Media Usage Patterns of the Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual, and Transgender Community of Colorado

Using a sample of 1,483 gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender identified participants at various GLBT-related social and political events, this study describes the media usage patterns and examines differences that emerge in those patterns based on sexual identity, identification as a smoker, and health change behavior

Suicidal Ideation and Attempts Among Sexual Minority Youth Receiving Social Services

The increased risk for suicidal ideation and attempts among sexual minority youth has been documented in studies using both convenience samples and representative community samples. However, as most youth do not access social services, these studies do not necessarily represent the sexual minority youth that community-based social workers may encounter in their day-today practice. As such, the present study on risk and protective factors related to suicidality surveyed 182 sexual minority youth (ages 14-21) who sought assistance at a community-based social service agency in Denver, CO. Similar to existing literature, the findings suggest that risk factors related to suicidality include hopelessness, methamphetamine use, homelessness, and inschool victimization. However, unlike studies of the general youth population, this study found that African American and male sexual minority youth were not at lower risk of suicidality than sexual minority youth who were, respectively, white or female. Additionally, our findings suggest that the presence of gay-straight alliances in schools may function as a protective resource for sexual minority youth. Implications for social work practice are discussed

Microwave Phase Detection at the Level of 10−1110^{-11} rad

We report on a noise measurement system with the highest spectral resolution ever achieved in the microwave domain. It is capable of detecting the phase fluctuations of $rms$ amplitude of $2\times10^{-11} rad/\sqrt{Hz}$ at Fourier frequencies above few $kHz$. Such precision allows the study of intrinsic fluctuations in various microwave components and materials, as well as precise tests of fundamental physics. Employing this system we discovered a previously unknown phenomenon of down-conversion of pump oscillator phase noise into the low-frequency voltage fluctuations.Comment: Accepted for publication in Review of Scientific Instrument

School Engagement among LGBTQ High School Students: The Roles of Safe Adults and Gay-Straight Alliance Characteristics

Student school engagement, or the person-environment fit between a student and the student’s school, is a construct that has received increasing attention in the school psychology literature in recent years. However, little research has examined this construct among lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning (LGBTQ) students or analyzed whether factors such as access to safe adults, the presence of a Gay-Straight Alliance (GSA), characteristics of a GSA, or personal involvement in a GSA may connect to engagement. The current study used sequential multiple regression to examine data from a sample of LGBTQ high school students (N = 152) from Colorado and found that the greater the number of types of safe adults that a student has access to at school, the higher the student’s school engagement. GSA presence was not significantly associated with student school engagement. However, among those students whose school had a GSA (N = 91), the larger, more active, more visible, and more supported a GSA was perceived to be, the more these students were engaged at school. Personal involvement in a GSA did not predict student school engagement. This article discusses implications for school-based practitioners and future research

Committed to the Cause? Examining Social Work Education\u27s Role in Supporting Ally Behavior for Transgender and Nonbinary People and Communities

Transgender and nonbinary (TNB) youth and adults are under attack in the United States, with at least 300 state-level anti-transgender bills introduced thus far in 2022 (HRC, 2022). Social workers, guided by professional values and ethics, play a critical role in supporting and advocating for TNB youth and adults, clinically and through mezzo and macro approaches. Given the current political context and the goals of the social work profession, understanding correlates of ally behavior on behalf of TNB people among social work students can help guide improvements in social work education. Specifically, in this study, we examine how demographic differences, social work program variables, and psychosocial predictors are related to increased levels of ally behavior among social work students. Correlates of increased ally behavior in the final multivariate model include having TNB friends, having LGBQ friends, lower levels of social dominance orientation, and lower levels of transphobia. Post-hoc analyses suggest that differences emerge based on levels of social dominance orientation. From the findings, we offer suggestions for school-level interventions that have the potential to increase ally behaviors among social work students as it relates to the TNB community

“We Are Doing the Absolute Most That We Can, and No One Is Listening”: Barriers and Facilitators to Health Literacy Within Transgender and Nonbinary Communities

Transgender and nonbinary (TNB) individuals face disparities in nearly every aspect of health. One factor associated with poor health outcomes in other marginalized populations is health literacy, yet no identified studies examine health literacy in TNB samples. Moreover, most health literacy frameworks focus primarily on the capacities of individual patients to understand and use healthcare information, with little attention given to provider literacy and environmental factors. In partnership with a statewide LGBTQ advocacy organization, we recruited 46 transgender and nonbinary individuals to participate in seven focus groups conducted in urban, suburban, and rural locations throughout Colorado. TNB participants consistently engaged in efforts to increase their own health literacy and that of their medical providers yet faced multiple barriers to improve care. Difficulty identifying and physically reaching care, insurance and out-of-pocket expenses, negative experiences with healthcare providers and staff, provider incompetence, discriminatory and oppressive practices, and exclusionary forms and processes emerged as barriers to enacted health literacy among participants. Conversely, facilitators of enacted healthcare literacy included positive experiences with healthcare providers and staff, and inclusive forms and processe

Quantum manipulation via atomic-scale magnetoelectric effects

Magnetoelectric effects at the atomic scale are demonstrated to afford unique functionality. This is shown explicitly for a quantum corral defined by a wall of magnetic atoms deposited on a metal surface where spin-orbit coupling is observable. We show these magnetoelectric effects allow one to control the properties of systems placed inside the corral as well as their electronic signatures; they provide alternative tools for probing electronic properties at the atomic scale