Adolescent experiences of sexual orientation disclosure in healthcare
Research type
Research Study
Full title
Adolescent experiences of sexual orientation disclosure in healthcare settings, an IPA study.
IRAS ID
202744
Contact name
Michelle Lowe
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Staffordshire University
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 9 months, 28 days
Research summary
This study aims to explore adolescent's experiences of disclosing non-heterosexuality to professionals in healthcare settings.
Background
People are recognising their sexual orientation earlier than in the past, with self-awareness of sexual orientation commonly occurring in adolescence. Disclosure of non-heterosexual orientation is often anxiety provoking. Adolescents can experience increased risks to their physical, emotional and social health, often as a result of social stigma and isolation, with societal attitudes towards homosexuality having a decisive impact on the decision to disclose or hide their sexuality.
Non-heterosexual adolescents therefore have to constantly navigate when and how to reveal their sexual identity at the same time as processing and questioning their own self-perceptions. All youths including those who may be questioning their sexuality may seek information on this topic from professionals in health care settings. It is important therefore to study the experiences of adolescents disclosing their sexuality in health care settings to understand the factors that potentially hinder or help the disclosure process.Previous research has found that only 13/102 self-identified Lesbian, Gay and Bisexual youths disclosed their sexual orientation to their health care professional despite over two-thirds reporting a desire to do so. As a result, appropriate health care provision for this group may be affected, particularly in circumstances where a person's difficulties may be directly related to their sexual orientation. To date little research has been conducted in this area, none of which appears to qualitatively investigate the health care related disclosure experiences of adolescents themselves.
Design
Qualitative interviews will be conducted, lasting approximately 1 hour. The study aims to recruit 8-12 adolescents to talk about their experiences of disclosure with interviews taking place in a quiet, private setting on either a Staffordshire University site or community location convenient to the participant. The safety and wellbeing of participants will be paramount.REC name
South Central - Oxford B Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
16/SC/0381
Date of REC Opinion
2 Aug 2016
REC opinion
Further Information Favourable Opinion