Buzz Kill: Sexual Health Outreach Workers as Education Facilitators

• In Event: AERA Roundtable Session Sunday 9:50 am Four Seasons Ballroom 2-3
  In Roundtable Session: Exploring Intersectional Justice in Educational Research (Table 10)

Abstract

Research into the ways in which gbMSM (gay, bisexual, and men who have sex with men) acquire their sexual health literacy is lacking. Using qualitative data from the iCruise study, this paper examines the ways gbMSM use outreach workers, both in online spaces and in-person venues, to learn about their sexual health and whether they perceive outreach workers to have an impact on their behaviours. It was found that while few use outreach workers, they nevertheless see them as an important part of a sexual health literacy framework, allowing them to access information in a way that is more supportive than traditional avenues of sexual health education, and were specifically effective at disseminating information to specific subpopulations.

Authors

• Jason Tigert, University of Toronto - OISE

• Lance Trevor McCready, University of Toronto - OISE

• David J. Brennan, University of Toronto

• David Collict, University of Toronto - OISE