Emily Bariola

Demographic and Psychosocial Factors Associated With Psychological Distress and Resilience Among Transgender Individuals.

OBJECTIVES We examined the independent demographic and psychosocial factors associated with psychological distress and resilience among transgender men and women. METHODS Our data came from an online survey involving a national Australian sample of 169 transgender men and women in 2011. Survey questions assessed demographics; sources of support; contact with lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender peers; and experiences of victimization. We assessed the outcomes with the Kessler Psychological Distress Scale and the Brief Resilience Scale. RESULTS In all, 46.0% of the sample reported high or very high levels of psychological distress. Multivariable regression analyses identified considerably different independent factors for psychological distress and resilience. Younger age, feeling unable to turn to family for support, and victimization experiences were associated with greater psychological distress, whereas higher income, identifying as heterosexual, and having frequent contact with lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender peers were associated with greater resilience. CONCLUSIONS With different factors identified for psychological distress and resilience, these findings may help inform the development of tailored mental health interventions and resilience-building programs for this vulnerable population.

Menopause in the workplace: What employers should be doing

Large numbers of women transition through menopause whilst in paid employment. Symptoms associated with menopause may cause difficulties for working women, especially if untreated, yet employers are practically silent on this potentially costly issue. This review summarises existing research on the underexplored topic of menopause in the workplace, and synthesises recommendations for employers. Longstanding scholarly interest in the relationship between employment status and symptom reporting typically (but not consistently) shows that women in paid employment (and in specific occupations) report fewer and less severe symptoms than those who are unemployed. Recent studies more systematically focused on the effects of menopausal symptoms on work are typically cross-sectional self-report surveys, with a small number of qualitative studies. Though several papers established that vasomotor (and associated) symptoms have a negative impact on womens productivity, capacity to work and work experience, this is not a uniform finding. Psychological and other somatic symptoms associated with menopause can have a relatively greater negative influence. Physical (e.g., workplace temperature and design) and psychosocial (e.g., work stress, perceptions of control/autonomy) workplace factors have been found to influence the relationship between symptoms and work. Principal recommendations for employers to best support menopausal women as part of a holistic approach to employee health and well-being include risk assessments to make suitable adjustments to the physical and psychosocial work environment, provision of information and support, and training for line managers. Limitations of prior studies, and directions for future research are presented.

A closer look at private lives 2: addressing the mental health and wellbeing of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) Australians

Based on a national survey of almost 4000 people, the report reveals strong links between psychological distress and drug use among LGBT Australians. Executive Summary A Closer Look at Private Lives 2 is a companion to the second Private Lives report released in 2012. The research and writing of both reports were funded by beyondblue and the Movember Foundation. The project was jointly managed by GLHV and ARCSHS, La Trobe University. Background The first Private Lives was released in 2006 and at the time was one of the largest reports on LGBT health and wellbeing anywhere in the world. Both the first and second reports provided a snapshot of LGBT Australian’s everyday lives. They included demographic data on diversity within LGBT communities and data on LGBT Australian’s physical and mental health, health service use, relationships, experiences of discrimination and community connections. This companion report, in contrast, focuses on the mental health and wellbeing of LGBT Australians. It relies on the mental health data from Private Lives 2 and looks, in detail, at variations in psychological distress and resilience between LGBT and mainstream communities and variations within LGBT communities according to gender identity, sexual identity, age and socio-economic status. It also looks at the relationships between LGBT Australians mental wellbeing and their experiences of heterosexist discrimination, drug use, LGBT and mainstream community engagement, and health service use. The report concludes with an evidence-based LGBT mental health policy and program framework to guide the development of policies, programs and services aimed at promoting LGBT Australians’ positive mental health and their access to quality care. Methodology Private Lives 2 reported on the findings of a national, online survey of the lives of 3,835 LGBT Australians. Respondents came from all states and territories and from rural, regional and remote areas. The companion report used two of the validated scales from Private Lives 2 as measures of mental health outcomes: the K10 Psychological Distress Scale; and the Brief Resilience Scale. The development of the LGBT mental health policy and program framework involved a review of recent Australian population and health promotion strategies and a separate review of the research and grey literature on LGBT-inclusive service provision in Australia and overseas. Related identifer: ISBN 9781921915697

Employment conditions and work-related stressors are associated with menopausal symptom reporting among perimenopausal and postmenopausal women.

