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Experiences of homelessness are challenging for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and/or queer (LGBTQ+) young people. LGBTQ+ young adults without stable housing endure mental health struggles stemming from multiple structural disadvantages. In navigating stressors, LGBTQ+ young people may develop bonds with companion animals, or pets. Demonstrating the diverse ways LGBTQ+ young adults manage mental health challenges while homeless, we qualitatively analyzed the narratives of 17 LGBTQ+ young adults (18–25) surrounding their pet relationships. Participants emphasized the positive power of pets in their lives to help offset stressors. These findings illustrate how marginalized young people manage their mental health through informal resources. Incorporating companion animals could potentially enhance services for LGBTQ+ youth experiencing marginalization. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Men's experiences with sexual violence is an understudied topic within sociological literature. Despite the few past research endeavors that have focused on men, little is known regarding the ways that men college students grapple with their lived experiences with sexual violence. Using a sample of 29 active men college students, semi-structured interviews were conducted in order to investigate the ways in which men conceptualize their experiences with sexual violence in their own words. Results indicate that masculinity is intimately connected to sexual violence victimhood, as men can consider themselves victims, but in very distinct ways. Masculinity also acts as a sort of "buffer," in that many men who were interviewed for this research describe their experiences with sexual violence in ways that are similar to women's experiences, but they also express difficulty in accurately framing these experiences using linguistic framing mechanisms. Future directions for research are also explored. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Socialization surrounding gender and sexuality is prominent within the familial context. Gender and sexuality are frequently linked with the assumption that gender-expansive behavior leads to nonheterosexuality. Research has largely focused on parental perspectives, leaving queer youth experiences largely invisible. Utilizing semistructured interviews with 10 queer young adults, this project contributes to the existing discussions regarding gender and sexuality socialization while growing up. First, participants described parents' seemingly natural ability to correctly categorize youth's sexual orientation, which is often linked to gender nonconforming behavior. Participants reinforced essentialized ideas of gender and sexuality through their discussion of engagement in expansive gender behavior. Furthermore, women discussed more freedom to engage in diverse gender behavior, while being expected to conform to traditional gender roles. Through elevating youth's viewpoints on gender and sexuality family dynamics, these findings can assist service providers and parents in supporting queer youth across their gender and sexual development. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]