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Schedule:
Friday, January 22, 2027
Continental 1-4 (Hilton San Francisco Union Square)
* noted as presenting author
Background:
Minority stress puts LGBTQ+ adults at risk for adverse health outcomes. LGBTQ+ individuals are also more likely to be victimized as adolescents and adults, contributing to elevated trauma exposure. In contrast to 12–16% of the general US population, 43% of LGBTQ+ youth (aged 14-28) had four+ adverse childhood experiences. Grounded in strengths-based and culturally responsive perspectives, art-based interventions (ABI) offer an adaptable and effective pathway to address traumatic stress. Because LGBTQ+ populations face numerous barriers to treatment, the anti-oppressive context of group ABIs could be particularly beneficial.
Methodology:
The Transactional Model of Stress and Coping was adapted for this pilot study to focus on unique LGBTQ+ stressors and creative coping. Using bilaterally stimulating cutting and pasting techniques of collaging, participants mapped their maladaptive core beliefs and created alternatives based on post-traumatic growth. The six-week support group included the following: group discussions, sharing of holistic LGBTQ+ resources, touring art galleries, collaboratively collaging about LGBTQ+ collective trauma, psychoeducation, and creating individual collages to represent integrated traumatic and post-traumatic growth memories into a reconstructed strength-based narrative.
The pre/post-test quasi-experimental design employed the National Stressful Events Survey PTSD Short Scale and the Brief COPE, which assess the frequency of problem-focused, emotion-focused, and avoidant coping behaviors. Eligible participants were LGBTQ+ identifying adults (ages ranging from 20 to 37) with 1+ adverse childhood experience indicators. Selected participants (n=14) were randomly assigned to the treatment (n=6) or the waitlist control group (n=7). Independent t-tests analyzed pre/post-test scores for each group to evaluate efficacy in addressing trauma.
Results:
Baseline scores differed insignificantly between treatment and waitlist control groups. Differences in post-test traumatic stress symptom scores between the treatment (M= 16.83, SD= 7.60) and waitlist groups (M= 17.71, SD= 10.35) were insignificant, t (11) =, p= 0.43, p > 0.05). However, post-test emotion-focused coping behavior scores between the treatment (M= 13.33, SD= 5.13) and waitlist groups (M= 12.71, SD= 4.68) differed significantly, t (11) =1.79, p= 0.05, p > 0.05. Post-test avoidant coping scores between the treatment (M= 9, SD= 4.43) and waitlist groups (M= 9.14, SD= 4.63) differed insignificantly, t (11) = 0.06, p= 0.48, p > 0.05. Lastly, post-test problem-focused coping scores between the treatment (M= 15.83, SD= 4.45) and waitlist groups (M= 9.86, SD= 1.46) did differ significantly, t (11) = 3.37, p= 0.003, p > 0.05. Thus, the intervention successfully changed problem-focused and emotion-focused coping behaviors for participants.
Conclusions: Collaging offers a cost-effective, accessible, and time-effective ABI tool as it only requires scissors, glue, and magazines. Collaging actively engages the body and focuses on narratives in the combined images rather than artistic ability. Significantly reduced traumatic stress and avoidance found in earlier non-experimental iterations were not replicated. To determine further efficacy, future research will study a larger sample during a time when anti-LGBTQ+ hate is not increasing exponentially in the US. These findings fill a knowledge gap on a group protocol for addressing trauma with collage and, if effective, could address growing needs for community led and accessible LGBTQ+ affirming mental health services.
Minority stress puts LGBTQ+ adults at risk for adverse health outcomes. LGBTQ+ individuals are also more likely to be victimized as adolescents and adults, contributing to elevated trauma exposure. In contrast to 12–16% of the general US population, 43% of LGBTQ+ youth (aged 14-28) had four+ adverse childhood experiences. Grounded in strengths-based and culturally responsive perspectives, art-based interventions (ABI) offer an adaptable and effective pathway to address traumatic stress. Because LGBTQ+ populations face numerous barriers to treatment, the anti-oppressive context of group ABIs could be particularly beneficial.
Methodology:
The Transactional Model of Stress and Coping was adapted for this pilot study to focus on unique LGBTQ+ stressors and creative coping. Using bilaterally stimulating cutting and pasting techniques of collaging, participants mapped their maladaptive core beliefs and created alternatives based on post-traumatic growth. The six-week support group included the following: group discussions, sharing of holistic LGBTQ+ resources, touring art galleries, collaboratively collaging about LGBTQ+ collective trauma, psychoeducation, and creating individual collages to represent integrated traumatic and post-traumatic growth memories into a reconstructed strength-based narrative.
The pre/post-test quasi-experimental design employed the National Stressful Events Survey PTSD Short Scale and the Brief COPE, which assess the frequency of problem-focused, emotion-focused, and avoidant coping behaviors. Eligible participants were LGBTQ+ identifying adults (ages ranging from 20 to 37) with 1+ adverse childhood experience indicators. Selected participants (n=14) were randomly assigned to the treatment (n=6) or the waitlist control group (n=7). Independent t-tests analyzed pre/post-test scores for each group to evaluate efficacy in addressing trauma.
Results:
Baseline scores differed insignificantly between treatment and waitlist control groups. Differences in post-test traumatic stress symptom scores between the treatment (M= 16.83, SD= 7.60) and waitlist groups (M= 17.71, SD= 10.35) were insignificant, t (11) =, p= 0.43, p > 0.05). However, post-test emotion-focused coping behavior scores between the treatment (M= 13.33, SD= 5.13) and waitlist groups (M= 12.71, SD= 4.68) differed significantly, t (11) =1.79, p= 0.05, p > 0.05. Post-test avoidant coping scores between the treatment (M= 9, SD= 4.43) and waitlist groups (M= 9.14, SD= 4.63) differed insignificantly, t (11) = 0.06, p= 0.48, p > 0.05. Lastly, post-test problem-focused coping scores between the treatment (M= 15.83, SD= 4.45) and waitlist groups (M= 9.86, SD= 1.46) did differ significantly, t (11) = 3.37, p= 0.003, p > 0.05. Thus, the intervention successfully changed problem-focused and emotion-focused coping behaviors for participants.
Conclusions: Collaging offers a cost-effective, accessible, and time-effective ABI tool as it only requires scissors, glue, and magazines. Collaging actively engages the body and focuses on narratives in the combined images rather than artistic ability. Significantly reduced traumatic stress and avoidance found in earlier non-experimental iterations were not replicated. To determine further efficacy, future research will study a larger sample during a time when anti-LGBTQ+ hate is not increasing exponentially in the US. These findings fill a knowledge gap on a group protocol for addressing trauma with collage and, if effective, could address growing needs for community led and accessible LGBTQ+ affirming mental health services.