| This dissertation study examined the lived experiences of suicidality among gay male adolescents in lower Socioeconomic Strata (SES) through the use of exploratory basic interpretive qualitative research, and grounded theory design for data analysis. Many previous research studies have identified that suicidality among gay youth is a significant mental health concern due to its prevalence in the population of gay youth. Further, the accumulative literature on the topic of suicidality among gay youth suggests that the phenomenon of high rates of suicide among gay youth is grounded in a social context. Through exploring the challenges faced by gay youth in a given social environment, viz. lower SES communities, and relating those challenges to social systems theory, autopoiesis, and resiliency theory a theoretical framework was established. By using in-depth dramaturgical interviewing, purposive sampling, and grounded theory analysis, the study was able to mine out the lived experiences of young gay men in lower SES environments relative to experiencing poor self-esteem, lack of community supports, societal hostility, misinformation about sexuality and sexual development, gender typing, limited emotional supports, emotional anguish, and the eventual overcoming of social obstacles for psychological well being. A total of six gay men agreed to participate in the study, and to share their individual experiences. After conducting the in-depth interviews, four major themes emerged from the coded data, which were presented as the study's findings. The findings revealed that suicidality among gay males in lower SES environments is an experience that is deeply set within a social construct of violence and sexual exploitation of persons with minority sexual orientations, a desire to be what society wants one to be despite one's true self, and the only way to effectively handle the problem high suicide rates among gay youth in lower SES environments is to treat the societal landscape and not the individual person. |
