Research

Useful research, theses and dissertations on LGBT issues can be found below. This section is periodically updated with new material.

Gay Youth Report Higher Rates Of Drug And Alcohol Use - University Of Pittsburgh Researchers Report Findings In Journal Addiction
The odds of substance use for lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) youth are on average 190 percent higher than for heterosexual youth, according to a study by University of Pittsburgh researchers published in the current issue of Addiction.
What's more, for some sub-populations of LGB youth, the odds were substantially higher, including 340 percent for bisexual youth and 400 percent for lesbians, researchers found
Medical News Today

Managing Equality and Diversity in the Public Services: Moving Forward on Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Equality?
Fiona Colgan, Tessa Wright, Chris Creegan and Aidan McKearney
Comparative Organisation and Equality Research Centre
London Metropolitan University

Involved, Invisible, Ignored: The Experiences of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Parents and Their Children in Our Nation's K-12 Schools

NEW YORK, Feb. 28 – The first comprehensive report on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) families’ experiences in education, released today by GLSEN, the Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network, in partnership with the Family Equality Council and COLAGE, has found that LGBT parents are more likely to be involved in their children’s K-12 education than the general parent population. These parents are more involved in school activities and more likely to report consistent communication with school personnel. In addition, both LGBT parents and children of LGBT parents often report harassment because of their family structure.

Current estimates indicate there are more than seven million LGBT parents with school-age children in the United States. Involved, Invisible, Ignored: The Experiences of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender Parents and Their Children in Our Nation’s K-12 Schools examines and highlights the school experiences of LGBT-headed families using results from surveys of LGBT parents of children in K-12 schools and of secondary students who have LGBT parents.

Involved, Invisible, Ignored: Read the full report here (pdf)

IN PRAISE OF DIVERSITY: WHY SCHOOLS SHOULD SEEK GAY AND LESBIAN TEACHERS AND WHY ITS DIFFICULT
This article begins from imagining what it would be like to target recruitment for teachers at lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual (LGBT) people, and then examines in some detail two kinds of discrimination (or pathology) which makes life in the world of education problematic. I then turn to why, in spite of these difficulties, lesbian and gay teachers bring particular personal qualities to teaching, as well as inspiring necessary structural changes

David Nixon - Forum http://dx.doi.org/10.2304/forum.2006.48.3.275

TACKLING HATE CRIME  -  PAUL HARTNETT
Writer Paul Hartnett has worked as a Special Needs teacher in a number of schools and has been Head of two Learning Support departments in East London's Bethnal Green. He has also worked with Lancashire Constabulary on Hate Crime initiatives and has given talks to Police re issues relating to homophobia at Preston HQ.

Paul has also worked with School's Out on the subject of homophobic abuse, putting together this essay

THE SCHOOL REPORT, STONEWALL. The Experience of Young Gay People in Britian's Schools
by Ruth Hunt and Johan Jensen. Survey hosted and results collated by Schools Health Education Unit

The study In 2006, Stonewall asked young people from Great Britain who are lesbian, gay, bisexual (or think they might be) to complete a survey about their experiences at school. The survey received 1145 responses from young people at secondary school. The survey was conducted by the Schools Health Education Unit on behalf of Stonewall.
Just under half the respondents are girls (48 per cent). Fourteen per cent are from black and minority ethnic backgrounds and 12 per cent are disabled. Forty six per cent stated that they have a religious belief. Over half of these (29 per cent) are Christian.The majority of respondents (79 per cent) attend a state school, and 12 per cent attend private schools. One in ten respondents (110) attends a faith school. This report presents the results of the survey.

Download the full report here (pdf document)

Living Together - A Stonewall Report on British Attitudes to Lesbian and Gay People

In October 2006 Stonewall commissioned YouGov to survey a nationally representative sample of 2,009 adults. The survey canvassed opinion on:

• lesbian and gay people and their legal rights
• gay people as family and friends
• gay people in public life, including politics and
  the media
• awareness of anti-gay prejudice and discrimination
• causes of anti-gay discrimination
• responsibility for tackling prejudice against lesbian and gay people

The aim of the research was to understand the nature of feelings towards lesbian and gay people in Britain today. See the full report here

Sexual Orientation and Religion or Belief Discrimination in the Workplace - ACAS

This report describes the findings of a programme of research exploring the impacts of the Employment Equality (Sexual Orientation) Regulations 2003 and the Employment Equality (Religion or Belief) Regulations 2003.

