Community Programs: Evaluating Benefits For Lgbtq+ Youth
Jon Hageman is the faculty sponsor for this project.
Abstract
The objective of this research is to determine how LGBTQ+ youth benefit from the series of programming created for them by Youth Services of Glenview/Northbrook. This study will specifically focus on the PrideLEAD group, which is made up of high schoolers who identify as LGBTQ+, who are there to learn leadership skills. This study will focus on how the program impacts their self-esteem, their confidence, the way they view the world, the way they handle discrimination when they are faced with it, and how they view their own strengths and challenges as leaders. This research holds special significance for me as an aspiring social worker and as a member of the LGBTQ+ community. Growing up in a hetero-normative world can be very isolating for a child who does not identify with that community, and I feel that that experience is as similar for LGBTQ+ today as it was twenty years ago when I experienced it. My goal as a social worker is to be the person I didn’t have when I was growing up, and this research will help me determine how to do that. In terms of the methodology, this study will employ a mostly qualitative online survey research design. Most of the questions will be essay style and ask the respondents to relay experiences of discrimination. The survey questions will seek to answer three specific questions - (1) What types of discrimination have students faced at home, in school, etc., and what was done to correct the problem? (2) What positive effects does being a member of the PrideLEAD team have on their self-esteem? (3) What valuable skills have members gained from being on the PrideLEAD team that they can take into the world with them? Survey participants will receive a link to the online survey, and the informed consent will state that confidentiality and anonymity will be assured when answering the questions. The survey should take about half an hour to complete. I predict that my research will show that LGBTQ+ youth in the PrideLEAD program gain self- esteem, confidence, leadership skills, social skills, and adaptability. The results will also show that feelings of worthlessness, depression, anxiety and suicidal ideations are relatively low among members of the group.
Community Programs: Evaluating Benefits For Lgbtq+ Youth
The objective of this research is to determine how LGBTQ+ youth benefit from the series of programming created for them by Youth Services of Glenview/Northbrook. This study will specifically focus on the PrideLEAD group, which is made up of high schoolers who identify as LGBTQ+, who are there to learn leadership skills. This study will focus on how the program impacts their self-esteem, their confidence, the way they view the world, the way they handle discrimination when they are faced with it, and how they view their own strengths and challenges as leaders. This research holds special significance for me as an aspiring social worker and as a member of the LGBTQ+ community. Growing up in a hetero-normative world can be very isolating for a child who does not identify with that community, and I feel that that experience is as similar for LGBTQ+ today as it was twenty years ago when I experienced it. My goal as a social worker is to be the person I didn’t have when I was growing up, and this research will help me determine how to do that. In terms of the methodology, this study will employ a mostly qualitative online survey research design. Most of the questions will be essay style and ask the respondents to relay experiences of discrimination. The survey questions will seek to answer three specific questions - (1) What types of discrimination have students faced at home, in school, etc., and what was done to correct the problem? (2) What positive effects does being a member of the PrideLEAD team have on their self-esteem? (3) What valuable skills have members gained from being on the PrideLEAD team that they can take into the world with them? Survey participants will receive a link to the online survey, and the informed consent will state that confidentiality and anonymity will be assured when answering the questions. The survey should take about half an hour to complete. I predict that my research will show that LGBTQ+ youth in the PrideLEAD program gain self- esteem, confidence, leadership skills, social skills, and adaptability. The results will also show that feelings of worthlessness, depression, anxiety and suicidal ideations are relatively low among members of the group.