Depuis plus d'une dizaine d'années, les différences de consommation d'alcool et de harcèlement entre les individus appartenant aux minorités sexuelles et ceux appartenant aux hétérosexuels sont examinées de plus près (Hughes, McCabe, Wilsnack, West et Boyd, 2010; Katz-Wise et Hyde, 2012; Marshal, Friedman, Stall et Thompson, 2009 ; Mays et Cochran, 2001; McCabe, Hughes, Bostwick, West et Boyd, 2009). Certaines observations supposent que ceux faisant partie des minorités sexuelles consomment plus d’alcool et sont plus harcelées que ceux faisant partie des hétérosexuels (Kerr, Ding et Chaya, 2014; Katz-Wise et Hyde, 2012; Ueno, 2010; Woodford, Krentzman et Gattis, 2012). La minority stress theory peut permettre d'expliquer ces différences (Meyer, 2003). En effet, le fait de vivre dans une société qui normalise les comportements sexuels ainsi que l’hétérosexualité, est un facteur de risque pour les comportements à risque chez les individus faisant partie des minorités sexuelles (Meyer, 2003). Comprendre le rôle médiateur du harcèlement dans l’association entre faire partie des minorités sexuelles et la consommation d’alcool est motivé par l’effet potentiellement médiateur du harcèlement sur les individus faisant partie des minorités sexuelles et sur l’augmentation de la consommation d’alcool (Meyer, 2003; Woodford, Krentzman et Gattis, 2012). Méthodologie L’étude a été conduite auprès de 8 737 participants, selon une méthode d’échantillonnage stratifiée. Il s'agit d'une enquête téléphonique concernant les comportements reliés à la santé. Les participants étaient questionnés sur leur consommation d’alcool, sur leur identité sexuelle, sur leurs comportements sexuels et sur le harcèlement vécu. Des corrélations bivariées et des régressions logistiques binaires ont été réalisées pour répondre aux objectifs de l’étude et pour examiner s’il y a une médiation entre les variables. Résultats Les analyses démontrent que certaines identités sexuelles et certains comportements sexuels sont significativement différents de ceux appartenant aux hétérosexuels ou de ceux ayant des comportements sexuels avec l’autre sexe seulement, pour la consommation d’alcool et pour le harcèlement. Par contre, avoir vécu du harcèlement n’est pas significativement associé à la consommation d’alcool, lorsque contrôler avec l’identité sexuelle ou les comportements sexuels. Cette association est restée non-significative donc, une médiation ne peut être établie. Discussion Généralement, quelques différences et quelques associations peuvent être observées entre les individus appartenant aux minorités sexuelles ou aux hétérosexuels pour la consommation d’alcool et le harcèlement, mais ces différences varient selon l’identité sexuelle, les comportements sexuels et le genre. Le harcèlement, par contre, n’est pas associé avec la probabilité de consommer de l’alcool et, donc, ne peut pas avoir le rôle de médiateur.

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) individuals belong to one of the most discriminated groups in Canada and abroad. Using minority stress theory, researchers have found that such a climate of homophobia and transphobia has been associated with negative mental health outcomes among LGBTQ individuals. However, despite the presence of campaigns such as the “It Gets Better Project”, few academics have explored whether it does “get better” for LGBTQ people who have experienced anti-LGBTQ prejudice in their youth; and further, few academics have explored whether such individuals who have experienced prejudice can flourish in terms of their positive mental health. Positive mental health explores how individuals can be resilient and thrive within society; it looks at positive feelings people have about themselves, others and society. However, it does not mean an absence of negative mental health outcomes, in that individuals with depression, for example, can also flourish in respect to their positive mental health. The purpose of the current thesis is to extend minority stress theory in order to consider the long-term relationship between childhood bullying and positive mental health among LGBTQ adults. Using a hierarchical ordinary least squares regression model and a sample of LGBTQ education professionals, the current study found that there was a negative long-term relationship between childhood bullying and positive mental health among LGBTQ individuals. Further, disclosing one’s LGBTQ identity, and measures of LGBTQ-inclusion and support were all associated with flourishing levels of positive mental health, although they did not fully mitigate the effects of childhood bullying. The implications of the results were discussed in relation to future practices to reduce homophobia and transphobia within society, and in turn, reduce minority stress and maintain a flourishing state of positive mental health among all LGBTQ members. / October 2016

