Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2021 Jul 12;36(3):295-308.
doi: 10.1093/her/cyab007.

Gender-sexuality alliance membership and activities: associations with students' comfort, confidence and awareness regarding substance use resources

Gabriel R Murchison  1 , Sarah B Rosenbach  2 , V Paul Poteat  3 , Hirokazu Yoshikawa  2 , Jerel P Calzo  4
Affiliations

Gender-sexuality alliance membership and activities: associations with students' comfort, confidence and awareness regarding substance use resources

Gabriel R Murchison et al. Health Educ Res. .

Abstract

Belonging to a school Gender and Sexuality Alliance (GSA) is associated with lower substance use among LGBTQ+ youth. However, it is unknown whether GSA participation facilitates access to resources for substance use concerns. Using longitudinal data from 38 Massachusetts high schools, we compared sources of support for substance use concerns listed by GSA members (n = 361) and nonmembers (n = 1539). Subsequently, we tested whether GSA membership was associated with comfort, confidence and awareness regarding substance use resources in school and the community. Finally, we assessed whether specific GSA activities and discussions (e.g. social support) were associated with these outcomes. Among students with recent substance use, GSA membership was associated with greater comfort, confidence and awareness regarding school-based substance use resources in the spring semester, adjusted for fall semester levels and non-GSA club involvement. Furthermore, students in GSAs where members reported more advocacy and social support activities reported higher levels of comfort, confidence and awareness regarding community-based substance use resources. These results indicate that among students using alcohol or nicotine products, GSA members may be more receptive to school-based substance use prevention efforts. Furthermore, GSA-based social support and activism experiences may promote access to community-based substance use resources.

PubMed Disclaimer

Figures

Fig. 1.
Fig. 1.
Interaction plots for the association between GSA membership and each substance use resource outcome among students with and without recent substance use.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. National Institute on Drug Abuse. Monitoring the Future Survey: High School and Youth Trends 2019. Rockville, MD: National Institute on Drug Abuse, National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2019. Available at: https://d14rmgtrwzf5a.cloudfront.net/sites/default/files/drugfacts-mtf.pdf. Accessed February 1, 2021.
    1. Johns M, Lowry R, Andrzejewski J. et al.Transgender identity and experiences of violence victimization, substance use, suicide risk, and sexual risk behaviors among high school students – 19 states and large urban school districts, 2017. MMWR 2019; 68: 67–671. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Kann L, Olsen EOM, McManus T. et al.Sexual identity, sex of sexual contacts, and health-related behaviors among students in grades 9–12 – United States and selected sites, 2015. MMWR 2016; 65: 1–202. - PubMed
    1. Coulter RWS, Bersamin M, Russell ST. et al.The effects of gender- and sexuality-based harassment on lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender substance use disparities. J Adolesc Health 2018; 62: 688–700. - PMC - PubMed
    1. Benson PL.Help‐seeking for alcohol and drug problems: to whom do adolescents turn? J Adolesc Chem Depend 1990; 1: 83–94.

Publication types