Author - Ben Savage (Acas Research and Evaluation Section)

Sexual Orientation and Religion or Belief Discrimination in the Workplace - pdf (new window)

Homophobic attitudes of Year 11 pupils in relation to the Sex Education they receive
Helen Stamp, BA in Professional Education - May 2006
Institute of Education - The University of Stirling

This study was conducted in an English school. The Health Education teacher was interviewed and 217 year 11 children completed a questionnaire. The focuses of this dissertation were homophobic attitudes in pupils, and how the curriculum serves to inform children about the inequalities faced by LGB people. 6.9% of my sample said that they were not straight.

Large proportions of children were exposed to homophobic language by other pupils and more than three quarters admitted to using homophobic language that term. 70.4% said that teachers usually ignored homophobic language, and 20.4% said that they had heard a teacher make a homophobic comment. Generally, children were very unaware of LGB inequalities and poorly informed by their Health Education teacher who did not appear to pass her knowledge on. This teacher was unaware of the levels of homophobia in the school, and in particular the attitudes of staff. Though lesbian/bisexual herself she only allocated a proportion of 2 lessons to discussing homosexuality.

Interesting gender comparisons were drawn from the results. Boys appeared to be more aware of the inequalities faced by LGB people. Boys were also a lot more homophobic with 12.4% of boys strongly agreeing that they did not want to be friends with someone who is gay. 51.4% thought male homosexual relationships were wrong, they were more tolerant of lesbian relationships. Interestingly boys were less likely than girls to have an LGB role model. Boys reported hearing homophobic language a lot more than girls, which leads me to question why.

Homophobic Attitudes Year 11 - pdf (new window)

A systematic review of research on counselling and psychotherapy for lesbian, gay, bisexual & transgender people by Michael King, Joanna Semylen, Helen Killaspy, Irvin Nazareth, David Osborn.

'A well conducted review of the evidence concerning psychological therapy for LGBT Clients' – Pete Bower, Senior Fellow, National Primary Care Research and Development Centre

For the first time, this publication reviews existing research on counselling and psychotherapy for LGBT clients and draws from studies carried out over the last forty years, describing and evaluating the contribution of different research measures, and identifying future priorities for policy, practice and research.

This review will be of use to students of counselling and psychotherapy, researchers, counselling practitioners and service managers who want to focus on this client group.

Click Here to visit their website and download the review for Free.

The Silent Art:  Lesbians and Lesbian Art in UK Art & Design Education
An essay by Diane Walker
The Art of Silencng - word doc (new window)

Abstract - This essay examines the difficulties and problems which can be faced by both art students and artists who are lesbian in the United Kingdom today for those who have an interest in expressing or investigating their sexuality in their studies or practice.  It examines discourses that can act as obstacles to positive lesbian identity development, and suggests a lack of educational resources can leave gay students wishing to focus on this area of study vulnerable to homophobic bullying.  The absence of material and critical input on gay and lesbian artists in libraries and art curricula has come about in part as a consequence of 1990’s government legislation in the form of Section 28 which forbade the ‘promotion of homosexuality’ in education. Many staff have then had a reluctance to address issues around homo/sexuality, homophobic bullying and discrimination which lesbian and gay teachers are not immune from. Some of the potentially far-reaching psychological difficulties, which can result from these experiences, are also highlighted.  The essay asks whether Queer Theory also might oppress lesbians and their ability to voice and write of their own experiences as women.  The conclusion suggests the strategic importance of lesbian studies in reducing isolation and alienation for both lesbian art students and artists and that lesbian feminist ideas from 1960’s and 70’ America still have a place for students today.

