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The Gay Community Involvement Index: An Exploratory Factor Analysis and Initial Validation of a New Measure of Gay Community Involvement

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Abstract

This article details initial measure development, exploratory factor analysis, and preliminary validation of the Gay Community Involvement Index (GCII) across two studies. Previous research on gay community involvement has relied on measures that do not distinguish between distinct ways in which men may be involved in the gay community (e.g., going to bars and clubs vs. advocating for political issues). The GCII is a new multidimensional measure of the type and intensity of participation in a variety of activities within the gay community. Exploratory factor analysis suggested four subscales: Community Activities, Nightlife, Media, and Political Activism. We report strong evidence for internal consistency within subscale scores, as well as both convergent and discriminant validity for subscale scores. This measure may help those researching gay men’s health and well-being better understand the impact of different types of community involvement on health and psychosocial outcomes.

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Notes

  1. For example, Kippax et al. (1992) included items about attending gay theater, films, or books; we changed this to be gay television shows, blogs, and other online content.

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Funding

This work was supported by grants from the Weinberg College of Arts and Sciences and the Northwestern Office of Undergraduate Research.

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  1. Olivia Foster-Gimbel

    Present address: New York University Stern School of Business, 44 West 4th Street, New York, NY, 10012, USA

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychology, Northwestern University, Evanston, IL, USA

    Olivia Foster-Gimbel & Renee Engeln

  2. Department of Psychology, University of Exeter, Exeter, UK

    David Matthew Doyle

Authors
  1. Olivia Foster-Gimbel
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  2. David Matthew Doyle
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Correspondence to Olivia Foster-Gimbel.

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Foster-Gimbel, O., Doyle, D.M. & Engeln, R. The Gay Community Involvement Index: An Exploratory Factor Analysis and Initial Validation of a New Measure of Gay Community Involvement. Arch Sex Behav 49, 233–247 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-018-1271-y

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