Author : Nayan Ramirez
Publisher :
ISBN 13 :
Total Pages : pages
Book Rating : 4.:/5 (15 download)
Book Synopsis The Role of Friendship Network Characteristics on Rural Sexual Minority Adolescents' Wellbeing by : Nayan Ramirez
Download or read book The Role of Friendship Network Characteristics on Rural Sexual Minority Adolescents' Wellbeing written by Nayan Ramirez and published by . This book was released on 2018 with total page pages. Available in PDF, EPUB and Kindle. Book excerpt: In this dissertation, I examine whether differences exist between the friendship network characteristics of rural sexual minority and non-minority adolescents friendship networks. I also assess how network differences affect involvement in externalizing behaviors, including delinquency and substance use, and internalizing behaviors, including depression, self-cutting behavior, and suicidal ideation. Peer relationships are of key importance during adolescence, when the influence of peers surpasses the declining influence of parents. However, peer relationships may be poor for sexual minority youth in rural areas where stress and stigma related to ones sexual orientation may be particularly elevated. Unraveling the characteristics of sexual minoritys friendship networks and factors that contribute to their social integration can help us understand how to best improve sexual minorities overall wellbeing.Across three empirical chapters, I explore the friendship networks and behavior of rural sexual minority youth using data from the PROSPER Peers longitudinal study. The PROSPER Peers data followed rural and semi-rural youth in 28 communities in Iowa and Pennsylvania from 6th through 12th grade. Social network data was collected by asking students to name up to seven of their closest in-grade friends. In addition, a random sub-sample of approximately 2,000 respondents were asked to complete follow-up surveys at ages 19 and 21. During these follow-up surveys, respondents were asked to provide their sexual identity. I use respondents answers to the sexual identity question to retrospectively examine how sexual minority status structured their adolescent friendship networks and their involvement in various maladaptive behaviors. In the first empirical chapter, I assess differences in the friendship network characteristics of sexual minority adolescents compared with their heterosexual peers. Results suggest that sexual minority youth are generally not well-integrated in their school friendship networks compared with their heterosexual peers. Across most of the network characteristics examined, sexual minorities scored lower on the network characteristics compared with their heterosexual peers. In the second and third empirical chapters, I explore whether network characteristics mediate the relationships between sexual minority status and externalizing and internalizing behaviors. I find evidence that sexual minority status and gender interact to create different patterns of involvement in externalizing and internalizing behaviors for sexual minority boys and girls with sexual minority girls more likely to externalize and sexual minority boys less likely to engage in externalizing behaviors compared with their heterosexual peers. Findings also showed that sexual minorities, regardless of gender, were more likely to internalize compared with their heterosexual peers. Although the network characteristics largely did not mediate the relationships examined, the findings still point to the importance of examining factors that lead to different pathways of involvement in externalizing and internalizing behaviors. Results from this dissertation also have important policy implications. Schools should aim to create programs and curricula that are inclusive of issues that sexual minority adolescents experience. Policy interventions should also focus on improving feelings of school belonging and social support for sexual minorities to reduce both poor integration and maladaptive behaviors.
