Researcher bios and how their research backgrounds relate to this study

My name is Calvin Fernandez and I am the student lead for this project as a part of my PhD in Population and Public Health at the University of British Columbia. I am a racialized queer man myself, having immigrated to Canada in 2022 to start my PhD studies. I am a qualitative researcher by training, having primarily conducted community-based research e.g. photovoice. Prior to starting the PhD, I was a community health worker and educator in Malaysia, primarily working with underprivileged populations in Malaysia including cancer survivors and people living with HIV. The over-arching goal for this research is shaped by my own experiences dealing with interpersonal and socio-structural challenges, both in Malaysia and Canada - as a BIPOC gay man, which has influenced my past experiences of mental health distress. With the support and therapy I have garnered since then, including through local organizations in Vancouver, I have come to realize that inequities still persist for specific groups within the 2SLGBTQ+ community in Canada, where the entwinements of masculinity, racism/colorism and transphobia still manifest to heighten our suicidality risks. Drawing on my own experiences and expertise for doing community based research and working with grassroot communities, I believe I am well-positioned to lead this study, with the support of an excellent supervisory committee.

Purpose of this research project

The intersections of heterosexism and transphobia with racism and colorism predispose racialized 2SGBTQ men to increased violence, marginalization and social rejection as a result of their multiple marginalized identities. Also known as multiple minority stress, these experiences negatively impact racialized 2SGBTQ men’s psychological and physical health. Racialized 2SGBTQ men also face increased pressures to conform to traditional masculinity – idealized forms of male gender performance including heterosexuality, stoicism and dominance as a way of compensating for their sexual and/or gender minority identities. The interconnections between multiple minority stress and masculinities influence racialized 2SGBTQ men’s lives in diverse ways including in terms of their sexual/dating lives, in their employment and when navigating familial and community cultures. These experiences erode their self-esteem, which in turn invoke feelings of social isolation, lack of belonging and psychological distress. However, connections between multiple minority stress, masculinities and suicidality among racialized 2SGBTQ men is still poorly understood, especially within Canadian contexts. At present, racialized 2SGBTQ men still make up less than 30% of the total sample size across different studies that explore gay, bisexual and other men who have sex with men (GBMSM)’s suicidality in Canada. They are also often treated as a homogenous, monolithic group, hence diminishing the diverse sociocultural variations between sub-groups of racialized 2SGBTQ men.

Given these knowledge gaps and the increasing suicide rates among men, including 2SGBTQ men in Canada, this study will use interpretive description methodology and virtual photovoice methods to i) explore the connections between multiple minority stress, masculinities and suicidality among Canadian-based racialized 2SGBTQ men, ii) describe Canadian-based racialized 2SGBTQ men’s strategies including strengths and challenges in dealing with suicidality, and iii) generate Canadian-based racialized 2SGBTQ men’s recommendations for designing and implementing culturally responsive and gender transformative suicide prevention programs.

To participate in the study, individuals will have to i) self-identify as a racialized 2SGBTQ man, ii) currently reside in Canada, iii) can speak and understand English, iv) aged 19 and above, and v) have previously experienced suicidality (defined as suicidal ideation, planning and/or attempt). Participants will not be eligible if i) they do not have a device that will allow for Zoom interviews, ii) unable/refuse to submit photographs, and iii) currently experiencing suicidality at the time of enrolment.

Participation in the study will involve i) submitting 5 to 10 photographs that best illustrate their strategies for dealing with suicidality via Qualtrics, and ii) undergoing a fully virtual Zoom photovoice interview where participants will discuss their experiences of suicidality, using their photographs as tools for narrating and expressing their thoughts. These photographs and accompanying narratives will be used to increase public awareness about racialized 2SGBTQ men’s suicidality, including appealing to those who are at risk for suicide to mobilize more adaptive alternatives to taking one’s life, and tailoring existing suicide prevention programs in Canada to be more culturally responsive and gender transformative.

How this research will help LGBT2SQ people and communities

This research will provide new insights for understanding what characterizes racialized 2SGBTQ men's distinct and diverse experiences of, and strategies for dealing with suicidality. The use of a strengths-based approach, using virtual photovoice methods can confer significant agency and autonomy to center and amplify men's voices as a part of this study. The findings will then be used to tailor existing (and future) suicide prevention programs to be more culturally responsive and gender transformative. Some work have already started for doing this including plans for an in-person photo exhibition in July in Vancouver to engage the general public and policy-makers to utilize these findings to promote behavioral and policy changes. This is especially important given that racialized 2SGBTQ men's nuanced experiences of suicidality remain under-represented within broader Canadian suicide research, as the country still lacks an effective national suicide prevention policy.

Participants

Eligible participants will be anyone who i) self-identify as racialized 2SGBTQ men, ii) are 19 years old and above, iii) currently reside in Canada, iv) speak and understand English, and v) have experienced suicidal ideation, planning and/or attempt (suicidality)

Compensation

Eligible participants will receive a $CAD 100 digital gift card for any Canadian store of their choice upon i) submitting the photographs AND ii) completing the photovoice interviews.

Mitigation measures

Recognizing the risks associated with discussions of suicidality, only participants who do not experience suicidality at the time of study enrolment will be included in this study. Participants will be provided with a comprehensive, non-exhaustive list of mental health resources before the start of the interview. Additionally, to ensure that I would be able to effectively identify suicide risk and connect participants to resources, I have completed a suicide alertness training (safeTALK) with BC Crisis Center and developed a suicide distress protocol based on UBC’s Office of Research Ethics' Suicide Risk Guidance to strategize how to protect participants and mitigate mental health distress in the event of a mental health emergency. All participants will also receive a photo-guide and briefing on taking photographs to ensure consent and safety are maintained. Lastly, despite the signing of photograph release forms by participants, they will still be able to withdraw consent for their photographs by notifying me via email. However, participants will be informed that once photographs are published in public domains such as open-access journal articles or virtual exhibitions, there is no guarantee they can be removed permanently.

Promoting the Study

I will be driving recruitment using e-flyers and physical posters that will describe the study and invite potential participants to contact me (calvin.fernandez@ubc.ca). These will be disseminated via existing social media channels including X, Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn, as well as physically pinned on bulletin boards in community health centers, coffee shops, public gyms and on-campus recreational centers and student lounges. These e-flyers will also be disseminated across Canada via the co-investigators' existing network and collaboration with organizations throughout the country including the Health Initiative for Men (HiM) in Vancouver, the Community-Based Research Center (CBRC) nationwide, Gay Men Sexual Health Alliance in Toronto, the Center for Suicide Prevention in Calgary, UBC Men's Health Research Program and the UBC Reducing Male Suicide Research Cluster