Gay-straight alliances make schools safer, study finds
Quote:
If you're a gay teen at a school with a gay-straight alliance, you were 52 percent less likely to hear homophobic remarks; 36 percent less likely to fear for your personal safety; and 30 percent less likely to be victimized.
In short, gay teens also had a greater sense of personal safety in schools with such alliances compared to schools without them, the study found.
The study covered responses from tens of thousands of high school students. It was a meta-analysis of 15 independent studies, published in the Journal of Youth and Adolescence. That sort of analysis – by Robert Marx and Heather Hensman Kettrey of Vanderbilt University's Peabody Research Institute - is broad enough that these findings are likely universal.
But why would the mere presence of an alliance have such an effect?
"Having a GSA (gay-straight alliance) can send a strong message to all students that their school is a welcoming place where all people are accepted and that homophobic acts will not be tolerated," said Kettrey.
I would always hear nasty stories from the one at my high school.
Apparently all the members would hook up with each other, do drugs, etc. NONE were cute.
Everyone made sure to steer clear of them because they were a bunch of weirdos.
It was like Tumblr
I know some other developmental/counseling psychologists who are currently doing more work on this topic and it is definitely an interesting consideration in regard to identity development and affirmation. Just because it may be a non-factor at some schools does not mean that on the whole they serve no purpose, especially since people in recent years have started coming out at a younger age.
