Social ecologies of vaping: a pattern oriented longitudinal qualitative analysis of lesbian, bisexual, and queer women’s changing e-cigarette use

‘All the dykes I know drink beer’: Sexuality and gender performance through alcohol consumption among lesbian, bisexual, and queer women in Australia

This article examines the intersections of alcohol consumption and safety for lesbian, bisexual, and queer (LBQ) women and non-binary people in public spaces, addressing critical gaps in research that predominantly focuses on heterosexual women. While women’s alcohol use is often framed in terms of health and social risks, existing scholarship frequently emphasizes the role of men’s drinking in perpetuating gendered violence. For LBQ women, these risks are compounded by intersecting experiences of homophobia, cissexism, and misogyny, which shape their perceptions of vulnerability and safety in alcohol-related environments. Despite evidence that LBQ women consume alcohol at higher rates than heterosexual women, few studies explore how their drinking practices interact with gendered and sexualised dynamics of public safety. Drawing on narcofeminist theory, this study analyses semi-structured interviews with 60 participants conducted as part of a broader longitudinal qualitative study on LBQ women’s alcohol and nicotine use in Australia. Findings demonstrate that alcohol-related safety concerns are highly spatialised and shaped by intersecting identities. While mainstream venues often heightened participants’ sense of risk, LGBTQ community spaces fostered ‘cultures of care’ that enabled safer and more inclusive drinking environments. This research offers new insights into the nuanced ways LBQ women and non-binary people navigate alcohol use and safety.

Agency and queer solidarity: Help-seeking for alcohol and nicotine issues among lesbian, bisexual and queer women and non-binary people.

Background The rising prevalence of vaping poses new challenges and opportunities for health policy and public health interventions. Given that, historically, smoking has been more prevalent among lesbian, bisexual, and queer (LBQ) women than other women, this study explores LBQ women’s perceptions and experiences of vaping. Methods Sixty LBQ women and some non-binary people (aged 18–72) participated in in-depth qualitative interviews between May and July 2023, providing insights into the emerging prevalence and nature of vaping within LBQ women’s communities. Thematic analysis techniques were employed to identify key themes, including (1) risk perceptions and social stigma, (2) gendered perceptions of vaping, and (3) experiences of vaping-related harms. Results Results highlight gendered perceptions of vaping among LBQ women, with participants describing vaping as a feminine practice, influenced by flavour choices and the visual aesthetics of vape devices. Despite perceiving vaping as more socially acceptable than smoking, some participants expressed a sense of embarrassment about vaping, while others reported substantial challenges and health concerns. Conclusion Concerns about vaping-related harms, addiction, and the evolving social dynamics of vaping contribute to LBQ women’s engagement with this emerging practice. Understanding these dynamics is crucial for developing targeted harm reduction strategies and support services tailored to LBQ women’s unique needs in the evolving landscape of vaping. Policy Implications Health and social policy may require specific responses to address higher rates of vaping among LGBTQ populations, including LBQ women.

Queering vaping: A qualitative analysis of lesbian, bisexual, and queer women's E-cigarette use in Australia.

This article discusses considerations for integrating spirituality into feminist multicultural counseling (FMC) with diverse lesbian, bisexual, and queer (LBQ) women clients. First, the authors describe the historical conflict between LBQ women and conservative religions and explain how hierarchical, patriarchal assumptions and values of conservative religions may have a negative effect on well-being and empowerment. Second, the authors describe the positive influences of affirming religions and spiritualities on LBQ women's resilience within oppressive sociocultural contexts. Third, the authors explore the relevance of FMC when integrating spirituality into counseling with LBQ women. Fourth, the authors provide an overview of a model of FMC framework for integrating spirituality into FMC. Finally, we provide a client vignette example.

Purpose: There is increasing research on positive body image, but no studies to date have examined these constructs in lesbian, bisexual, and queer (LBQ) women. However, LBQ women are at increased risk for mental health concerns and disordered eating, and there is evidence that body appreciation might be both adaptive and protective. This study examined factors that could uniquely relate to body appreciation in LBQ women.Method: Women identifying as LBQ (N=150) completed demographics and measures of social support, resilience, self-esteem, and body appreciation. We tested a hypothesized mediational model of social support leading indirectly to body appreciation through resilience and self-esteem, controlling for body mass index.Results: All direct effects, except social support to body appreciation (p=0.696), were significant (ps=0.017–0.001), reflecting a full multiple mediation. As hypothesized, the effect of social support on body appreciation was indirect (p=0.011), through resilience and self-esteem.Conclusion: This is the first study to investigate factors that might facilitate positive body image in LBQ women. Although preliminary, results suggest social support, resilience, and self-esteem might be important targets of body image interventions with LBQ women.

