Term of Award

Winter 2024

Degree Name

Doctor of Public Health in Epidemiology (Dr.P.H.)

Document Type and Release Option

Dissertation (restricted to Georgia Southern)

Copyright Statement / License for Reuse

Digital Commons@Georgia Southern License

Department

Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health

Committee Chair

Kelly Sullivan

Committee Member 1

Chun Hai Fung

Committee Member 2

Katie Mercer

Abstract

As LGBTQ+ identities, individuals, and communities have become more scrutinized, politicized, and online discrimination is increasingly visible, the distress levels of young adults in this community may be rising. In addition to this added negativity, the SARS-CoV-2 virus introduced novel pandemic distress that likely compounds with other sources of stress. The current burden of distress and negative mental health outcomes should be routinely evaluated along with barriers to seeking care for this distress and the organizations used by individuals in need. These evaluations allow us to implement effective secondary interventions in hopes of preventing long-lasting negative outcomes for LGBTQ+ young adults. We conducted a scoping review of current literature on these topics and a mixed-methods cross-sectional pilot survey. The survey was evaluated in two completed studies 1) identifying distress levels from LGBTQ+-specific and COVID-19-specific sources and 2) identifying barriers to seeking care for trauma or distress and their associations. This dissertation concludes with an overall summary, discussion of two ongoing analyses 1) network analysis of social supports used by distressed LGBTQ+ young adult Georgia residents and 2) best practices for the recruitment of LGBTQ+ young adults in future research, and recommendations for future research directions.

Research Data and Supplementary Material

Yes

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Available for download on Wednesday, October 24, 2029

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