| Description |
The purpose of this study was to examine perceived needs, the perception of unmet needs, and the level of satisfaction with service providers for lesbians age 40+ in seven life areas from three different locations. The research questions were: "How well do lesbians age 40+ perceive their needs being met in each of seven life areas (medical/healthcare, legal, institutional/housing, spiritual, family, bereavement and emotional, and social)?"; "To what extent are aging lesbians satisfied with service providers in each of the different life areas?"; and "What sociodemographic factors (age, geographic location, educational background, and level of openness), are related to aging lesbians' perceptions of met or unmet needs and their level of satisfaction with service providers? Data were obtained through convenience sampling procedures, with a survey developed by the investigator. Respondents were recruited from three cities, Santa Monica, California, Columbus, Ohio, and Salt Lake City, Utah. Lesbians in Salt Lake City were identified through a lesbian support group from the University of Utah's Women's Resource Center. Those in Santa Monica and Columbus were identified by a support group for aging lesbians in a Senior Center and a lesbian age 50+ support group. Data from this project indicates lesbians in Salt Lake City have a fairly high level of satisfaction with services and providers, with their needs being met in most of the seven life areas. The sample of lesbians from Santa Monica and Columbus were satisfied with service providers in most areas, except in the areas of housing and legal, where the mean scores were below 3.0 (sd = 1.01 legal, sd= 0.90 housing). The most significant statistical differences between the two groups were found in the life areas of housing, legal, family and medical. In each of these areas the Salt Lake City respondents had consistently higher mean scores, revealing that they believe their needs are being met in those areas more than those in the other group of lesbians from Santa Monica and Columbus. Correlations of the four independent variables (age, geographic location, education, and level of openness) with perceptions of unmet needs in the six life areas showed age was correlated with the emotional/bereavement life area, with the oldest lesbians having greater unmet needs (rho=24). Age, however, was not associated with unmet needs in any of the other life areas. The degree of openness about sexual orientation also was associated with having unmet needs regarding emotional/bereavement issues. Lesbians who were most open about their sexual orientation had fewer unmet emotional/bereavement needs (rho= -.24). These analyses show that geographic location and education were not predictive of any unmet needs, and age and openness were only associated with emotional issues being unmet. Overall, these four independent variables were not good predictors of unmet needs. |
