I caught this article on Facebook the other day – it’s results caught me by surprise (to an extent) but it has a key finding that I really wanted to go over.
In 2014, the University of British Columbia examined the connection between suicide rates and having a Gay-Straight Alliance at High Schools in Canada. The results showed that students were less likely to feel discrimination, experienced lower suicidal thoughts, and have lower rates of suicide attempts.
Just gay students, right?
Wrong. All students.
This is a pretty striking finding. Not only are GSAs positively related to the mental health of gay students, but if the findings of this study are correct, they can also positively impact the mental health of students whose lives would (theoretically) not be impacted directly by the Gay-Straight Alliance.
This is great for many reasons. First, as I discussed last week, LGBT Americans sadly have significantly higher rates of a slew of negative mental illnesses, including suicide. Clubs like GSAs can provide safe places for LGBT teens to congregate, build vitally necessary social relationships and learn they aren’t alone. All of these are mitigating factors against mental illness and suicide.
Intuitively, this makes sense. But the finding that I think is more worth examining is why GSAs are potentially tied to lower suicide rates in heterosexuals. First, a disclaimer: It is worth noting that this study is correlational, not causational. In other words, while lower suicide rates and GSAs appear to be related, the lower suicide rates may not be a direct result of GSAs. Indeed, it is possible that there are more GSAs because of lower suicide rates, or that a third factor (such ass wealth of a school district, education attainment of parents, etc) is tied to both GSAs and lower suicide rates.
However, the fact that both of these items seem related (regardless of the relationship) begs the question: What is the relationship between a more tolerant society for everyone, not just the directly affected groups?
This is one worth thinking about, because it can help change the frame of how we view ideals like inclusion an tolerance. We often have conversations about how they can positively impact effected groups – how marriage equality leads to better lives for LGBT individuals, how a lack of racism can improve the lives of impacted groups, etc.
But I want to change that perspective for a second.
I certainly think I’m not a racist person, and I can’t imagine what it is like to be that way. Being racist means you walk around which large chunks of anger, bitterness and resentment inside you all the time. Doesn’t that lead to higher levels of depression, of anxiety, and self-destructive behaviors?
That’s what I want to know. And it makes me wonder if more studies like this aren’t available – ones which show that a more tolerant and more inclusive society is better for everyone, not just affected groups.
As always, I’d love to hear your thoughts, your experience and if more research is available which proves or disproves this theory. Please let us know what you think in the comments below!
Mike Schlossberg - Author 