Buffie Longmire-Avital, associate professor of psychology, presented findings from her current research exploring the identity development of emerging adult black gay men and how this and other psychosocial factors are related to partner preferences and sexual health behaviors on Oct. 24.
The talk, which was titled, “’Even over the rainbow’: Exploring intersectional identities of emerging adult Black Gay men” focused on the preliminary findings from a mixed-methods online survey that Longmire-Avital and her collaborating student, Tres McMichael ‘19, conducted over the spring and summer of the previous academic year.
Forty-two self-identified black gay men anonymously responded to questions asking them to describe their identity, the regard they personally held and felt society holds for being a black gay man, and their hopes for a future serious long-term partner. Participants also answered a series of questions on sociodemographic factors, religious-spiritual beliefs, and sexual health behaviors, such as sexual assertiveness for asking their partners to disclose sexual health histories.
One of the major constructs examined was the perception of partner availability. This is a construct Longmire-Avital has previously explored with heterosexually active emerging adult women. Initial findings suggest a link between identity, perceptions of partner availability and sexual assertiveness.
In addition to writing up these findings for publication, McMichael and Longmire-Avital will use both the qualitative and quantitative data to inform the creation of a series of monologues and vignettes to be performed in the future.
The invited interdisciplinary talk was sponsored by African-American Studies, Psychology, Public Health, and Women, Gender, & Sexuality Studies at Guilford College.