Research often erases the distinct experiences of bisexual and queer women through collapsing participants with lesbian or gay women. In addition, queer is often not included as a sexual orientation identity in research, therefore limiting the available information about how this group experiences minority stress. Given these limitations, we sought to compare groups, based on their sexual orientation identity, on experiences of minority stress and mental health to further understand between group differences that often go unaccounted for in research. Participants (N = 249; age range 19-77; M = 38.43, SD = 12.98) completed an online survey exploring experiences of minority stress and mental health. We found that the group most at risk for encountering minority stressors depended on the specific stressor being examined. Queer and gay or lesbian women encountered greater victimization, discrimination, and expectations of discrimination than bisexual women. However, bisexual women had higher levels of identity concealment and internalized heterosexism than gay, lesbian, or queer women. While queer women tended to have fewer proximal stressors, they were similar to bisexual women in terms of psychological distress, with both groups scoring higher than gay or lesbian women. These results highlight the need to examine between group differences in future research. The experiences of minority stress appear to complexly relate to psychological distress in varying ways for different groups of women, with bisexual and queer women having the highest rates of psychological distress although they vary in the types of stressors that they encounter. In addition, the experiences of queer women were divergent from those of gay, lesbian, or bisexual women across many of the stressors, indicating that there is a need to further recognize this distinct group of women in future research.

BackgroundSmoking rates have declined markedly in Australia over time; however, lesbian, bisexual and queer (LBQ) women continue to smoke at higher rates than heterosexual women. Understanding the factors influencing smoking...

The purposes of this study were to measure the prevalence of, and identify factors associated with, cervical cancer screening among a sample of lesbian, bisexual and queer women, and transgender men. Past research has found that lesbian, bisexual and queer women underuse cervical screening service. Because deficient screening remains the most significant risk factor for cervical cancer, it is essential to understand the differences between routine and nonroutine screeners. A convergent-parallel mixed methods design. A convenience sample of 21- to 65-year-old lesbian and bisexual women and transgender men were recruited in the USA from August-December 2014. Quantitative data were collected via a 48-item Internet questionnaire (N=226), and qualitative data were collected through in-depth telephone interviews (N=20) and open-ended questions on the Internet questionnaire. Seventy-three per cent of the sample was routine cervical screeners. The results showed that a constellation of factors influence the use of cervical cancer screening among lesbian, bisexual and queer women. Some of those factors overlap with the general female population, whereas others are specific to the lesbian, bisexual or queer identity. Routine screeners reported feeling more welcome in the health care setting, while nonroutine screeners reported more discrimination related to their sexual orientation and gender expression. Routine screeners were also more likely to 'out' to their provider. The quantitative and qualitative factors were also compared and contrasted. Many of the factors identified in this study to influence cervical cancer screening relate to the health care environment and to interactions between the patient and provider. Nurses should be involved with creating welcoming environments for lesbian, bisexual and queer women and their partners. Moreover, nurses play a large role in patient education and should promote self-care behaviours among lesbian women and transgender men.

BackgroundIntimate partner violence (IPV) is a global public health problem, associated with negative physical and mental health impacts. Research on IPV has mainly focused on heterosexual relationships with limited focus on same-sex relationships. This paper reports the findings of a qualitative study which explored experiences, context, drivers, and impact of IPV in same-sex relationships of students who identify as lesbian, bisexual, and queer (LBQ) women at three campuses in a university in South Africa.MethodsWe collected data through focus group discussions (FGDs) with 56 students who self-identified as LBQ women. Participants were Black African, between 18 and 30 years of age, enrolled in courses for at least 1 year, and volunteered to participate in group discussions. Data were analyzed inductively using a thematic analysis approach. We drew from the post-structural feminist theory to understand the relationship dynamics in same sex relationships of LBQ women.ResultsThree themes were developed through the analysis of data. The first theme is on the nature and forms of violence experienced by LBQ women—where women described bidirectional partner violence, including physical, sexual, and emotional IPV, and controlling behaviors in their relationships; and discrimination and disregard for bisexual women. Theme two highlighted the drivers and context of violence experience and enactment in intimate relationships which included multiple factors: past traumas, previous experience of violence, poor communication and poor conflict resolution skills, and heteronormativity and gender norms. IPV occurred when gender roles and expectations were not met, and when contesting for power and dominance in relationships. The last theme elaborates on the mental health impacts of IPV among LBQ women which included depression, anger, self-hate, and negatively impacted self-esteem. Furthermore, participants spoke of their mental health contributing to IPV perpetration and negatively affecting their academic outcomes.ConclusionsOur findings suggest the need for IPV interventions that address both victimization and perpetration, given the occurrence of bidirectional violence. Such interventions should focus on building healthy and non-violent relationships and on promoting mental health of LBQ women students in same-sex relationships. Interventions should be co-developed with LBQ women on campuses for greater relevance and impact.

