Homophobic Attitudes and Gay Affirmative Practices Among Nursing Students

Abstract

Worldwide, there is a rise in homosexual acceptance in society. However, there have been no studies done in the Philippines about homophobic attitudes and gay affirmative practices in the healthcare field. Thus, the researchers determined the relationship between homophobic attitudes and gay affirmative practices in the healthcare field. This descriptive-correlation research was conducted on 121 students in the College of Nursing in a private institution using purposive sampling. They answered adapted and modified questionnaires on the Homosexual Attitude Scale (HAS) and Gay Affirmative Practice (GAP). Data gathered were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics such as mean, standard deviation, Pearson’s correlation coefficient, analysis of variance (ANOVA). Results revealed that there was a low homophobic attitude of the respondents and fair in terms of gay-affirmative practices. Correlational analysis revealed that homophobic attitudes and gay affirmative practices were moderately negatively related. Furthermore, there was no significant difference in the gay-affirmative practices of the respondents in terms of age, gender, and religion; however, there was a significant difference between homophobic attitudes and nationality, in which Filipinos had more tendencies of having homophobic attitudes. Moreover, there was no significant difference in the gay-affirmative practices of the respondents in terms of age, gender, nationality, and religion. This study will contribute to future researchers’ knowledge about the presence, or lack thereof, of homophobia within the scope of a Christian community. The researchers will then be able to relay their studies to further acceptance within the healthcare field.

Keywords: Homophobic Attitudes, Gay Affirmative Practices