Diane Walker is an independent research student with the Art & Design Faculty at De Montfort University, Leicester.  As a lesbian art student, she became interested in the lives and work of artists who are lesbian during graduate Fine Art studies in the 1990’s, when she researched the lives of artists Patricia Preece, Frances Hodgkins and Gwen John.  She is a painter who has always had an interest in art and for many years used creative writing and art making to work expressively with people with mental health difficulties.  She is particularly interested in how exclusion and oppression within education impacts on the psychological health and identity development of lesbian artists and art students and strategies that may be adopted to lessen the isolation and alienation they often feel. She has also authored ‘Out There?  Looking for Lesbians in British Art – Some Preliminary Observations (2007) In her research she hopes to analyse the development of lesbian artists in the United Kingdom through autobiographical accounts and by examining the impact of socio/political and educational changes since 1945.  She will also examine what appears to be a general exclusion of criticism and theory in art curricula which relates to lesbian art and artists and how this then impacts on lesbian students who wish to express or explore their sexuality in their art practice.  Although she would like to hear from any lesbian art students or artists, as an older research student she is particularly interested to hear from older artists.  She can be contacted on Dwalke01@dmu.ac.uk.

A Serious Business (April 2007)
An NUT survey of teacher's experience of sexism and harrassment in schools and colleges.
Analysed for the National Union of Teachers by Dr. S.R.St.J. Neill
INSTITUTE OF EDUCATION
A Serious Business - pdf (new window)

Introducing Sci:dentity: What’s The Science Of Sex And Gender? (FEB 2007)
Sci:dentity is an inter disciplinary arts project funded by the Wellcome Trust which engages young transsexual and transgendered people in a series of creative workshops exploring the science of sex and gender through creativity. The project is organised into 4 distinct phases: lead-in, creative arts workshops and exhibition, reflection and development, and an outreach programme.

The executive summary of the Sci:dentity phase 1 and 2 Evaluation Report and a PDF of the whole report.
scidentity executive summary - pdf (new window)
sciidenty evaluation - pdf (new window)

The National Bullying Survey 2006 - Results
The National Bullying Survey 2006 has revealed pupils in UK schools are suffering extreme misery at the hands of classroom bullies, and teachers across the UK say they want more training to deal with the problem. http://www.bullying.co.uk/nationalsurvey/thenationalbullyingsurvey_results.pdf

Social exclusion of young lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people (LGBT) in Europe (APRIL 2006) http://www.iglyo.com/content/activities/sexclusion.html

The Comparative Organisation and Equality Research Centre (COERC) has produced a report that focuses on the experiences of LGB people within sixteen 'good practice' employers including two schools following the introduction of the Employment Equality (Sexual Orientation) Regulations 2003. This study addresses the gap in knowledge that exists regarding the experiences of LGB people within UK workplaces. A full copy of the report can be accessed on
www.workinglives.org/docs/ESF_LGB_Report_5_June_2006.pdf

Different in more ways that one - providing guidance for teenagers on their way to identity, sexuality and respect a manual
http://www.diversity-in-europe.org/engl/einleitung/ix_einleitung.htm

Going Beyond Gay-Straight Alliances to Make Schools Safe for LGBT Students

NSPCC Bullying research

http://www.nspcc.org.uk/html/home/informationresources/bullyingcallstoChildLinegrow12percent.htm

http://www.nspcc.org.uk/inform/publications/downloads/WD_CasenotesSexualOrientation_gf37413.pdf

No Outsiders: Researching approaches to sexualities equality in primary schools
Download the flyer Here (new window)

Are you a primary teacher working in North East England, South West England or London?

Are you interested in challenging homophobia and developing approaches to lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender equality in your own school or classroom?

If so, the No Outsiders research project, starting in September 2006, may be just the opportunity you need to explore new possibilities with the support of a network of other teacher-researchers and an expert research team.

What’s in it for you?

