Counselors are legally and ethically beholden to provide affirming services to LGBTQQIA individuals. Recent laws place importance on counselor values over those of the client, impact safety of clients, and are in direct conflict with counseling ethical codes. This presentation will discuss recent laws, reactions, information, and resources

Disparities between the substance use rates of sexual or gender minority (SGM) youth and the rates of youth identifying as heterosexual (i.e., attracted to the opposite sex) and cisgender (i.e., gender identity corresponds to birth sex) have given rise to calls for 1) research to understand the specific risk and protective factors relating to substance use in SGM youth and 2) the development of corresponding intervention programming In three papers, this dissertation explores predictors for substance use among SGM youth and describes methods of targeted recruitment for a prevention intervention program tailored to SGM youth. In the first paper, comparing the contributing factors of substance use between sexual minority and heterosexual youth revealed that although many predictors were associated with use in both groups, sadness, suicidal ideation, difficulty concentrating, and forced sexual encounters were the most consistent and substantial contributors to the explanation of the difference in use rates between groups. In the second paper, risk and protective factors identified from social learning theory and minority stress theory, including perceived stress, problem-solving skills, self-esteem, self-efficacy, substance refusal skills, and peer use of substance, were generally associated with past-month substance use. Peer use of substance and substance refusal skills, in particular, were consistently and robustly associated with substance use in the sample of SGM youth, and their intersection provides insight into themes to address in future intervention development. Issues of disclosure and parental permission have made recruiting representative samples of SGM youth challenging, and the third paper offers insight into an inexpensive and time-efficient means of recruiting SGM youth for participation in such research. The specificity with which Facebook ads can be targeted to hard-to-reach populations makes it a preferred tool for researchers who seek to recruit SGM youth. Taken together, the three papers of this dissertation can serve as a guide for the development and execution of substance use prevention research that is tailored to the specific needs of SGM youth.

In the decades following the Stonewall riots in New York, there has been an increasingly public acceptance and normalization of LGBTQ identities. In some spaces, however, like public schools, LGBTQ identities continue to be contested and positioned as problematic, creating challenges for teachers who seek to create safe and affirming spaces within the classroom and the curriculum. This study using a narrative inquiry methodology, examines the stories of seven teachers of foreign languages at the high school level as they seek to make sense of their work as it relates to LGBTQ identities. This research study using narrative inquiry methods describes the experiences of seven teachers of foreign language as they make sense of and negotiate LGBTQ identities in the context of their work as foreign language teachers. The teachers describe how and when LGBTQ identities manifest in their instruction, their knowledge base of LGBTQ identities, ways in which they address sex and gender normative practices and behaviors in their classrooms, and supports and barriers available to them as they work to create curriculum and classroom spaces that are inclusive of LGBTQ identities. The findings of this study address the unique ways in which foreign language teaching presents a unique site of study of the target language and culture, including LGBTQ identities that are present within those target languages and cultures and within the classroom environment. Teachers described barriers, like language proficiency, administration, perceived surveillance, and lack of materials as challenges to enacting LGBTQ inclusive teaching practices. They cited supports like colleagues, professional learning communities and opportunities to engage with one another on challenging topics, as well as the nature of foreign language teaching as beneficial in their work.

Not all organizations in Wisconsin have transgender inclusive antidiscrimination policies. Leadership can use the results of this study to understand the effect of antidiscrimination policies on transgender employee job satisfaction. Quantitative data were collected from transgender employees aged 18 years or older who were employed but not self-employed in the state of Wisconsin. The relationship between the presence and absence of transgender inclusive antidiscrimination policy and job satisfaction was addressed by creating an anonymous online survey that contained demographic questions, the 1997 Job Descriptive Index (JDI) and the Job in General (JIG). Participants were notified of the study using fliers disseminated via community service groups and events, web magazines, social media, and personal contact. Participants (n = 38) self-selected to participate. Fourteen participants reported that their workplace had transgender inclusive antidiscrimination policy (37%), 12 participants (31.5%) reported no such policy, and 12 participants (31.5%) were not aware of the presence of this policy. Data were analyzed to determine correlations between job satisfaction facets within the JDI and the JIG and the presence of antidiscrimination policy that includes employees who are transgender. Results revealed that the job satisfaction of employees whose workplaces had transgender inclusive antidiscrimination policies was highest when correlated to promotion opportunities, r = .854 followed by the employee's viewpoints about their actual work, r = .832, people in the workplace, r = .820, with the lowest correlation for the supervision facet, r = .808. These findings contribute to positive social change by promoting antidiscrimination policies for transgender employees, increasing job satisfaction, and reducing turnover.

