2021/22 Project Abstracts:
Hagan: Exploring the lives of LGB youth living in a predominantly Christian-based culture
As the majority of Northern Irish (NI) residents identify with Christianity, religion can be deemed significant in how their identity development occurs, and how they respond to their environment. For sexual minority youth, the procedure of identity development could be complex in a Christian context arising from potential negative views on homosexuality. While recent researchers have emphasised the importance of considering sexual minorities in different social contexts, only a few have examined LGB youth religious experiences, with none in NI. In this study, six self-identified lesbian, gay and bisexual (LGB) youth born into Christianity were interviewed to gain knowledge of their experiences with Christianity and how they respond to their environment. Findings from the study included themes such as identity development, estrangement, minority stress and resilience. Some forms of homogeneity were produced with experiences of, sexual and religious identity conflict, heightened minority stress in certain areas of Northern Ireland and the protective factor of resilience. Discussion on these findings were highlighted offering suggestions of more person-centred LGB societies in rural areas throughout NI, alongside limitations and suggestions for future research.
McElroy: Understanding the impact of society and media on gender minorities
The purpose of this study was to understand the impact of society and media on gender minorities. Five participants, aged between 18 and 50, who self-identified as minority gendered, were interviewed. The qualitative data collected was analysed using thematic analysis. Five themes were identified: Society’s concept of gender, Media representations of gender, Education on gender, Discrimination experienced in society, and Issues with support available to gender minorities. The findings of this research indicate that societal views of gender minorities and media representations of gender minorities appear to contribute to day-to-day experiences of gender-based discrimination. Good media representation of gender minorities is essential to improve societal views.
Merron: “We shall overcome’: Student activist’s experiences of resilience, burn-out and self-care in Northern Ireland
Activism is deeply personal work and is related to an individual’s sense of self and well-being. Northern Ireland has a rich history of activism however, there is a gap in the literature surrounding the impact being a student activist in Northern Ireland has on the individual. This study aims to understand the perspectives of student activists in Northern Ireland to consider the multitude of activist identities and movements that are present at a time of social change. Moreover, this study investigates the mediating factors of burn-out, resilience and self-care on an activist’s well-being. 8 participants took part in semi-structured online interviews, 6 females and 2 males. 4 participants were between 18-24 years old, 2 were 25-30 and 2 were over the age of 30. Thematic analysis was used to identify themes and sub-themes. The themes observed in this study include, protective factors, challenges for student activists and activist identity, and supports previous research on student activist’s well-being. The current study found that activist’s capacity to balance challenges and protective factors depends on the salience of the activist identity, roles and experience. The findings of this study has implications for student unions and how they can best support student activists. Further research should seek the perspectives of student activists though longitudinal studies.
2022/23 Project Abstracts:
Graham: Tokophobia and attitudes towards childbearing in a neuro-, gender-, and sexually diverse student population
Modern society is experiencing falling birth rates, potentially influenced by tokophobia (TP) and attitudes towards childbearing (AC). Additionally, general awareness and acceptance of autistic traits, queer gender identities (GI) and sexual orientations (SO) is increasing. Previous literature has established a link between AT and queer GI and SO, and suggested a possibility for higher TP in queer samples, which this study also aimed to investigate; however the correlation between AT-TP and AT-AC had not yet been investigated. It was hypothesised that a positive correlation would be observed between AT and TP and a negative correlation between AT and AC. The study also aimed to observe relationships between GI and SO with TP and AC, hypothesising significantly higher TP and lower AC for queer groups. A total of 70 participants with an age range of 19-30 years old (M = 7.20, SD = 4.2) were recruited via opportunity sampling from undergraduate courses across Ulster University. Data was collected through Qualtrics XM using a quantitative questionnaire which included demographic questions, the AQ-10, the Tokophobia Severity Scale, and the Attitudes Toward Fertility and Childbearing Scale. Data was analysed using independent samples t-tests to establish differences between groups within variables and linear regression to ascertain correlational relationships between variables. As hypothesised, AT was positively correlated with queer SO and GI, and queer SO displayed lower AC than straight participants, however the difference was marginal. The entire sample displayed significant TP and a positive AC. Future research may address female-focussed wording and inform autism inclusion in pregnancy care.
Dr Orla Parslow-Breen 