• Supply cover for 12 half days’ release in 2006-7 to develop a
school-based project in consultation with your own research assistant
• One day’s sexualities equality training for your whole school plus the
use of a specialised resource pack for primary schools
• Funded attendance at national and local training and research events
• Links to other teacher-researchers around the country
• The opportunity to gain accreditation for your project via the
Teachers’ Learning Academy or a designated Masters Degree route

We are recruiting teachers to the project NOW!
For more information, email Renée DePalma: rhayes@mundo-r.com

Guidance on Dealing with Homophobic Bullying (Scottish Executive)

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2006/05/25091604/3

Lesbian and bisexual women's health: different from heterosexual women?

Sexual orientation per se does not directly have any influence on cancer or any other disease. But double discrimination based on gender and on sexual orientation can have a significant impact on the mental and physical wellbeing, preventing also some women
to seek assistance from health care providers.

Because their specificities are particularly unknown or ignored even by the women concerned, ILGA decided to issue the report in English "Lesbian and bisexual women's health: common concerns, local issues".

ILGA has collected material from LGBT organisations worldwide to share the information available locally, but rarely available internationally or even nationally, and to describe what is being done for the mental and physical wellbeing of lesbian and bisexual women.

Please read it, pass it around, and be inspired by the valuables initiatives that have been taken locally.

You can download the report, or the chapter you are interested in, from ILGA's website

If you prefer to obtain a hard copy you can order it by sending an email to patriciacurzi@ilga.org and make a donation to cover the postal costs: http://www.ilga.org/donate.asp

Developing Consensus Guidelines for Endocrinological Intervention in the Gender Identity Development Treatment of Adolescents

A paper entitled "Developing Consensus Guidelines for Endocrinological Intervention in the Gender Identity Development Treatment of Adolescents" was presented at the Symposium that the Harry Benjamin International Gender Dysphoria Association (HBIGDA) arranged in Bologna in April 2005. It described the formation of a multidisciplinary and multinational team of people with relevant experience to work on this issue. The team includes 8 members of HBIGDA. The team attended a symposium in London, England, in May 2005, that was organised by the Gender Identity Research and Education Society (GIRES), in conjuction with Mermaids, a group that supports such young people and their families.

The Nuffield Foundation, a major British medical charity, is the main funder of this work. GIRES has just submitted a report to the Foundation on the use of its grant and the results so far achieved. This report is on view at http://www.gires.org.uk, in the section entitled "Endocrine Treatment for Adolescents".

Time to Think

Comprehensive and vital information and statistics on young LGBT experience in 2005. The main areas this research concentrates on are: education, employment, housing and homelessness, violence and crime, alcohol and drugs, mental health, the Health Service and other supports, religion and culture, sexual
experiences and practices and current issues.

www.timetothinkresearch.co.uk (external link)

Teacher Support Info: Results on survey on workplace discrimination against LGBT teachers and lecturers

Download Press Release (Word version)
Download Case Studies (Word version)
Download Summary of Findings (Word version)

I am the hate that dare not speak its name...
A report on how effectively homophobic bullying and sexualities are addressed through secondary school formal policies

Download PDF version

How can young people be empowered to achieve justice when they experience homophobic crime?
A study of the nature and prevalence of homophobic crime committed against young lesbian, gay and bisexual people; and the measures that should be taken to tackle it. By Sally Averill LLB (Hons.) Barrister at Law.

Download Rich Text Format (rtf) version
Download PDF version

Homophobic Bullying in schools
Baseline Research - Northants

Download Rich Text Format (rtf) version
Download PDF version

Homophobia, Sexual Orientation and Schools: a Review and Implications for Action (Department for Education and Skills report )
Ian Warwick, Elaine Chase and Peter Aggleton of the Thomas Coram Research Unit, Institute of Education, University of London, with Sue Sanders of Schools Out

http://www.dfes.gov.uk/research/data/uploadfiles/RR594.pdf (external link to PDF document)

ReachOUT (Reading's Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Youth Project)
A website containing the research conducted a few years ago at ReachOUT (Reading's Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual Youth Project). It includes research on homophobia, housing, mental health, sexual health, etc. It also includes a summary of previous British research on these subjects.

www.andymullen.com