Thesis advisor: Ruth McRoy / Thesis advisor: Linnie Green Wright / Autism spectrum disorder (ASD) prevalence rates have risen dramatically over the past decade and boys are five times more likely to be diagnosed than girls. Prior research on children with ASD includes samples that are overwhelmingly male, but does indicate that girls with high-functioning ASD may have distinct needs and profiles. This study begins to address this gap in the research through a qualitative study of eleven families with an adolescent daughter with high-functioning autism spectrum disorder. The family is the primary unit of analysis and the study focuses on the following: (a) families' experience with the diagnostic process (b) families' management of their daughter's adjustment to adolescence, and(c) the impact of the ASD on family well-being. Family stress theory was the conceptual framework used to guide the study. Using grounded theory with a supplemental quantitative data strand, the study involved forty in-depth semi-structured interviews. Parents completed the Stress Index for Parents of Adolescents (SIPA) and a demographic questionnaire. Findings indicate that parenting a daughter with ASD could be categorized as a chronic stressor. The majority of parents endorsed clinically significant levels of stress on the SIPA. The mean age of ASD diagnosis was 8.7 years, well above the most recent (2014) Centers for Disease Control findings (6.3 years). Delayed and misdiagnosis for girls with ASD resulted in significant stress for families and reduced access to appropriate intervention. A shift in perception of the ASD from an acute to a chronic stressor allowed families to move toward acceptance and adaptation. The study findings support the need for a family centered model of assessment and intervention. Social workers in schools and in early intervention programs can play a critical role in providing education and support for families. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2014. / Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Social Work. / Discipline: Social Work.

Magister Artium (Psychology) - MA(Psych) / African foreign nationals face many challenges when attempting integration into South African society. Perceived discrimination is one of the major challenges faced by immigrant populations. African international students form a large contingent of the international student population in tertiary education in South Africa. However, no comprehensive profile exists. The present study aimed to establish a comprehensive demographic profile on the African international student population in Community and Health Sciences (CHS) at the University of the Western Cape (UWC), as well as to establish the relationship between demographic variables, perceived discrimination, and perceived stress. The sampling frame comprised of a list of all international students from the African continent who were registered in the CHS faculty. A survey design was adopted and a response rate of 21% was achieved resulting in the final sample of 68.

In recent years, the opioid epidemic in the United States has garnered attention on a federal and local level due to the increasing number of fatal overdoses. This study aimed to explore the experiences of parents who have an adult child who has passed away from an opioid overdose. This study used the Double ABC-X model of family stress theory. Bonadaptation versus maladaptation of each parent was discussed across a multitude dimensions. Qualitative semi-structured interviews were conducted with six parents living in the state of Maryland who each had an adult child, age 18+, die from an opioid overdose 2 or more years prior to the study. Data was analyzed using thematic analysis. Themes that emerged were as follows: the grieving process, support vs. stigma, experiences with state and local services, parental guilt, shame, and unanswered questions, coping mechanisms, and post-mortem life changes. While overall adaptation levels varied among participants, all participants reported positive and negative outcomes related to their experience of grief and loss. Implications for clinical practice and intervention are discussed. Researchers also make recommendations for future research. / Master of Science / This study aimed to explore the experiences of parents who have had an adult child pass away from an opioid overdose. The study utilized Family Stress theory, a theory which focuses on how families respond and adapt after a crisis occurs, for this research. The following themes emerged from interviews with parents: the grieving process itself, support vs. stigma, experiences with state and local services, parental guilt, shame, and unanswered questions, coping mechanisms, and post-mortem life changes. While adaptation varied among participants, participants reported both positive and negative outcomes related to their experiences of grief and loss.

Thesis advisor: Eric Dearing / Emerging research in developmental psychology and neuroscience suggests that childhood poverty is associated with high levels of exposure to multiple contextual risks, which cumulatively lead to persistent elevated stress levels that have a direct, as well an indirect (e.g., through parental processes), impact on child cognitive, academic, and socioemotional functioning (Evans & Kim, 2013). Such research has begun to change the way that scholars and practitioners envision the context of poverty, the persistence of the income-achievement gap, and the types of interventions that may be most effective in addressing disparities in children’s long-term educational success. However, research on the relations between poverty-associated stress and child outcomes is still in its infancy and many questions remain. In particular, it is unclear whether changing family economic circumstances matter, a question of concern for developmental science and public policy. Moreover, there is little work on moderators of relations between income, stress, and child outcomes, which could help identify factors that buffer children from the harm of stressful home environments. With longitudinal data from the Panel Study of Income Dynamics’ Child Development Supplement, the present study used fixed effects models to examine within-child associations between changes in family income, cumulative risk exposure (as measured by an index that includes a range of poverty-related stressors, such as economic strain, neighborhood crime, and physical and psychological home environments), and children’s cognitive, academic and socioemotional functioning. In addition, moderators of these associations were investigated in order to identify potential protective mechanisms and crucial levers for interventions and policy development. On the whole, findings were consistent with the cumulative stress model. On average, the estimated direct effects of changes in family income (i.e., prior to examining mediation or moderators) were not significant for changes in child outcomes. Yet, changes in income were, for the sample as a whole, indirectly related via changes in cumulative risk exposure: increases in income predicted decreases in cumulative risk exposure which, in turn, predicted improvements in achievement and declines in externalizing behavior. Additionally, these relations were moderated by child age, initial level of family income, and initial level of cumulative risk. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2017. / Submitted to: Boston College. Lynch School of Education. / Discipline: Counseling, Developmental and Educational Psychology.

