’s perceived closeness to coworkers are positively linked with mattering among workers. Additional analyses also imply that mattering mediates a portion of the relationship between workplace relations and psychological distress. In total, this study suggests that further research into work relationships and mattering is warranted, especially since both factors seem tied to workers’ mental health.

29:T48b,

Might “impostor syndrome” be more than the private trouble it is often described to be? Instead, might it be deeply rooted in sociological processes? I explore this possibility drawing on my personal experience and Pearlin’s insistence that much that distresses us in our personal lives originates in social structures. I use Bourdieu’s theory to conceptualize the processes that may instill the “syndrome,” and once in place, surreptitiously recreate inequality. I test this conceptualization, using new sociologically relevant mea