Supporting Parents in Affirming Their Children's Experiences of Stigma

Development and Initial Trial of Two Brief Interventions to Support Parents in Affirming Their Children's Experiences of Sexuality and Gender

The purpose of this study is to develop and test two brief online writing interventions to improve parental acceptance of sexual and gender minority youth (SGMY) in the Southeast United States.

The purpose of this study is to develop and test the acceptability, feasibility, and preliminary efficacy of two brief online writing interventions to improve parental acceptance of sexual and gender minority youth (SGMY) in the Southeast United States. Parental support represents the strongest predictor of sexual and gender minority youth's (SGMY) mental health. However, many parents react to their SGMY's disclosure with rejection. Even relatively accepting parents can experience discomfort, while SGMY often report lingering unmet needs from their parents into adulthood. Few interventions exist to help parents support their SGMY child and none has been tested in a randomized trial with efficacy for decreasing parental rejection and increasing support of their SGMY. This proposal will develop and test the efficacy of two theory-based interventions that aim to address this gap. Results will identify mechanisms contributing to parental rejection and develop scalable approaches to reduce these mechanisms to shrink the substantial mental health disparities affecting SGMY. If efficacious, these interventions can be scaled up through online platforms capable of bypassing barriers to parental support of SGMY across high-stigma regions.

The focus of this registration is the randomized controlled trial.

Inclusion Criteria:

1. Parents are eligible if they meet the following criteria:

   1. Be a parent, grandparent, or any other family member who considers themselves a guardian of an SGMY between 15-29 years old,
   2. Live in the Southeast United States (Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee, Arkansas, Kentucky, Florida),
   3. Identify as heterosexual and cisgender, and
   4. Report non-acceptance of their SGMY.

2. SGMY are eligible if they meet the following criteria:

   1. Self-identify as SGM,
   2. Are 15-29 years old,
   3. Live in the Southeast United States, and
   4. Have a parent enrolled in the trial

   Exclusion Criteria:

3. Any individual who meets any of the following criteria will be excluded from participation in this study:

   1. Active mania, psychosis, or suicidality, and
   2. Unable to provide informed consent.