Objective: While many women undergo menopausal transition while they are in paid employment, the effect of poor working conditions on womens experience of the menopause has received scant empirical attention. We examined associations between employment conditions, work-related stressors, and menopausal symptom reporting among perimenopausal and postmenopausal working women. Methods: Data were drawn from an online survey conducted between 2013 and 2014 involving 476 perimenopausal and postmenopausal women working in the higher education sector in Australia. Survey questions assessed demographics; health-related variables; menopausal symptom reporting; employment status; presence of flexible working hours; presence of temperature control; job autonomy; and supervisor support. Results: A forced entry multivariable regression analysis revealed that high supervisor support (&bgr; = −0.10, P = 0.04), being employed on a full-time basis (&bgr; = −0.11, P = 0.02), and having control over workplace temperature (&bgr; = −0.11, P = 0.02) were independently associated with lower menopausal symptom reporting. Conclusions: These findings may help inform the development of tailored occupational health policies and programs that cater for the needs of older women as they transition through menopause in the workplace.

Flourishing among sexual minority individuals: Application of the dual continuum model of mental health in a sample of lesbians and gay men.

According to the Dual Continuum Model of Mental Health (Keyes, 2002), psychopathology and positive mental health are separate constructs. While the incidence of psychopathology has received ample empirical attention in sexual minority populations, positive mental health has not been a focus. The purpose of this study was to determine the applicability of the Dual Continuum Model (Keyes, 2002) in a sample of lesbians and gay men. Data were collected via an online survey involving an Australian sample of 406 lesbians and 441 gay men. Although 29.4% of the sample met the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) criteria for depression and 23.3% met the Generalized Anxiety Disorder Scale (GAD-7) criteria for generalized anxiety disorder, 47.1% met the Short Form of the Mental Health Continuum (MHC-SF) criteria for flourishing mental health. This is interpreted as evidence of psychological strength in lesbians and gay men, despite their status inequalities and experiences of heterosexist discrimination and harassment. Lesbians had higher rates of generalized anxiety disorder than gay men; however, no gender differences were observed for depression or positive mental health. As per the Dual Continuum Model, not all of those free of a mental disorder were completely mentally healthy, as 22.7% of the sample was categorized as “without mental illness and without flourishing.” We also found that the presence of flourishing was more adaptive than the mere absence of mental disorder with regard to the implications for overall self-assessed health. It is suggested that mental health interventions that focus solely on alleviating psychopathology will not be sufficient if sexual minority individuals are to achieve optimal health.

Gender-specific health implications of minority stress among lesbians and gay men

Objectives: Lesbians and gay men are exposed to unique minority stressors. We examined the health implications of one type of distal minority stressor (victimisation) and one type of proximal minority stressor (sexual identity concealment due to anticipated stigma) among lesbians and gay men. Gender‐specific health implications were assessed.

The mental health benefits of relationship formalisation among lesbians and gay men in same-sex relationships.

Objectives: To examine links between same‐sex relationship formalisation – such as registered domestic partnerships and commitment ceremony unions – and mental health among lesbians and gay men, after controlling for differences in other relationship characteristics.

Temporality and gendered agency: Menopausal subjectivities in women’s work

This article advances feminist organizational theorizing about embodiment and subjectivity by investigating menopause at work as a temporally constituted phenomenon. We ask how time matters in women’s embodied and subjective experiences of menopause at work. Theoretically, we draw on feminist writers McNay and Grosz to explore the relationship between gendered agency and time in a corpus of 48 qualitative interviews conducted with women employed at two Australian universities about their experiences of menopause. Our empirical analysis identifies three temporal modalities – episodic, helical and relational – that show how gendered organizational subjectivities are not simply temporally situated, but created in and through distinct temporal forces. We offer two contributions to feminist organizational theory: first, by illuminating the ontological role played by time in gendered agency; and second, by fleshing out the notion of a ‘body politics of surprise’ with implications for feminist studies of organizational embodiment, politics and ethics.

Mental health and resilience among rural Australian lesbians and gay men

We examine the mental health of lesbians and gay men in rural and regional Australia, including rural-urban comparisons of psychological distress and resilience. A national survey was conducted involving 1,264 lesbians and 1,470 gay men aged 16-89 years. Psychological distress was high; 32% of rural lesbians and 30% of rural gay men scored high to very high. There were no significant rural-urban differences for lesbians or gay men on distress or resilience, but rural gay men reported fewer non-heterosexual friends and were less likely to participate in mainstream community events. A range of demographic and psychosocial factors predicted psychological distress including experiences related to stigma and marginalization, but patterns differed between rural lesbians and rural gay men. Efforts may be needed to reduce mental health problems in rural lesbians and gay men, with attention also given to differences in the psychosocial circumstances between these two sexual identity groups.