Black, Queer & Liberated: Pilot & Evaluation of a Community-Partnered Mental Health Intervention for Black Queer Young Adults
Jacquelyn (Jackie) Chin
Doctoral Candidate Dept. of Counseling, Clinical, & School Psychology
Abstract:
Black LGBTQIA+ (queer) young adults face elevated mental health risks, including high rates of major depressive disorder, generalized anxiety disorder, and suicidality (SAMHSA, 2020). A recent national survey found that 44% seriously considered suicide, 55% reported anxiety symptoms, and 63% reported depressive symptoms (Price-Feeney et al., 2020). Additionally, 49% desired counseling but did not receive it, highlighting the lack of effective mental health resources for Black queer youth. Black queer populations face a “double-edged sword,” of experiencing homophobia and/or transphobia in predominantly Black spaces, but feeling alone and disconnected within LGBT spaces, which tend to be predominantly non-Black (Charles-Ashley, 2020).
Recommendations from existing literature emphasize the effectiveness of culturally responsive group interventions within Black communities and interventions that address community acceptance for queer youth. To support Black queer young adults and adolescents, interventions should be culturally-tailored (Fisher et al., 2007), community-involved (Newcomb et al., 2019), and developed alongside community-based stakeholders (Afuwape et al., 2010) to be effective. However, limited research focuses on mental health interventions specifically for Black queer young adults. Additionally, intervention evaluation studies often relegate Black and queer participants to sub-populations, rather than the primary focus of intervention.
The purpose of this study was to develop, facilitate, and evaluate a community-partnered mental health intervention (6-week support group) for Black queer young adults aged 18 to 26 in California. Intervention development was led by Radical Healing framework (French et al., 2020) based in liberation psychology principles. The study collected data to assess for various changes in mental health outcomes (depression, anxiety) as well as and radical healing dimensions: critical consciousness, collective self-esteem, community-related empowerment, radical hope, and racial identity. Interview data discussed participant feedback regarding the intervention’s acceptability. This dissertation contributes to the growing body of mental health interventions tailored for Black queer young adults, offering implications for mental health practitioners and group psychologists committed to the wellbeing of QTBIPOC populations.
Dissertation click here to request copy
Improv for Clinical Group Interventions Workshop
Introduction
As mental health professionals, many of us are trained to use our words: analyzing patterns, naming emotions, and making meaning through dialogue. While talk-based approaches are powerful, we may be limited when clients feel stuck, disconnected from their bodies, or overwhelmed by thoughts that are difficult to articulate. This presentation explores improvisation (improv) as a clinical tool for group intervention, grounded in liberation psychology and Acceptance and Commitment Therapy. Improv offers an embodied, relational, and creative approach that aligns naturally with group process: supporting emotional expression, connection, and shared experiential learning.
This workshop examines how improv practices can be intentionally integrated into clinical work with groups for clinicians across levels of training. Examples are discussed with college students and LGBTQ+ communities to demonstrate the flexibility of application. Participants will have opportunities to engage experientially, reflect on their own reactions, and consider how embodied play can deepen group cohesion. Group-based interventions are an ideal site for improv principles to disrupt over-intellectualization, transform self-monitoring into expression, and promote corrective relationship dynamics. Supplementing individual talk therapy with improv is a promising way to support clients via group intervention.