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Help with a survey, importance of social support 4 gay men

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Raina
 
Joined in 2009
August 9, 2009, 09:05

Hello,


We are asking gay men over the age of 18 to complete a questionnaire as a part of a study examining the importance of positive social support for gay men. It is intended that the results will assist in the provision of social support and interventions for gay men experiencing difficulties related to their sexuality.


The results will be used for a master of psychology thesis at the University of Western Sydney. In addition, some of the data will used to write a short report to assist the Twenty10 association improve its services for young gender questioning and sexually diverse people.


The questionnaire should take between 30 – 40 minutes to complete. The responses that you offer will be completely confidential and anonymous. Responses are automatically secured by Verisign through Secure Sockets Layer (SSL) encryption.


For information and to complete the questionnaire please go to https://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=wW2koHkhfjBWWhyk5p72gg_3d_3d


If you are interested in completing this questionnaire please do so by the 31st of August 2009.


This study has been approved by the University of Western Sydney Human Research Ethics Committee (protocol no: H6872).


If you have any concerns or queries about the project, including the questionnaire and results please contact the project supervisor Dr Jim Malcolm at [email protected] or the principle researcher Raina Jardin at [email protected].


We ask that you let other people know about this survey to help us to get a good sample.


With many thanks for your asssistance, Raina



iplantolive
 
Joined in 2008
August 9, 2009, 10:06

Hi Raina,


Welcome to Freedom2b[e] 😀 Your project sounds interesting … maybe you’d like to share a bit of your background or interest in GLBT people here on the forum so that others can get an idea or context of how the survey might help them …



Anthony Venn-Brown
 
Joined in 2005
August 9, 2009, 11:59

yep….project sounds good and particularly relevant for people here i think. I’ll do the survey and check out the the questions.



Raina
 
Joined in 2009
August 10, 2009, 06:38

Hello mobile guy and all,


Thanks for the welcome 🙂


Providing individuals with support in relation to their sexuality has been very important to me for quite some time. I started researching in the area in 1991. Recently in 2006, I published a paper on a project I did called ‘The only queer from a CALD background’. I have also had the wonderful opportunity to work as the counsellor at Twenty10 for a number of years. (As a side note, I used to hear Anthony speak at the AOG youth group I went to in the mid 80’s).


Overall, as an individual my aim is to continue to increase knowledge about the issues and concerns that same-sex attracted and gender diverse people experience as a result of growing up in a society that is largely unaccepting of this normal and healthy diversity. My aim is also to support individuals, their families and friends in the face of these difficulties. I also think it is important to highlight the amazing strengths and resilience that same sex-attracted and gender diverse people develop in the face of these environments.


So, in terms of the project, my aim is to increase knowledge about impacts and the importance of positive social support in assisting with growing up in unaccepting environments. Many people don’t have the support of their families and so social support external to families has been shown to play a really important role in reducing the impacts of homophobia. However, many feel unable to go to groups or link up socially for a whole range of reasons. I aim to look at these reasons and to suggest ways to assist with this. For example, what if you were interested in going to a group but too nervous to go, what if you got to meet with the person running the group before hand or what if there was a buddy system?


I’ve tried to reduce about 5,000 words into a few paragraphs so I hope this reads well. Let me know if not.


My best wishes, Raina



Anthony Venn-Brown
 
Joined in 2005
August 10, 2009, 13:44

I aim to look at these reasons and to suggest ways to assist with this. For example, what if you were interested in going to a group but too nervous to go, what if you got to meet with the person running the group before hand or what if there was a buddy system?


these are some things we have implemented already at Freedom 2 b[e] Raina….they work well.


for some of the people we work with they have never been into Oxford st or a gay bar. We had four young guys we took into Palms on Friday night who also came to our meeting. ….first time in a gay bar for them. We watch them like hawks to make sure they are safe and feeling comfortable. It is the first time they have connected with the community as such. Some are still in the questioning phase.


meeting up with some before hand is also important for some. Once again it is the first time in the area. Our meetings are at ACON. Even going to that building can do all sorts of things……and even once inside can be incredibly confronting with all the stuff on the walls. Safety and sensitivity are essential. it is probably not the most appropriate space for our group…but of course we are forever grateful for the free facilities. Not easy to find a free space for 40 on a friday night.


I’m not sure if you are familiar with our target market doc on this site….you might find that interesting reading. http://www.freedom2b.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=3263


it identifies 6 separate groups.



iplantolive
 
Joined in 2008
August 10, 2009, 21:06

Hi Raina, many thanks for giving us an insightful background into your work. I have completed the survey 😀 I can certainly relate to what you’re trying to achieve.


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