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Using Photovoice to Understand Suicidality Among Gay, Bisexual, and Two-Spirit Men

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Abstract

This study explored the drivers of suicidality from the perspectives of gay, bisexual, and two-spirit men (GB2SM) with a history of suicidality. Twenty-one GB2SM participated in this photovoice study taking photographs to depict and discuss their previous suicidality. Data were collected from in-depth individual interviews in which participants discussed their photographs and in turn offered verbal/narrative accounts of suicidality. Drawing on intersectionality, analyses of the photographs and interview data revealed three interconnected themes. First, adverse childhood events and negative adolescent experiences were described as the root causes of mental health struggles and suicidality. Second, violence and homophobia had disrupted these men’s education and employment opportunities and some participants detailed how their lack of capital and challenges for maintaining employment shaped their suicidality. Third, a sociality of stigma and sense of isolation compounded experiences of suicidality. The three themes overlapped and were shaped by multiple intersectional axes including sexuality, class, ethnicity, and mental health status. The findings have implications for services and health professionals working with GB2SM who need to thoughtfully consider life-course trajectories and multiple social axes when assessing and treating GB2SM experiencing suicidality. More so, because these factors relate to social inequities, structural and policy changes warrant targeted attention.

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Notes

  1. Two-spirit is an organizing term used by some Indigenous people in North America to describe their interrelated sexual, gender, and/or spiritual identities and reclaim gender roles that were used in several Indigenous traditions before European colonization. In many cases, it refers to a person who has both a masculine and feminine spirit (Wilson, 1996).

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Acknowledgements

Special thanks to the participants whose photographs and words are helping us share deeper understandings of suicidality among gay and bisexual men. This research and article was made possible by a grant from Movember Canada (Grant # 11R18455). The post-doctoral funding of Olivier Ferlatte was provided by Movember Canada (Grant # 11R18296) and CIHR (Grant # 11R06913).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. School of Nursing, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada

    Olivier Ferlatte, John L. Oliffe & Victoria Bungay

  2. British Columbia Center for Disease Control, Vancouver, BC, Canada

    Travis Salway

  3. School of Public and Population Health, University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada

    Travis Salway

  4. School of Social Sciences, University of New South Wales, Sydney, Australia

    Alex Broom

  5. Orygen, The National Centre for Excellence in Youth Mental Health, Centre for Youth Mental Health, The University of Melbourne, Melbourne, Australia

    Simon Rice

  6. British Columbia Centre on Substance Use, 400 – 1045 Howe Street, Vancouver, BC, V6Z 2A9, Canada

    Olivier Ferlatte

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  1. Olivier Ferlatte
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Correspondence to Olivier Ferlatte.

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Ferlatte, O., Oliffe, J.L., Salway, T. et al. Using Photovoice to Understand Suicidality Among Gay, Bisexual, and Two-Spirit Men. Arch Sex Behav 48, 1529–1541 (2019). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-019-1433-6

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