Uniting Activists and Academics to Create Groundbreaking Research

One of the key issues was the need to build upon the inaugural survey and for more diverse voices within the survey sample. To address this, Lexicon helped secure funding for qualitative research that could illuminate the quantitative findings, setting the stage for LGBTQ Institute Research Fellow, Ashlei R. Petion, PH.D., LPC, NCC to conduct focus groups with communities of color to share their personal experiences. Overall findings from the focus group was clear: “ [there is] the need for more mixed methodology approaches in research due to the richness of the data gathered from the focus groups and the complexity of their responses. As one participant stated regarding their filling out the quantitative survey:

The additional findings resulted in a tangible resource that added detail to the numbers, amplifying key voices behind the data. It has also raised the bar for other institutions who are conducting research on LGBTQ Southerners to ensure that their resopondent demographic more accurately reflects the population being surveyed. Ultimately, these data are serving as a tangible tool for the institute and its partners as they develop their policy initiatives, grassroots strategies, and fundraising campaigns. It is also contributing new scientific knowledge about the experiences and needs of LGBTQ people in the South providing critical, potentially actionable, information to agencies and state and local governments interested in responding to the needs of LGBTQ people.