Lesbian, bisexual, and queer (LBQ) women experience disproportionately high rates of unwanted sex, including sexual assault. The literature has noted LBQ women's elevated risk for sexual victimization compared to heterosexual women, but little research has compared LBQ women's processing of sexual violations to those of heterosexual women. To address this gap, this article examines accounts of unwanted sex among 20 LBQ and 38 heterosexual college women (57 cisgender; 1 transwoman). We use both studies of embodiment and queer theory to understand socially patterned differences between LBQ and heterosexual women's accounts of unwanted sex. Our findings indicate that heterosexual women's multiple experiences with men (violent and not) often lead to explanations of sexual violations focused on men's individual characteristics, for example, certain men are better/worse than others. In contrast, LBQ women's experiences with women/non-binary partners produce a broader critique of heterosexuality. We find suggestive evidence that this difference helps LBQ women move away from self-blame toward a position of naming injustice.

In lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) spaces, gay male practices, sexualities, and priorities often dominate. I argue that in mixed-gender LGBTQ festival spaces in the South, gay aesthetics are normative, which often minimizes the contributions of lesbian, bisexual, and queer (LBQ) women. I compare two festival events run by the LGBTQ community—Cornyation, a mock debutante pageant that is part of Fiesta in San Antonio, Texas, and Osiris Ball, a formal Carnival ball during Mardi Gras in Mobile, Alabama. This research is based on participant observation data collected at both events over several years and 38 interviews conducted with event participants. I argue that at these events, gay aesthetic power is exerted through the expectation that LBQ women should master these aesthetics, a dynamic that often relies on gay men as arbiters of successful mastery. These processes were more dramatic in organizations and spaces where men were a numerical majority. This marginalization fits within a pattern of androcentric bias in both the arts and the workplace.

Background: Lesbian, bisexual, and queer (LBQ) women exhibit high rates of alcohol and tobacco use, yet there is limited qualitative research examining why. Previous research has focused on minority stress explanations, linking alcohol and tobacco use to experiences of discrimination. However, other work considers the social contexts and cultural practices associated with alcohol and tobacco consumption. This confirms the need for more in-depth understandings of LBQ women’s lived experiences in a contemporary Australian context. Aims: To address gaps in existing research, this project aims to develop a more nuanced contemporaneous theorising of what alcohol and tobacco mean to LBQ women in Australia. Drawing on feminist and critical drugs studies, this research will examine the complexities of alcohol and tobacco in LBQ women’s lives, including how patterns of use change over time. We will also critically consider how LBQ women understand risk in relation to these substances, including factors leading to harm reduction and help-seeking. Method: We will employ a longitudinal qualitative approach to explore LBQ women’s experiences over time, including three waves of semi-structured interviews and participant photography. We aim to recruit approximately 60 women in Victoria and New South Wales. Interview and visual data will be analysed using a range of narrative and thematic techniques. Conclusion: This study seeks to explore the complexities of individual experiences with alcohol and tobacco use, including pleasure and support-seeking, and to provide a nuanced understanding of the cultural dimensions of use that may change over time. In doing so, we propose a shift from deficit approaches to LBQ women’s substance use towards more meaningful strengths-based engagement with the function of substances for LBQ women. Findings will be significant in their contribution to the current understandings of substance use patterns among LBQ women and the implications for harm reduction and health interventions.

Few studies have focused on the health and health care of U.S. black lesbian, bisexual, and queer (LBQ) women. To understand the facilitators of and barriers to cervical cancer screening in this population, focus group discussions were conducted in Boston and Cambridge, Massachusetts between November and December 2012. Using purposive sampling methods, the authors enrolled 18 black LBQ women who participated in one of four focus groups. Using thematic analysis, patient-provider communication was identified, which consisted of four sub-themes—health care provider communication style and demeanor; heteronormative provider assumptions; heterosexism, racism, and classism; and provider professional and sociodemographic background—as the most salient theme. Participants reported fears and experiences of multiple forms of discrimination and preferred receiving care from providers who were knowledgeable about same-sex sexual health and shared their life experiences at the intersection of gender, race/ethnicity, and sexual orientation. The cervical cancer screening experiences of black LBQ women would be improved by training all health care providers in same-sex sexual health, offering opportunities for clinicians to learn about the effects of various forms of discrimination on women’s health care, and increasing the presence of LBQ women of color in health care settings.