Poster Session I
Project Type
Poster
Faculty Mentor’s Full Name
Bryan Cochran
Faculty Mentor’s Department
Psychology
Abstract / Artist's Statement
Community resilience has been identified as a protective factor against the negative psychological effects of minority stress among LGBTQ+ individuals (Meyer, 2015; Ilac, 2025; McConnell et al., 2018). Less research has examined how community resilience factors contribute to positive psychological functioning. Rather than solely focusing on buffering distress, the present study explores whether engagement in activism and identification of one’s self as a role model may help transform faced adversity into a sense of life purpose.
This analysis used survey data originally collected to examine multiple community resilience factors in LGBTQ+ adults (N=420). Participants ranged from age 18 to 75 (M=27.23). Two questions are addressed in this study: 1) Are activism participation and identification as a role model associated with greater purpose in life among LGBTQ+ adults?, and 2) Does age moderate these relationships? It is hypothesized that greater engagement in LGBTQ+ activism and stronger identification as a role model will be positively associated with life purpose. Informed by Erikson’s lifespan development theory (Erikson & Erikson, 1998), activism is expected to be more strongly associated with purpose among younger adults, whereas role modeling is expected to be more strongly associated with purpose among older adults.
By shifting focus from harm reduction to meaning-making, this study aims to expand understanding of how community engagement may foster growth and well-being. Findings may inform strengths-based clinical approaches that emphasize not only coping with adversity, but also cultivating purpose through contribution and connection.
Category
Social Sciences
Community Contribution as a Pathway to Purpose: Activism and Role Modeling in LGBTQ+ Adults
UC South Ballroom
Community resilience has been identified as a protective factor against the negative psychological effects of minority stress among LGBTQ+ individuals (Meyer, 2015; Ilac, 2025; McConnell et al., 2018). Less research has examined how community resilience factors contribute to positive psychological functioning. Rather than solely focusing on buffering distress, the present study explores whether engagement in activism and identification of one’s self as a role model may help transform faced adversity into a sense of life purpose.
This analysis used survey data originally collected to examine multiple community resilience factors in LGBTQ+ adults (N=420). Participants ranged from age 18 to 75 (M=27.23). Two questions are addressed in this study: 1) Are activism participation and identification as a role model associated with greater purpose in life among LGBTQ+ adults?, and 2) Does age moderate these relationships? It is hypothesized that greater engagement in LGBTQ+ activism and stronger identification as a role model will be positively associated with life purpose. Informed by Erikson’s lifespan development theory (Erikson & Erikson, 1998), activism is expected to be more strongly associated with purpose among younger adults, whereas role modeling is expected to be more strongly associated with purpose among older adults.
By shifting focus from harm reduction to meaning-making, this study aims to expand understanding of how community engagement may foster growth and well-being. Findings may inform strengths-based clinical approaches that emphasize not only coping with adversity, but also cultivating purpose through contribution and connection.