Drug & alcohol use among LGBTS in the city of Leeds

Project A Representatives from seven drug and alcohol organisations in Leeds were interviewed about the services they provide and how accessible they believe those services to be to be for lesbian, gay,bisexual and transgender (LGBT) communities in the City of Leeds. Key findings: ● Only one of the groups had ever held an LGBT specific support group ● Only one of the groups were aware that they had LGB or, by implication, transgender clients, the rest were unsure as they do not ask such information of their clients ● Two of the groups had attended training sessions on LGBT specific issues ● None of the groups had any specific policies in place for treating/supporting LGBT clients ● Two of the groups had equality statements in their leaflets making LGBTs aware that they would be welcome ● Three of the support groups distributed their leaflets at LGBT support groups and venues Project B 101 participants completed a short questionnaire which asked about their use of alcohol and other substance, whether they had ever accessed any of the services in Leeds and had unprotected sex as a result of drug use. The main findings were as follows: ● 4% of the sample had no know history of substance use, including alcohol ● 21% of the sample reported using a Class ‘A’ substance, the most commonly cited was Ecstasy ● 4% of participants had attended a drug or alcohol support group in Leeds ● Of the 97 who had not accessed any of Leeds’ drug or alcohol services, 64 argued that they did not believe their alcohol/drug use to be a problem ● Of the 64, 20 scored highly on a standardised measure of drug and alcohol addiction risk ● 49% reported having had unsafe sex in the past year while under the influence of alcohol and/or other substances Recommendations The following recommendations are made: ● To increase awareness among drug and alcohol services of the specific needs of LGBTs ● To make drug and alcohol support services more accessible for LGBTs ● To increase awareness among LGBT communities of the existence and location of alcohol and drug services ● To increase awareness of the dangers associated with drug and alcohol us

Children of same-sex couples in the United Kingdom

To further develop an understanding of psychological and social functioning of children raised by lesbian couples, the current investigation compared 18 students ages 12 through 16 raised in families led by female same-sex couples who were identified from a large school-based survey with 18 matched students raised by opposite-sex couples, and the general student sample. Comparisons were made on factors including victimization, social support, and psychological functioning. Results indicated that those students raised by female same-sex couples did not differ significantly from those raised by opposite-sex couples, or the general student sample in terms of reports of victimization, psychological functioning, experience of common adolescent concerns, or prospective use of support outlets provided by family and peers. However, children of same-sex couples reported significantly less likelihood of using school-based support than children of opposite-sex couples, or the general student sample. Findings indicate the need for school administrators, teachers, and psychologists to be knowledgeable of and provide appropriate support and resources for these children. Additional implications for research and application are discussed

Benin’s urban policies are deepening social inequalities

Since the arrival of Benin’s President-entrepreneur Patrice Talon in 2016, urban development projects have accelerated in Cotonou. Aimed at strengthening the international attractiveness of the city, this new urban planning has led to the destruction of several neighbourhoods and the increasing eviction of the poor from the city centre, emblematic of neoliberal urban policy

Observing bullying at school: The mental health implications of witness status

This study explores the impact of bullying on the mental health of students who witness it. A representative sample of 2,002 students aged 12 to 16 years attending 14 schools in the United Kingdom were surveyed using a questionnaire that included measures of bullying at school, substance abuse, and mental health risk. The results suggest that observing bullying at school predicted risks to mental health over and above that predicted for those students who were directly involved in bullying behavior as either a perpetrator or a victim. Observing others was also found to predict higher risk irrespective of whether students were or were not victims themselves. The results are discussed with reference to past research on bystander and witness behavior

The role of cognitive appraisals in the relationship between peer-victimisation and poor mental health

Over 40-years of research has highlighted the prevalence of peer victimisation, and the impact experiencing this behaviour can have on adolescents’ mental health. Underpinned by the transactional model of stress (Lazarus & Folkman, 1984) and the socio-ecological model (Bronfenbrenner, 1979; Espelage & Swearer, 2003), the aim of this thesis was to examine the role of cognitive appraisals in the relationship between peer-victimisation and poor mental health. Three studies were undertaken: a systematic review of extant literature; the secondary data analysis of a cross-sectional study of 3,737 pupils examining the role of domain-specific perceived social support in the relationship between bullying, cyberbullying and poor mental health; and a longitudinal study of 530 adolescents aged 11 to 14 examining the role of cognitive appraisals in the relationship between peer-victimisation and symptomatology. The results of the systematic review highlighted an inconsistent pattern of findings regarding the role of perceived social support. Both the cross sectional and longitudinal study found that perceived social support from parents/guardians, teachers, and friends did not significantly moderate the relationship between peer-victimisation and poor mental health. The results of the systematic review also highlighted a role for threat and control cognitive appraisals in this relationship. Cognitive appraisals of threat, challenge, control and blame were examined in the longitudinal study. Results of this study found a small but significant total indirect effect for threat and challenge appraisals in the development of depressive symptomatology. This study is the first to report a role for challenge appraisals in adolescents’ adaptations to peer-victimisation. The findings of this thesis highlight the utility of the transactional model of stress and socio-ecological model for researching the relationship between peer-victimisation and poor mental health.Over 40-years of research has highlighted the prevalence of peer victimisation, and the impact experiencing this behaviour can have on adolescents’ mental health. Underpinned by the transactional model of stress (Lazarus & Folkman, 1984) and the socio-ecological model (Bronfenbrenner, 1979; Espelage & Swearer, 2003), the aim of this thesis was to examine the role of cognitive appraisals in the relationship between peer-victimisation and poor mental health. Three studies were undertaken: a systematic review of extant literature; the secondary data analysis of a cross-sectional study of 3,737 pupils examining the role of domain-specific perceived social support in the relationship between bullying, cyberbullying and poor mental health; and a longitudinal study of 530 adolescents aged 11 to 14 examining the role of cognitive appraisals in the relationship between peer-victimisation and symptomatology. The results of the systematic review highlighted an inconsistent pattern of findings regarding the role of perceived social support. Both the cross sectional and longitudinal study found that perceived social support from parents/guardians, teachers, and friends did not significantly moderate the relationship between peer-victimisation and poor mental health. The results of the systematic review also highlighted a role for threat and control cognitive appraisals in this relationship. Cognitive appraisals of threat, challenge, control and blame were examined in the longitudinal study. Results of this study found a small but significant total indirect effect for threat and challenge appraisals in the development of depressive symptomatology. This study is the first to report a role for challenge appraisals in adolescents’ adaptations to peer-victimisation. The findings of this thesis highlight the utility of the transactional model of stress and socio-ecological model for researching the relationship between peer-victimisation and poor mental health