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The Relationship between quality of life and social support in homosexuals living in Izmir, Turkey

The Relationship between quality of life and social support in homosexuals living in Izmir, Turkey It has been well documented that quality of life (QL), an indicator of people's subjective sense of well‐being, is not evenly distributed among people in society. This descriptive study investigated the levels of social support and quality of life in homosexuals living in the city of Izmir in Turkey and the factors affecting the levels of their quality of life and social support, and to determine the relationship between their quality of life and the social support they received. Seventy‐two individuals were included in the study by network/snowball sampling method. The World Health Organization Brief Quality of Life Assessment Scale (WHOQOL‐BREF), Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support scale (MSPSS) and socio‐demographic questionnaire were used in the research. All the individuals involved were male. According to the Turkish Penal Code, same‐sex relations among people over 18 are not considered a crime although secret prostitution is prohibited. Little research has been carried out on homosexuality in Turkey. According to studies in Turkey, attitudes towards gay men and lesbians are usually negative. Yuzgun argued that homosexuals in Turkey are regularly exposed to police terror. One of the major causes of negative attitude is religious beliefs. Of the participants, 60.3% were transsexual and 39.7% were homosexual and their mean age was 30.5 ± 8.9 (16–55). The quality of life scores of homosexuals were lower than were those of heterosexuals, as has been found in other studies. Transsexuals’ and homosexuals’ mean scores for overall quality of life and social support were determined as 53.66 ± 8.29 (33.05–73.43) and 51.68 ± 27.06 (12–154) respectively. The study findings revealed that homosexuals’ scores for perceived social support and quality of life were worse than those of other people and transsexuals’ scores for quality of life, psychological health and social support subscales were better than those of homosexuals ( p <0.05). Among the reasons why transsexuals have better quality of life domain scores are that they are perceived by the society as females due to their physical appearance, and that they have overcome the sexual identity problem and thus they see themselves as women. The most important feature designating the quality of life is the parents’ education level ( p <0.05). This result can be interpreted to suggest that families with higher education can communicate with their children better and try to understand them more. In addition, the fact that those who become aware of their sexual identity and acknowledge it at an early age, and thus are accepted by their families more easily, can be considered another factor affecting the high scores for the family subscale. Those whose parents’ education was higher than primary school education (n=39; 53.4%), who did not grow up in fragmented families (n=55;75.3%) or who acknowledged their sexual identities after puberty (n= 55; 75.3%) achieved higher scores for the friends subscale. Not having experienced any sexual assault (n= 16; 21.9%), being aware of the groups dealing with their problems (n=38; 52.1%), not smoking (n=12; 16.4%) and not using alcohol (n=10; 13.7%) or any illicit substance (n=30;41.1%) are among the other variables affecting their quality of life positively. The relationship between social support and the quality of life was determined by the fact that the quality of life increased as social support increased (r=0.328, p =0.005). The data in the literature indicate that social support is important for homosexuals, because the more social support they have the fewer psychological, physical and emotional health problems they experience, but they cannot get enough social support from their families. It is reported that homosexuals who do not get enough social support from their families seek more support from their friends, and that the support from friends affects their psychosocial life positively, as indicated in our study. The study group stated that they mostly shared their problems with their homosexual friends (36.9%), and that the main problem they experienced was being despised because of their sexual identities (36.9%). Struggling against similar problems arising from social pressure, and sharing the same fate, are among the other factors which strengthen friendship. Previous research has suggested that if families of gays and lesbians do not provide the support they need, they receive it from their partners and friends. As found in our study, several other studies in the literature have found that social support improves homosexuals’ quality of life and encourages them to behave positively. Studies also show that social support influences health behaviours. But studies conducted on homosexuals in our society only deal with disease. There is a need to perform more social studies and research to determine the status and needs of homosexuals. It would be appropriate to develop individual training programs and national social service programs in order to improve the social support homosexuals receive and thus their quality of life. http://www.deepdyve.com/assets/images/DeepDyve-Logo-lg.png Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health Wiley

The Relationship between quality of life and social support in homosexuals living in Izmir, Turkey

