This community-engaged research project uses community needs assessment and intervention research to understand interrelated community factors that impact the health and well-being of LGBTQ+ individuals in Northern Utah. Health disparities experienced by lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ+) populations are well-studied and include higher rates of violence victimization, substance use disorders, poor mental health outcomes, and suicide risk compared to heterosexual and cisgender counterparts.1-7 The minority stress model identifies the relationship between chronic exposure to stigma-related social stress and poor outcomes on health and well-being among LGBTQ+ populations.8-9 Barriers to accessing health care services contribute to health disparities, an issue that can be compounded in rural areas where access to services may be difficult.10 Access to health care services, social supports, and connectedness to community are community-level protective factors that contribute to the health and well-being of LGBTQ+ individuals.11-14
This multi-year research project applies the Framework for Collaborative Community Action on Health developed by the Institute of Medicine to guide community-engaged approaches to community needs assessment and intervention research. Within this framework, community partners are involved throughout the research process on design, implementation, reporting, and evaluation to ensure that research is relevant and informative and to build capacity for community-led intervention efforts. This research project consists of two research phases: the Box Elder County Health & Social Support Services Assessment and Bear River Region LGBTQ+ Community Research Initiative. Across all phases, the project provides community-engaged learning opportunities for USU Social Work students in one graduate research methods class (Spring 2023) and three graduate community and organizational practice classes (Spring 2023, Spring 2024, Spring 2025).
For more information about this project, please contact the project lead Dr. Maureen Boyle at maureen.boyle@usu.edu
Box Elder County Health & Social Support Services Assessment
The Box Elder County Health & Social Support Services Assessment addresses a community-identified need to assess health and social support services available to LGBTQ+ youth and families in rural Box Elder County, Utah. This study uses a sequential research design with a mixed methods needs assessment survey followed by a qualitative interview study to develop depth of understanding about gaps in services. Data collection for the survey was conducted in Spring 2023, and the interview study is ongoing. Survey findings demonstrate a need for targeted support mechanisms for LGBTQ+ youth and families in Box Elder County and for engaging local stakeholders to ensure that research is relevant and informative to intervention efforts. Funding for this research is provided by the USU College of Arts & Sciences Dean’s Office, USU Mountain West Center for Regional Studies, USU Center for Intersectional Gender Studies & Research, and USU Department of Social Work.
Outputs
Anticipated outputs of the Box Elder County assessment study:
- Survey research brief (April 2024)
- Community forum event to share preliminary findings and community feedback (Event held in Brigham City, Utah on April 11, 2024, and co-sponsored by USU Transforming Communities Institute, USU Center for Intersectional Gender Studies & Research, and USU Social Work)
- Peer-reviewed research presentation at a professional conference (Peer-reviewed poster presented at the 2024 Conference on Community-Engaged Scholarship and Teaching, Moab, Utah, February 8, 2024)
- Research article in a peer-reviewed journal (anticipated August 2025)
Bear River Region LGBTQ+ Community Research Initiative
The Bear River Region LGBTQ+ Community Research Initiative is an intervention research initiative that centers university-community research partnerships and aims to understand coalition-building and community action planning processes that address LGBTQ+ health disparities at the community level. Together with the Logan Pride Foundation, the Initiative provides facilitation for the Bear River Region LGBTQ+ Community Coalition, a regional community coalition with a mission to improve health equity and holistic well-being for the LGBTQ+ community in Northern Utah. Data collection is expected to begin in February 2025 for a survey to understand attitudes and beliefs of local community members toward solutions that can support the health and well-being of LGBTQ+ individuals in the BRR. Findings from the survey research will help inform a public planning workshop expected in March 2025 to plan for tailored, evidence-based interventions. In tandem with the workshop, collaborative autoethnography research will be conducted to reflexively analyze coalition-building and community action planning processes. Funding for this research is provided by the USU College of Arts & Sciences Dean’s Office and USU Department of Social Work.