Sexual minority individuals suffer stigmatization which often predicts negative mental health outcomes and low self-esteem. However, specific dimensions of identity have been shown to buffer against negative outcomes in racial minorities and other stigmatized groups. Yet, limited research has examined identity as a buffer for sexual minorities. This thesis aimed to explore the moderating role of identity characteristics between sexual stigma and mental health outcomes. Findings in a sample of 209 gays, lesbians, and bisexuals suggested that public stigma, centrality, and private regard predict psychological distress. Private regard also emerged as a predictor of self-esteem. Additionally, centrality and public stigma interacted such that those who reported higher centrality of sexual minority identity did not report decrements to self-esteem in the face of public stigma to the extent as those who reported lower centrality. These findings suggest centrality and private regard are key factors in the psychological well-being of sexual minorities.

This study used mixed methods to examine the impact of service-members‟ knowledge and acknowledgement of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) on relationship satisfaction of both the service-members and their spouses. Family stress theory was used to conceptualize the relationship between the occurrence of PTSD and relationship satisfaction. Forty individuals (i.e., 20 couples) completed questionnaires containing self-report measures of knowledge of PTSD, experience of PTSD symptoms, severity of PTSD symptoms, and relationship satisfaction. Participants also completed semi-structured interviews concerning PTSD symptoms, impact of PTSD symptoms on their relationship, and attitudes observed about PTSD. No significant links were found between knowledge, acknowledgement, and relationship satisfaction. Qualitative analysis of semi-structured interviews found that the couples‟ experiences of PTSD symptoms and the impact of PTSD on the couple relationships were consistent with the existing literature. Common attitudes regarding PTSD were reported by the couples, indicating a persistent negative attitude of PTSD.

<p>This quantitative study sought to expand upon research surrounding the influence pornography use has on relationship and sexual satisfaction for gays and lesbians. Previous literature has primarily focused on the couple outcomes associated with pornography use for heterosexual romantic relationships. This research was conducted and conceptualized through the lens of queer and minority stress theory. It was hypothesized that amount of shared pornography use would be positively associated with relationship and sexual satisfaction for same-sex couples. Additionally, it was hypothesized that the relationship between amount of shared pornography use and relationship as well as sexual satisfaction for same-sex couples will be more strongly positively associated for a high level of acceptance of pornography use. Lastly, it was hypothesized that the relationship between the amount of shared pornography use and level of relationship as well as sexual satisfaction will be more strongly positively associated for women than men. Five of the six hypotheses were not statistically significant. The relationship between amount of shared pornography use and level of sexual satisfaction was strongly positively associated for higher levels of acceptance of pornography use. In addition, higher levels of acceptance of pornography use were related to higher levels of relationship satisfaction. Regarding control variables, relationship status was found to be significantly associated with relationship satisfaction. Participants who reported being either engaged or married indicated higher satisfaction with the current state of their romantic relationship than participants who were dating or cohabitating. Strengths and limitations, clinical implications, and future directions for research are explored.<br></p>

This paper analyzes the stress and coping mechanisms of lesbian homeless adolescents to identify potential buffers against homelessness. The Minority Stress Model and identity theories are used as a framework to interpret the findings in the literature. Based on the findings in the literature, it is possible to conclude that lesbian homeless youth are more susceptible to minority stress due to a lack of adaptive coping resources and social support. Increased levels of minority stress may lead to internalizing and externalizing symptoms that cause runaway and throwaway episodes in homeless youth. This paper proposes a new model to understand the internal and environmental factors that contribute to homelessness in lesbian adolescents.