Using Sport and Physical Activity to Support the Mental Health and Belonging of 2SLGBTQ People

Background

2SLGBTQ people face mental health disparities and are often more isolated compared to cisgender heterosexual people. Participation in sports is a protective factor against poor mental health and can promote belonging. However, 2SLGBTQ people face transphobia and homophobia in general sports/athletic space, including when children and adolescents, thus limiting their involvement as adults.

To promote 2SLGBTQ adults’ engagement in sports, wellbeing, and belonging, a 2SLGBTQ community-based service provider in Kitchener-Waterloo, Canada, created a drop-in multisport program. Weekly sessions open to any interested 2SLGBTQ adult were held in three municipal community centres; facilitators belonged to the 2SLGBTQ community.

Drawing from a mixed-methods study assessing the multisport program, we present qualitative insights about the program’s impacts on participants’ wellbeing, specifically their mental health, social belonging, and identities, and their relationships with sports.

Methods

We recruited participants from the multisport program for two rounds of semi-structured interviews (spring 2023; winter 2024) conducted in English using an interview guide created in collaboration with our community partner. Interviewees were asked about their motivation for joining the program, mental health, sense of belonging to 2SLGBTQ and broader communities, history of sport participation and experience with the drop-in program. Participants received an honorarium. Interviews were approximately 1 hour and were transcribed verbatim. We coded using an inductive thematic analysis, going from open codes to focused codes, using the Nvivo software.

Results

We recruited 18 interviewees between 18 and 40 years of age. Interviewees were diverse in terms of gender, sexual orientation, disability, race/ethnicity, and past experiences with sports. Many participants had been involved in sport as children and youth but had stopped participating, or shifted away from group/team sports, after experiences of transphobia, homophobia, and intersecting forms marginalization. Themes included positive impacts in terms of mental health, social support, 2SLGBTQ identity-affirmation, and redefining relationships with sports. Specifically, participants shared how the program bolstered their mental health, including by acting as buffer against minority stress and improving their overall mood. It allowed participants to build confidence and access social support, affirm their experiences of gender for trans participants, and changed their relationship to sport in ways that were beneficial to their mental health. Some participants discussed how the program strengthened their sense of belonging in athletic spaces, the local 2SLGBTQ community and their city.

Conclusions

Despite historical and ongoing marginalization of 2SLGBTQ people in sports spaces, participants in this 2SLGBTQ drop-in multisport program experienced many benefits ranging from confidence in playing sports, affirmation of gender, community connections, and positive mental health. Findings have implications for social work with 2SLGBTQ people to improve health outcomes and reduce discrimination in sports. Ongoing education for service providers on the experiences of 2SLGBTQ people with sport and creating programs like this one are needed to promote belonging and wellbeing of 2SLGBTQ people. Future intersectional research is needed to understand how drop-in sports programming might impact different groups of 2SLGBTQ people to ensure equitable access to the potential benefits of these programs.