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Publisher
Wiley
Copyright
© 2012 The Authors. ANZJPH © 2012 Public Health Association of Australia
ISSN
1326-0200
eISSN
1753-6405
DOI
10.1111/j.1753-6405.2012.00900.x
Publisher site
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Abstract

It has been well documented that quality of life (QL), an indicator of people's subjective sense of well‐being, is not evenly distributed among people in society. This descriptive study investigated the levels of social support and quality of life in homosexuals living in the city of Izmir in Turkey and the factors affecting the levels of their quality of life and social support, and to determine the relationship between their quality of life and the social support they received. Seventy‐two individuals were included in the study by network/snowball sampling method. The World Health Organization Brief Quality of Life Assessment Scale (WHOQOL‐BREF), Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support scale (MSPSS) and socio‐demographic questionnaire were used in the research. All the individuals involved were male. According to the Turkish Penal Code, same‐sex relations among people over 18 are not considered a crime although secret prostitution is prohibited. Little research has been carried out on homosexuality in Turkey. According to studies in Turkey, attitudes towards gay men and lesbians are usually negative. Yuzgun argued that homosexuals in Turkey are regularly exposed to police terror. One of the major causes of negative attitude is religious beliefs. Of the participants, 60.3% were transsexual and 39.7% were homosexual and their mean age was 30.5 ± 8.9 (16–55). The quality of life scores of homosexuals were lower than were those of heterosexuals, as has been found in other studies. Transsexuals’ and homosexuals’ mean scores for overall quality of life and social support were determined as 53.66 ± 8.29 (33.05–73.43) and 51.68 ± 27.06 (12–154) respectively. The study findings revealed that homosexuals’ scores for perceived social support and quality of life were worse than those of other people and transsexuals’ scores for quality of life, psychological health and social support subscales were better than those of homosexuals ( p <0.05). Among the reasons why transsexuals have better quality of life domain scores are that they are perceived by the society as females due to their physical appearance, and that they have overcome the sexual identity problem and thus they see themselves as women. The most important feature designating the quality of life is the parents’ education level ( p <0.05). This result can be interpreted to suggest that families with higher education can communicate with their children better and try to understand them more. In addition, the fact that those who become aware of their sexual identity and acknowledge it at an early age, and thus are accepted by their families more easily, can be considered another factor affecting the high scores for the family subscale. Those whose parents’ education was higher than primary school education (n=39; 53.4%), who did not grow up in fragmented families (n=55;75.3%) or who acknowledged their sexual identities after puberty (n= 55; 75.3%) achieved higher scores for the friends subscale. Not having experienced any sexual assault (n= 16; 21.9%), being aware of the groups dealing with their problems (n=38; 52.1%), not smoking (n=12; 16.4%) and not using alcohol (n=10; 13.7%) or any illicit substance (n=30;41.1%) are among the other variables affecting their quality of life positively. The relationship between social support and the quality of life was determined by the fact that the quality of life increased as social support increased (r=0.328, p =0.005). The data in the literature indicate that social support is important for homosexuals, because the more social support they have the fewer psychological, physical and emotional health problems they experience, but they cannot get enough social support from their families. It is reported that homosexuals who do not get enough social support from their families seek more support from their friends, and that the support from friends affects their psychosocial life positively, as indicated in our study. The study group stated that they mostly shared their problems with their homosexual friends (36.9%), and that the main problem they experienced was being despised because of their sexual identities (36.9%). Struggling against similar problems arising from social pressure, and sharing the same fate, are among the other factors which strengthen friendship. Previous research has suggested that if families of gays and lesbians do not provide the support they need, they receive it from their partners and friends. As found in our study, several other studies in the literature have found that social support improves homosexuals’ quality of life and encourages them to behave positively. Studies also show that social support influences health behaviours. But studies conducted on homosexuals in our society only deal with disease. There is a need to perform more social studies and research to determine the status and needs of homosexuals. It would be appropriate to develop individual training programs and national social service programs in order to improve the social support homosexuals receive and thus their quality of life.

Journal

Australian and New Zealand Journal of Public Health – Wiley

Published: Aug 1, 2012

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