Outputs
Anticipated outputs of the BRR LGBTQ+ Community Research Initiative:
- Facilitation for monthly community coalition meetings (ongoing)
- Survey research brief (anticipated March 2025)
- Public planning workshop (anticipated March 2025)
- Three-year community action plan report (anticipated June 2025)
- Peer-reviewed research presentations at two professional conferences (Peer-reviewed poster presented at the 70th Annual Program Meeting of the Council on Social Work Education (CSWE), Kansas City, Missouri, October 26, 2024; anticipated presentation in October-January 2025)
- Research article in a peer-reviewed journal (anticipated December 2025)
Refrences
1Flores, A.R., Wilson, B.D., Langton, L.L., & Meyer, I.H. (2023). Violent victimization at the intersections of sexual orientation, gender identity, and race: National Crime Victimization Survey, 2017-2019. PLoS ONE, 18(2). https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0281641.
2Haas, E.P., et al. (2010). Suicide and suicide risk in lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender populations: Review and recommendations. Journal of Homosexuality, 58(1), 10-51. https://doi.org/10.1080/00918369.2011.534038.
3Johns, M.M., Lowry, R.L., Haderxhanaj, L.T., Rasberry, C.N., Robin, L., Scales, L.M., Stone, D., & Suarez, N.A. (2020). Trends in violence victimization and suicide risk by sexual identity among high school students: Youth Risk Behavior Survey, United States, 2015-2019. Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report Supplements, 69(1), 19-27. https://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/volumes/69/su/su6901a3.htm?ref=tumbleweird.org#limitations.
4Krueger, E.A., Fish, J.N., & Upchurch, D.M. (2020). Sexual orientation disparities in substance use: Investigating social stress mechanisms in a national sample. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 58(1), 59-68. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.amepre.2019.08.034.
5Parent, M.C., Arriaga, A.S., Gobble, T., & Wille, L. (2019). Stress and substance use among sexual and gender minority individuals across the lifespan. Neurobiology of Stress, 10. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ynstr.2018.100146.
6Raifman, J., Carlton, B.M., Arrington-Sanders, R., Chan, P.A., Rusley, J., Mayer, K.H., Stein, M.D., Austin, S.B., & McConnel, M. (2020). Sexual orientation and suicide attempt disparities among US adolescents: 2009-2017. Pediatrics, 145(4). https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7049939/.
7 Russell, S.T. & Fish, J.N. (2016). Mental health in lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) youth. Annual Review of Clinical Psychology, 12, 465-487. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4887282/.
8Hendricks, M.L. & Testa, R.J. (2012). A conceptual framework for clinical work with transgender and gender nonconforming clients: An adaptation of the minority stress model. Professional Psychology: Research and Practice, 43(4), 460. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0029597.
9Meyer, I.H. (2003). Prejudice, social stress, and mental health in lesbian, gay, and bisexual populations: Conceptual issues and research evidence. Psychological Bulletin, 129(5), 674-697. https://doi.org/10.1037/0033-2909.129.5.674.
10Butkus, B.A., Rapp, K., Cooney, T.G., & Engel, L.S. (2020). Envisioning a better U.S. health care system for all: Reducing barriers to care and addressing social determinants of health. Annals of Internal Medicine, 172(2). https://www.acpjournals.org/doi/full/10.7326/M19-2410#abstract.
11Frost, D.M. & Meyer, I.H. (2012). Measuring community connectedness among diverse sexual minority populations. The Journal of Sex Research, 1, 36-49. https://doi.org/10.1080/00224499.2011.565427.
12Gower, A.L., Saewyc, E.M., Corliss, H.L., Kne, L., Erickson, D.J., & Eisenberg, M.E. (2019). The LGBTQ Supportive Environments Inventory: Methods for quantifying supportive environments for LGBTQ youths. Journal of Gay & Lesbian Social Services, 3, 314-331. https://doi.org/10.1080/10538720.2019.1616023
13National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities. (2024). Sexual & gender minorities health disparities research framework. National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities, Sexual & Gender Minority Research Office. https://dpcpsi.nih.gov/sites/default/files/NIH-SGM-Health-Disparities-Research-Framework-FINAL_508c.pdf.
14Roberts, L.M. & Christens, B.D. (2021). Pathways to well-being among LGBT adults: Sociopolitical involvement, family support, outness, and community connectedness with race/ethnicity as a moderator. American Journal of Community Psychology, 67, 405-418. 10.1002/ajcp.12482