Psychology Commons^™

Dancing Around And Through Harm: Examining The Lived Experiences Of Women Of Colour With Gender-Based Violence In The Toronto & Kitchener-Waterloo Latin Dance Communities, Lexi Salt

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Given the systemic nature of gender-based violence in Canada, as well as the increasing popularity of Latin dance, it is important to better understand the particular and culturally-specific ways gender-based violence manifests itself within the Latin dance community. This research study examines the lived experiences of women of colour with gender-based violence in the Toronto and Kitchener-Waterloo Latin dance communities. Two groups of participants took part in semi-structured interviews: 14 women of colour dancers, and six “Power Players”, leaders in the Latin dance community who are in a position of power (e.g., instructors, organizers, DJs). The data was analyzed using …

Rainbow Writes: Peer-Led Creative Writing Groups’ Potential For Promoting 2slgbtq+ Youth Wellbeing, Ceilidh Harrison

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Though mainstream acceptance for the 2SLGBTQ+ community is on the rise, elevated risks of mental health challenges still pervade this community, particularly for youth growing up in this changing environment. Based on previous literature citing the benefits of creative interventions and youth autonomy, the current study sought to explore the implementation of an online, peer-led creative writing program as a possible means to increase emotional, psychological, and social wellbeing in 2SLGBTQ+ youth. Twenty self-identifying 2SLGBTQ+ youth from across Canada were recruited to form two 10-week, online peer-led creative writing groups titled “Rainbow Writes”. Based on Lerner et al.’s (2003) “Five …

Well-Being, Discrimination, And Self-Management Among Racialized Lgbq+ Newcomers Living In Waterloo Region, Ontario, Emily Cox

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Racism and homo/biphobia may negatively impact the well-being of racialized LGBTQ+ newcomers. While current research focuses predominantly on negative aspects of well-being (e.g., distress, exclusion), research on resilience and positive aspects of well-being (e.g., positive affect) is limited. Although self-management strategies (i.e., activities and attitudes to improve one’s well-being) could be a key factor in promoting well-being, previous research has not addressed how racialized LGBTQ+ newcomers use self-management strategies. Further, there is limited research about the role service providers (e.g., settlement services, mental and physical health services) play in supporting these strategies. In this study, eight racialized LGBQ+ newcomers and …

Bridging The Gaps In Bringing In The Bystander: An Intersectional Approach To Campus-Based Sexual Violence Prevention, Anne E. Rudzinski

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This paper draws upon pilot-test data from an intersectional approach to a sexual violence prevention program on university campuses. While many programs have been created to address the sexual violence epidemic, many focus heavily on white, heterosexual, and cisgender scenarios. This research utilizes the Bringing in the Bystander® workshop, a community-based prevention initiative focused on preventing sexual violence through inspiring students to intervene in pro-social ways. In this analysis, the program maintained the same pedagogical structure, but contained a wider variety of narratives designed to include stories and scenarios about contexts relevant to the experiences of LGBTQ+ and racialized students. …

Bye Bye Binary: Exploring Non-Binary Youths' Experiences Of Mental Health, Discrimination, And Community Belongingness, Ellis Furman

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

In recent years, there has been an increase in research focusing on the impacts of social exclusion and discrimination on the mental health of transgender populations. Despite this, few studies have focused on the experiences of gender non-conforming, or “non-binary” individuals. This community-based participatory research (CBPR) study (N = 10) used the arts-informed method of body mapping, individual interviews, and group discussions to examine non-binary young peoples’ experiences of discrimination in relation to mental health. Participants consisted young people (ages 16-25) living in Waterloo, Ontario. A visual analysis, thematic analysis, and member-checking session were employed to analyze collected data. …

Sugar For Sale: Constructions Of Intimacy In The Sugar Bowl, Emily Zimmermann

Laurier Undergraduate Journal of the Arts

No abstract provided.

School-Based Supports For Trans Youth In Ontario, Charlie E. C. Davis

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Trans youth are some of the most marginalized youths in schools. In 2012, the Ontario Government passed two legislations, one of which was the Accepting Schools Act, strengthening supports for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or questioning (LGBTQ) students in schools. The other was Toby’s Act, an amendment to the Ontario Human Rights Code including protection from discrimination on the grounds of gender identity and gender expression. The purpose of this thesis is to examine how these two acts have created a political context supporting trans youth in schools. A comprehensive mixed-methods approach was used to examine provincial trends of trans-specific …

Negotiating Masculinity: How Infertility Impacts Hegemonic Masculinity, Myscha Burton

Laurier Undergraduate Journal of the Arts

No abstract provided.

