Identity Safety Cues for LGBTQ+ People in Medical Settings
Open Access
- Author:
- Kruk, Mary
- Graduate Program:
- Psychology
- Degree:
- Doctor of Philosophy
- Document Type:
- Dissertation
- Date of Defense:
- October 04, 2022
- Committee Members:
- Britney Wardecker, Outside Unit & Field Member
Stephanie Shields, Major Field Member
Jes Matsick, Chair & Dissertation Advisor
Jose Soto, Major Field Member
Kristin Buss (She/Her), Program Head/Chair - Keywords:
- safety cue
identity cue
environmental cue
medical homophobia
lgbtq
sexuality - Abstract:
- Identity safety cues are aspects of the environment that communicate one is at a low risk for identity-based discrimination. While a substantial body of literature has established effective gender and race-based safety cues, a dearth of attention has been given to sexual orientation-based safety cues. Through three studies, I investigate if the rainbow flag functions as a safety cue (i.e., leads to more identity safety) for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and queer (LGBQ+) individuals. In Study 1 (N = 76), I qualitatively examined LGBQ+ people’s responses to the rainbow flag, concluding that rainbow flags function as effective safety cues for LGBQ+ people, inducing feelings of pride, safety, warmth, and indicating who is an ally. Participants also identified medical spaces as threatening environments in which the rainbow flag is particularly desired. In Study 2 (N = 231), I tested the rainbow flag as a safety cue in a medical doctor’s office. In an online experiment, LGBQ+ participants encountered a doctor who wore (or did not wear) a rainbow flag sticker. This safety cue led to led to more belonging, more comfort, and less fear among LGBQ+ participants, and this effect was explained by perception of the doctor as high in internal motivation to avoid prejudice. In Study 3 (N = 234), I examined how a rainbow flag sticker interacted with doctor behavior on LGBQ+ people’s identity safety through a 2 (safety cue: present or absent) x 2 (doctor behavior: affirming or threatening) experiment. I found main effects of safety cue and supportive doctor behavior, such that both led to more identity safety. However, when paired with a threatening doctor, the safety cue led to more identity safety (i.e., greater trust, belonging, comfort, inclusivity, and reduced fear) compared to a threatening doctor with no safety cue. Overall, this dissertation yields evidence for tangible ways to increase identity safety for LGBQ+ people, provides insight into the interaction between safety cues and behavior on perceptions of safety, and addresses the translation of safety cues into real-world settings.