Gay‐Straight Alliances, Inclusive Policy, and School Climate:LGBTQ Youths’ Experiences of Social Support and Bullying
Open accessAbstract
Gay‐Straight Alliances (GSA) and school policies focused on support for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer/questioning youth may reduce bias‐based bullying and enhance social supports in schools. Using multivariate regression, we tested the relationship between youth reports of the presence of GSA s and LGBTQ‐focused policies, independently and mutually, with experiences bullying and perceived support (n = 1,061). Youth reported higher classmate support in the presence of GSA s and higher teacher support in the presence of LGBTQ‐focused policies; the presence of both GSA s and LGBTQ‐focused policies was associated with less bullying and higher perceived classmate and teacher support. The findings indicate that GSA s and LGBTQ‐focused policies are distinctly and mutually important for fostering safer and more supportive school climates for youth.
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Cites
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A Review of School Climate Research
Thapa, A., Cohen, J., Guffey, S., & Higgins-D’Alessandro, A. (2013) · Review of Educational Research · doi:10.3102/0034654313483907 · Cited by 2,335 · see citing works
Schools as Developmental Contexts During Adolescence
Eccles, J. S., & Roeser, R. W. (2011) · Journal of Research on Adolescence · doi:10.1111/j.1532-7795.2010.00725.x · Cited by 1,629 · cited 2× · see citing works
“Positive teacher–student relationships are associated with greater school engagement and better academic performance, and overall better social-emotional well-being (Eccles & Roeser, 2011; NRC/ IOM, 2004).”
BackgroundProtective School Climates and Reduced Risk for Suicide Ideation in Sexual Minority Youths
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- Authors
- Day, J. K., Fish, J. N., Grossman, A. H., & Russell, S. T.
- Affiliations
- The University of Texas at Austin (US)
- New York University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Day, Jack K.
- Venue
- Journal of Research on Adolescence
- Publisher
- Wiley
- Published
- 2019-03-12
- Volume
- 30
- Issue
- S2
- Pages
- 418-430
- ISSN
- 1050-8392 (ISSN-L)
- 1532-7795
- PMC
- PMC8063225
- OpenAlex
- W2922209629
- Cited by
- 138
- References
- 4
- Citations by year
- 2026: 18 · 2025: 27 · 2024: 28 · 2023: 22 · 2022: 24 · 2021: 12 · 2020: 7
- FWCI
- 13.51
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Journal of Research on Adolescence (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institute of Mental Health (R01MH091212)
- University of Texas at Austin (R24HD042849)
- National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (F32AA023138)
- Topics
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › LGBTQ Health, Identity, and Policy
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Bullying, Victimization, and Aggression
- Social Sciences › Gender Studies › Gender, Sexuality, and Education
- Keywords
- gay-straight alliances, LGBTQ youth, school climate, inclusive education policy, bullying, social support, teacher support, classmate support, school safety
- MeSH terms
- Sexual and Gender Minorities, Adolescent, Adult, Female, Humans, Longitudinal Studies, Male, Peer Group, Schools, Social Support, Young Adult, Policy, Bullying, Homophobia
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