The leisure context of adolescents who are lesbian, gay male, bisexual and questioning their sexual identities: an exploratory study.

Introduction The problems of at-risk youth seem to increasingly challenge various academic and professional communities. Consequently, researchers from a number of disciplines are trying to understand the complexities of the issues and develop interventions to mitigate or eliminate problem behaviors. The definition of at risk is elusive and largely dependent upon who is asked. This term is commonly defined as behavior that potentially limits psychological, physical or economic well being during adolescence or adulthood. Included are those youth who are at risk of encountering problems in school, at home, or in communities, resulting in diminished chances of maturing into responsible adults. Many at-risk behaviors center around compromising health behaviors such as alcohol abuse, suicidal ideation and other self-destructive behaviors. While all adolescents may be considered at risk of participation in health compromising behaviors, certain groups are more at-risk than others. For example, a major issue facing health care reform deals with "special populations" of adolescents whose health care needs are greater than those of the general population. According to Irwin et al., special populations include adolescents who are poor, living apart from their families (e.g., foster care), homeless or runaway, pregnant or parenting, gay male or lesbian, or dealing with chronic illness and disability. Research on Gay Youth The focus of this exploratory study was on the leisure behaviors and experiences of a virtually ignored group of youth in our literature who might be considered at special risk-youth identified as lesbian, gay male, bisexual, or questioning their sexual identities'. Although the research about lesbian, gay male, bisexual and/or questioning youth has increased in other disciplines such as psychology, social work, counseling psychology and sociology, our field has been slow to focus attention on this segment of at risk youth (Grossman, 1992; Kivel, 1994). Boxer, Cohler, Herdt, and Irvin (1993) suggested that adolescent sexual identity is not frequently examined because it is ...one of the most sensitive social problems of our time...It is much more difficult for family and school to accept the possibility of a group of adolescents who early recognize their homosexual orientation and who seek a consistent lifestyle in the same manner as their heterosexual counterparts. (p. 255) The bulk of research about gay youth has largely focused on: "coming out" issues (Hetrick & Martin, 1987; Martin & Hetrick, 1988; Zera, 1992); pathological behaviors associated with being gay2, such as drug and alcohol abuse, suicide, truancy, unsafe sex (D'Augelli, 1994, 1996; Gibson, 1989; Remafedi, Farrow & Deisher, 1991) and identity formation (Cass, 1979; SavinWilliams, 1995; Sophie, 1985; Troiden, 1989). Sadly, lesbian, gay male, bisexual and/or questioning youth are more likely than their non-gay peers to engage in risky behaviors (drug and alcohol abuse, suicide, truancy, and unsafe sex (Gibson, 1989; Remadfedi, et al., 1991)). Additional research suggests that the isolation and stigmatization (and concomitant homophobia) that gay youth experience in the dominant, heterosexual culture contributes to these risky behaviors (e.g., D'Augelli, 1994; Grossman, 1992; Hetrick & Martin, 1987). Because the link between leisure and health has been supported (e.g., Coleman & Iso-Ahola, 1993; IsoAhola & Park, 1996), particularly the link between leisure and problem health behaviors of adolescents (e.g., Caldwell & Smith, 1995), our paper explores the leisure context of gay youth. Leisure as a Developmental Context Although leisure as a context for identity formation among youth has gained increased attention (e.g., Larson, 1994; Shaw, Kleiber, & Caldwell, 1995; Silbereisen, Noack, & Eyferth, 1986), the importance of the leisure context for gay youth has been virtually ignored. …