This study explored the perceptions and lived experiences of 10 transgender and gender nonconforming individuals who had interacted with the various sectors of the criminal justice system (i.e., law enforcement, the prison system, and the court system). The focus of this phenomenological qualitative study was providing insight into how sexual orientation and gender identity influenced transgender and gender nonconforming individuals' experiences and perceptions of the criminal justice system. Procedural justice theory guided this study by providing an understanding of how the behavior of the actors in the criminal justice system shaped the cooperation or resistance of transgender and gender nonconforming individuals. During semistructured telephonic interviews, participants were asked open-ended questions about their feelings, experiences, and perceptions regarding the various sectors of the criminal justice system (i.e., law enforcement, the prison system, and the court system). Using Moustakas's modified Stevick-Colaizzi-Keen approach, 3 themes were identified: (a) interactions with the criminal justice system, (b) thoughts about the criminal justice system, and (c) experiences with the criminal justice system. Findings indicated that the criminal justice system is not adequately prepared to accommodate or appropriately deal with transgender and gender nonconforming individuals and their unique needs. Implications for social change include the development of transgender-affirmative training programs and education for the criminal justice system and its personnel.

This collection of personal essays explores the use of symmetry as a metaphor of normality in contemporary American culture. These essays use formalistic exploration to enter into a conversation with the reader regarding the body, sexuality, gender, and mental illness. Each piece aims to dismantle and explode the metaphorical significations of symmetry through the use of interdisciplinary research combined with memoir.

This dissertation investigates the place-making practices of African American lesbians in Atlanta, Georgia, from 1990 to 2010. For this project, I ask how African American lesbians claim space to examine how race, sexuality, and class shape their place-making practices. The study is situated in the city before and following the 1996 Olympic Games, which was a period of rapid social, economic, and political growth. The primary question posed in this study is as follows: How do African American lesbians claim space in Atlanta? This dissertation posits three arguments. First, African American queer spaces are transitory, reflecting the shrinking boundaries of black neighborhoods within the contemporary city. Second, these spaces are informed and forged by the sexual, racial, and classed identities of participants. Third, through their place-making practices, struggles, and contestations over public space, African Americans have transformed sites in the city into black queer cartographies. In this empirically informed study, I employ ethnographic research methods, participant observation, archival research, oral histories, and in-depth interviews. By positioning black queer cartographies within the larger schematic of African American life, this work extends current understandings of queer space and builds on the growing subarea of black queer geographies (McBride 2007; Bailey 2011; Eaves 2017). Multiple sites that reflect the transitory and clandestine nature of locating queer space are mentioned in the work. Within Atlanta’s neighborhoods of Midtown, Southwest Atlanta, and Westside, African American lesbians curated spaces that validated their identities and provided a sense of belonging during the period studied.

Transgender and gender nonconforming (TGNC) people who pursue gender affirming medical interventions, such as hormone therapy and surgery, are required to supply their physicians with referral letters from mental health professionals (Coleman et al., 2012). The process by which TGNC people are required to obtain referral letters before accessing gender affirming care is often referred to as gatekeeping in the TGNC literature (Budge, 2015; Cavanaugh, Hopwood, & Lambert, 2016). Despite implications that the current gatekeeping system may have for the relationship between TGNC clients and their therapists, few studies have examined TGNC individuals’ experiences related to obtaining referral letters in therapy (Bess & Stabb, 2009; Elder, 2016). This study used semi-structured interviews and a grounded theory approach to qualitatively examine the experiences of 15 TGNC individuals who have obtained a referral letter for gender affirming medical intervention from their therapists. Thematic analysis revealed two core themes: (1) “blessings” that TGNC individuals experienced because of the referral letter requirement and (2) “bullsh*t” (or “BS”) participants endured due to this requirement. Implications for psychotherapy practice and training, as well as healthcare policy, are discussed.

No description available.

The purpose of this study was to determine and assess social work students’ attitudes towards working with Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender (LGBT) clients and identifying factors that would affect such attitudes. LGBT individuals face increased risk factors as opposed to their non-LGBT peers and are disproportionately over-represented in the foster care system. This study assessed California State University, San Bernardino Social Work student's attitudes towards working with LGBT clients through the use of self-administered questionnaires. The data acquired from such quantitative surveys was analyzed utilizing Statistical Package for the Social Science (SPSS) version 23. Results yielded that sexual orientation, religion, religiosity and political view rate were factors that significantly affected attitudes towards LGBT clients. It was also found that Title IV-E participants did not differ significantly compared to non Title IV-E participants in attitudes towards LGBT clients. Implications for social work education and practice include increased training, experience, competence and humility building opportunities when working with LGBT clients.