Call for Papers

Sexual Minorities and Mental Health : Vulnerability, Resilience and Innovative Practices

In spite of recent legislative progress, sexual minorities experience health inequities in well-being and mental health, often as a consequence of stigma, negative behaviour towards them as well as persistent social discrimination. During the past few decades, these health disparities have been documented in studies throughout the world, although to a lesser extent in Canada, studies that have compared gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender people with heterosexual peers on well-being indicators and mental health problems such as depression, alcohol and other drug abuse, self-harm, and suicidal thoughts and attempts. Other research has examined the influence of risk factors such as victimization or reduced social support, and have developed and tested conceptual models of the psychosocial processes linking social stigma and mental health, for example, the concept of minority stress elaborated by Ilan Myer. Recent works underline the necessity to deepen our analysis of vulnerability factors in relation to diverse sexual orientations (e.g. mental health problems seem to be more prevalent among bisexual people), gender identities, institutional and environmental contexts (schools, workplaces, urban, rural, ethnocultural minority status) as well as other personal and sociodemographic characteristics such as age, social class, citizenship status or disability. Dynamic perspectives that consider the agency of individuals and communities require exploration of not just risk factors, but also resilience factors, including individual traits, adoption of strategic behaviour, relationship supports, or the wider context of policies, laws, and resources available in diverse environments. Finally, many innovative practices have been developed to help counter the impact of stigmatization, and to improve access to supportive health and social services, particularly through community development, alternatives services in health centers or on-line, and preventive programs. These initiatives are not largely known and their effectiveness, rarely evaluated. With this call for papers, we solicit papers exploring one or more axis –vulnerability, resilience, innovative practice - in realtion with mental health among sexual minorities in Canada.

Deadline:  December 1, 2010

For instructions to authors:  http://www.cjcmh.com/e/authors/instructions.htm

For information or to submit a paper, contact:

Elizabeth Saewyc, PhD, RN

CIHR/PHaC Chair in Applied Public Health Research

University of British Columbia School of Nursing

T201-2211 Wesbrook Mail Vancouver (BC)

V6T 2B5

e-mail: saewyc@interchange.ubc.ca

La publication de cette Revue a été rendue possible grâce à l'appui du
CONSEIL DE RECHERCHES EN SCIENCES HUMAINES DU CANADA

©Canadian Journal of Community Mental Health 2009
©Revue Canadienne de Santé Mentale Communautaire 2009