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| Mark L. Hatzenbuehler, PhD |
By Mark Singer (Washington DC) APR 18 | In an study released online today in the journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics, [ Pediatrics ] study head Dr. Mark L. Hatzenbuehler from the Mailman School of Public Health, Columbia University, in New York City wrote:
"...Lesbian, gay, and bisexual youth were significantly more likely to attempt suicide in the previous 12 months, compared with heterosexuals (21.5% vs 4.2%). Among lesbian, gay, and bisexual youth, the risk of attempting suicide was 20% greater in unsupportive environments compared to supportive environments. A more supportive social environment was significantly associated with fewer suicide attempts, controlling for sociodemographic variables and multiple risk factors for suicide attempts, including depressive symptoms, binge drinking, peer victimization, and physical abuse by an adult..."
The study, entitled; "The Social Environment and Suicide Attempts in Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Youth," was accepted by the AAP in January of this year. Dr. Hatzenbuehler's objective was "to determine whether the social environment surrounding lesbian, gay, and bisexual youth may contribute to their higher rates of suicide attempts, controlling for individual-level risk factors."
According to the published study, researchers surveyed a total of around thirty-one thousand high schoolers in Oregon in the 11th grade, over a two year period. (2006-2008) The research team created a composite of the social environmental factors in schools in thirty-four counties in the state. Factors included: The proportion of same-sex couples,The proportion of registered Democrats,The presence of gay-straight alliances in schools, and:School policies (nondiscrimination and anti-bullying) that specifically protected lesbian, gay, and bisexual students.
Researchers chose to study Oregon because it is the only state that tracks sexual orientation and suicide attempts in enough detail to compare social factors.
An abstract of the study is available- subscription is required to read the full report: [ Link ]
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3 comments:
Now this has to be great news for the hate groups. If they can only remove GSAs and support groups from the schools then more gay teenagers will kill themselves. Have a look at this article about Focus on the Family, for example.
They'll love this because it validates their approach. Gay kids will kill themselves and the hate groups will rejoice.
Then there is Perkins. "Homosexuality is "abnormal," he says, and kids know it, which leads them to despair. That's why he wants to confront gay activism in public schools. For example, his group supports the Day of Truth, when Christian high schoolers make their case that homosexuality is a sin. Yup, that's Perkins from the Family Research Council. Will he be working hard to remove support groups? This is a great piece of research for him!
Should I go on?
Actually, no. Instead I'm going to challenge Mark Singer to collate the hate groups and correlate their stance with how they might consider using this research.
Are you up for it, Mark?
I'm not sure what Tim's direction is on this. It almost sounds like he'd rather that this information wasn't published at all. Well, if that's the case, I'm disappointed that he can only see a negative side, and not that there may be benefits to actually knowing, as opposed to guessing on the impact of social bias.
Ironic, Trab, ironic.
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