Witnessing racism against racial minority individuals online and loneliness among White emerging adults: Anti-racism advocacy as a moderator.

Extant literature suggests that racism is associated with difficult emotional reactions and feelings of social disconnect among White individuals. These feelings of social disconnect may be particularly salient in today's digital era in which racism against racial minority individuals is conveniently and frequently witnessed via online platforms. Thus, we examined whether witnessing racism online may be associated with feelings of loneliness among White emerging adults. We also tested whether anti-racism advocacy buffered loneliness given its potential for relationship building and community organizing to promote racial justice and equity. Using data from 227 White emerging adults (Mage = 20.86, SD = 4.82), we conducted a latent moderated structural equation modeling to test individual and institutional anti-racism advocacy as moderators in the link between witnessing racism online (racial victimization of racial minority individuals in online interactions and online content on cultural devaluation/systemic racism against racial minority individuals) and loneliness. Greater exposure to online content on systemic racism and cultural devaluation of racial minority groups significantly predicted greater loneliness. Engagement in individual anti-racism advocacy (mean to high levels) buffered this link. White allies must engage in anti-racism practice to address racism in our society, and our findings advance our understanding of the associated psychosocial costs. Implications for research and practice are discussed.

Activating Adult Allies From a Rural Community on Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Student Issues in School Using Photovoice.

PURPOSE: Many students who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or queer (LGBTQ) face hostile school environments that can negatively impact their mental health and education. This study involved a photovoice project where high school students from a Gay-Straight Alliance in the rural southeastern United States took photographs that depicted the issues LGBTQ students were facing and then exhibited their photographs and stories to individuals from the school system and local community to promote awareness, dialogue, and action. METHODS: 20 adults who attended the photovoiceexhibit responded to an online survey about their experiences with the intervention. RESULTS: 85% of adults reported that the interventionmade them think about issues they had not previously considered, including the struggles LGBTQ youth face, gender issues, and living in a rural community. Common emotions experienced at the interventionincluded feeling excited, concern for the youth, and proud of the youth. Further, 81% of the adults indicated that they would take action or behave differently as a result of the intervention, including supporting and affirming LGBTQ students, using gender-neutral and -inclusive language, and confronting bias in themselves and others. CONCLUSIONS: Photovoice is a promising strategy for LGBTQ students to activate adult allies in their community.

Community-Guided Focus Group Analysis to Examine Cancer Disparities.

BACKGROUND: Accountability for Cancer Care through Undoing Racism™ and Equity (ACCURE) is a systems-change intervention addressing disparities in treatment initiation and completion and outcomes for early stage Black and White breast and lung cancer patients. Using a community-based participatory research (CBPR) approach, ACCURE is guided by a diverse partnership involving academic researchers, a nonprofit community-based organization, its affiliated broader based community coalition, and providers and staff from two cancer centers. OBJECTIVES: This paper describes the collaborative process our partnership used to conduct focus groups and to code and analyze the data to inform two components of the ACCURE intervention: 1) a "power analysis" of the cancer care system and 2) the development of the intervention's training component, Healthcare Equity Education and Training (HEET), for cancer center providers and staff. METHODS: Using active involvement of community and academic partners at every stage in the process, we engaged Black and White breast and lung cancer survivors at two partner cancer centers in eight focus group discussions organized by race and cancer type. Participants were asked to describe "pressure point encounters" or critical incidents during their journey through the cancer system that facilitated or hindered their willingness to continue treatment. Community and academic members collaborated to plan and develop materials, conduct focus groups, and code and analyze data. CONCLUSIONS: A collaborative qualitative data analysis process strengthened the capacity of our community-medical-academic partnership, enriched our research moving forward, and enhanced the transparency and accountability of our research approach.