Simon: APA Psychological Science Research Grant on Diversity

By its very nature, intersectionality requires that we focus on our multi-layered lives and how our identities impact future narratives. This research seeks to understand the experiences of individuals weaving together their sexual and gender identity, perceptions of future parenthood, and complicated grief. Although the study design involves diverse individuals (i.e., LGBTQ+ individuals), the added focus is on two narratives that are understudied within research on LGBTQ+ culture and people. Many LGBTQ+ individuals believe that they cannot be parents, and experiencing the loss of this identity likely impacts future outcomes. How does one grapple with the idea that they can no longer be a parent in a world in which parenthood is perceived as a requirement to life satisfaction? This research involves different areas of diversity in terms of sample as well as relevant, positive impacts to different fields of academic research. By beginning development of a measure to bridge the gap between understudied LGBTQ+ narratives about future parenthood and quantitative psychological assessment for related outcomes (e.g., resiliency, depression). We can also begin to focus our research on within group diversity, do transgender men think about future parenthood differently compared to those who hold other sexual and gender identities? This is likely the case but not as prominent in academic literature. Thus, the potential impact for diversity would allow scientists to move forward in a collaborative way focusing on the links between qualitative narrative research, scale development, and later assessment and prediction of future outcomes.