Reconstructing Sex: Women Having Sex With Women, Alixandra Holtby

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This study examines the experience of exclusion from the dominant understandings of sex for women who have sex with women, including queer, pansexual, bisexual, and lesbian women. Using ideas of the constructed nature of sex, particularly the use of sexual scripts (Simon & Gagnon, 1973), as well as the (hetero)sexist context in which these scripts are formed, qualitative interviews with 11 queer, pansexual, bisexual, and lesbian women were analyzed regarding their development of their understandings of what constitutes sex, their expectations and experiences of sex, their negotiation of desire and sexual identity, and their perspectives on sex between women and …

Exposing The Needs Of An Invisible Community: Queer Youth In Kitchener-Waterloo, Meghan Kenny

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Using a participatory action research approach, and a steering committee composed of stakeholders from the community, this thesis focused on identifying the needs of queer youth in Kitchener-Waterloo, Ontario. Multiple methods were used including focus groups, key informant interviews, and an online survey. A total of 31 participants were involved in this study including youth between the ages of 16 and 25 (who identified as lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, questioning, or unsure), parents of queer youth and other community members. Barriers to queer youth wanting to access resources were addressed and strategies to overcome them are offered. In addition, suggestions …

Exploring The Inequalities Between Men And Women In Relation To Marriage: A Feminist Analysis Of Women In Social Work's Experiences Of Marriage, Natalie Mccormac

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

In this thesis I explore the inequalities between men and women in relation to marriage and the impact ofexternal pressures on women and their choices within their marriages. I interviewed five married women and one woman in a common-law relationship about the story of their marriage. I used narrative analysis to interpret the verbatim transcriptions of each interview. In the findings I present portions of each woman’s story in her words along with my own interpretative comments. The findings indicated that women are experiencing indirect pressure from extemal sources within regard to their individual choices and their choices within their …

Changing Landscapes: Stories Of Five Women Farming Ecologically, Sherri Joy Van De Hoef

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Community and the natural environment have always played an important role in my life. I have had the opportunity in the past few years to explore these areas in more depth. My introduction to Community Psychology during my undergraduate degree exposed me to agricultural initiatives that emphasized community and respect for the environment. I explore these initiatives further by conducting a study (van de Hoef, 1998) of Ontario couples who live self-reliantly (that is, they grow their own food, build their own homes, live off the electricity grid, and find supports in their local communities). Subsequent to that study I …

Partner Abuse In Gay Male Relationships: Challenging 'We Are Family', Jeffrey Aguinaldo

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The purposes of this study are twofold: a) to explore the material experience of partner abuse among gay male relationships and b) to explore the discursive conditions from which gay men must draw to negotiate the experience of relationship violence. I incorporated Standpoint epistemology and Queer theory to inform the theoretical basis of this thesis. To achieve the research objectives, I conducted a total of seven interviews with gay men. The findings from the interview data are presented in two phases. First, I presented three stories of gay men who had experienced violence and abuse at the hands of their …

Single Mothers, Income, And Health: An Analysis Of Risk And Protective Factors, Melanie Quickfall

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

This study examined the relationships between single mothers, income and health, using both quantitative and qualitative methods. The purpose of the study was to determine the effects that certain risk factors (low income, stress, public housing, financial stress, education, home satisfaction, single parenting) and protective factors (neighbourhood satisfaction, social support, program participation, community integration) had on both the physical and mental health of single mothers. In the quantitative component, statistical analyses (a series of two-way mixed ANOVA’s and linear regressions) were conducted on interview data from 276 mothers who were involved in the Better Beginnings, Better Futures project in Highfield-Etobicoke, …

Gender Differences And Similarities In Moral Orientations: A Narrative Approach To Moral Socialization Within The Family, Susan M. Hilbers

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

Some research suggests that adults as parents, in particular, may orient their moral reasoning and socialization of children differentially by gender (Lollis, Ross, & Leroux, 1996; Pratt, Amold, & Hilbers, 1998; Pratt, Golding, Hunter, & Sampson, 1988). The present study investigates the extent to which mothers and fathers differ in their moral orientations with respect to socializing young children, specifically in their use of a narrative or storytelling mode. The present study also examines the extent to which gender of the child influences the orientation of parents’ socialization narratives told to and about their young children. Thirty married couples, whose …

The Invisible Weavers: Women Volunteers Creating Community Fabric, Lorie Anne Fioze

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

In this study I examined women's caring in community volunteer work in the context of a neighbourhood community centre. More specifically I studied what women's volunteer experience at the Chandler-Mowat Community Centre (CMCC) revealed about: (1) Motivators what motivated women to participate in community volunteer work, (2) Facilitators what personal, family organizational, community and social factors facilitated women's involvement in volunteer work, (3) Barriers what personal, family, organizational, community and social factors inhibited women's involvement in community volunteer work, (4) Positive and Negative Impacts what the positive and negative impacts of women's volunteer involvement on the women themselves, their families, …

Behavioral Manifestations Of Women Who Have A Liberated Or Traditionalist View Toward Their Role In Contemporary Society, Shirley A. Clark

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

The purpose of this study was two-fold. Part one was to develop an attitude questionnaire which could be used to discriminate between women with a traditionalist or liberated attitude toward toward their role in society. Part two was to choose Ss on the basis of their responses to the questionnaire and find behavioral manifestations of these attitudes. The assumption was made that the underlying difference between the two attitudes was the acceptance or rejection of male superiority.

Eight groups of female Ss, 4 traditionalist and 4 liberated, participated in a physiological experiment in which their systolic blood pressure responses following …