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School-Based Groups to Support Multiethnic Sexual Minority Youth Resiliency: Preliminary Effectiveness

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Abstract

Sexual minority youth (SMY) face multiple challenges as a result of their marginalized sexual and/or gender identities, yet evidence informed programs for the population are absent from the literature. This study describes the pilot research efforts of affirmative supportive safe and empowering talk (ASSET), the first LGBTQ affirmative school-based group counseling intervention created specifically to promote resiliency. In a pilot uncontrolled trial, multiethnic SMY (n = 263) completed measures of self-esteem, social connectedness, and proactive coping at baseline and following completion of the ASSET intervention. Post-intervention analysis using general linear modeling suggests that self-esteem and proactive coping increased significantly across all subgroups, while social connectedness remained constant. ASSET holds promise to enhance the resiliency of SMY in school-based practice settings. Further research should address the effect of ASSET participation on measures of risk and resiliency, and compare outcomes across multiple group interventions.

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Acknowledgments

We are grateful to the amazing youth participants and staff of The Alliance for GLBTQ Youth, as well as to the Children’s Trust of Miami Dade County for funding the youth programs.

Funding Source

Research efforts were partially supported by a Social Sciences and Research Council (SSHRC) Institutional Grant (SIG) from the University of Toronto (Fund Number 490723).

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  1. Factor-Inwentash Faculty of Social Work, University of Toronto, 246 Bloor Street West, Toronto, ON, M5S 1A1, Canada

    Shelley L. Craig & Lauren B. McInroy

  2. School of Social Work, Barry University, 11300 NE 2nd Avenue, Miami Shores, FL, 33161-6695, USA

    Ashley Austin

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Correspondence to Shelley L. Craig.

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Craig, S.L., Austin, A. & McInroy, L.B. School-Based Groups to Support Multiethnic Sexual Minority Youth Resiliency: Preliminary Effectiveness. Child Adolesc Soc Work J 31, 87–106 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10560-013-0311-7

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