Michael C Lasala
Biographic Data
| ID | 207676 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Michael C Lasala |
| GIVEN NAMES | Michael C |
| FAMILY NAME | Lasala |
| SIGNATURE | LASALA M C |
| AFFILIATIONS | Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey |
| ORCID | 0000-0003-1021-5075 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 18 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 146 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 18 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2000 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2023 |
| H-INDEX | 6 |
Current Landscape of Doctoral Education in Social Work: A Look at the PhD and DSW Programs
The 2020 GADE Director Survey aimed to understand program and student characteristics, support for students, curriculum focus and design, and students’ job search support and outcomes in PhD and DSW programs. In general, PhD programs focus on building students’ research capacities, including interdisciplinary research and leadership in higher education and research-oriented organizations, whereas DSW programs prepare students to contribute in the…
The Influence of Families on LGBTQ Youth Health: A Call to Action for Innovation in Research and Intervention Development
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, and other sexual and gender minority youth (LGBTQ) experience myriad health inequities relative to their cisgender heterosexual peers. Families have a profound impact on adolescent health, but little is known about this influence on LGBTQ youth specifically. We draw on work presented at a public symposium that aimed to characterize existing scientific evidence, identify gaps in knowledge, a…
A Bioethics Approach to Social Work Practice With Transgender Clients
Increased advocacy for the informed consent model of transgender health care specifies that patients should be in control of access to receiving medical interventions such as hormone therapy or surgery. However, in practice, mental health clinicians, including clinical social workers, are increasingly called upon by medical providers to serve as gatekeepers for these processes. It is frequently the role of social workers to assess transgender cli…
I Had to Go to the Streets to Get Love: Pathways From Parental Rejection to HIV Risk Among Young Gay and Bisexual Men
Young, gay, and bisexual men (YGBM) are at increased risk of family rejection, which is related to HIV infection. What remains unknown is how family rejection leads to HIV risk. In this exploratory study, qualitative interviews were conducted with 21 HIV-positive YGBM aged 18 to 24. Most participants reported family rejection, which decreased instrumental and emotional support and resulted in participants using riskier ways to support themselves,…
Assessment of the developmental needs of children in need: Estonian child protective workers' case reflections
Child protective workers must be able to evaluate children's developmental needs in order to assess problems and delays. Skilful and comprehensive assessment leads to outcomes for children that promote their well‐being and development. This paper presents the findings of a qualitative study on a sample of Estonian child protective workers that investigated their assessments of the developmental needs of children in cases with child protection con…
What Parents and Their Gay and Bisexual Sons Say About HIV Prevention
Despite ongoing prevention efforts, young gay and bisexual men (YGBM) accounted for more than three fourths of all recent HIV infections. Furthermore, they continue to engage in high-risk sexual behaviors at alarming rates. Nowadays, families are beginning to emerge as important resources for these youth. However, the viewpoints of YGBM and their families are largely missing from HIV prevention research and intervention development. To address th…
Estonian child protection workers’ assessment perspectives: The need for competence and confidence
After years of Soviet occupation, the country of Estonia is in transition, as are their newly developed child protection services. This quantitative study examines Estonian child protection workers’ perspectives about child welfare work and assessment in the context of children in need. These findings indicate that workers seem to overly rely on a deficit-based, as opposed to a strengths-based approach and lack skills for understanding their role…
African American Gay Youth and Their Families: Redefining Masculinity, Coping with Racism and Homophobia
The findings of this small, exploratory qualitative study of young African American gay men and their parents, combined with the extant theoretical literature, describes the unique challenges facing black gay male youths and their families. Parents and youths alike worry that gay men cannot meet the rigid expectations of exaggerated masculinity maintained by their families and communities, and they also struggle to cope with the intersecting oppr…
It Would Have Been Impossible Before: Reflections on Current Gay Life in Estonia
Estonian gays and lesbians currently enjoy more freedom than ever before. However, they still lack many basic legal protections as well an ongoing, organized political movement. The findings of this small, exploratory study along with the personal experiences of the first author, suggests how cultural factors like individualism, a strong preference for privacy, and distrust of the government not only impede political action and community organiza…
LGBT Faculty, Research, and Researchers: Risks and Rewards
Self-identified lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) faculty along with heterosexuals with scholarly interests in these populations can face heterosexism, heterocentrism, homophobia, and hostility within and outside of social work programs. This article describes the risks and rewards of being an LGBT faculty based on the experiences of the authors. Myths and realities relating to coming out, promotion, and funding are discussed, along …
Old Maps, New Territory: Family Therapy Theory and Gay and Lesbian Couples
Family therapy models often do not reflect the realities and desires of many gay and lesbian couples. Therapists working with this population are left to decide whether to apply these models as they are, to discard them, or to attempt to modify them as they assist their clients. Using research findings and case examples that describe the intergenerational boundaries for gay and lesbian couples as well as the nonmonogamous relationships of gay men…
Too Many Eggs in the Wrong Basket: A Queer Critique of the Same-Sex Marriage Movement
The fight for legally recognized same-sex marriage dominates the contemporary gay rights movement and has ignited national debate. However, missing from the current discourse is a critical view of the privileges of marriage. Arguments for legal, same-sex marriage center on the many rights and benefits married heterosexual couples enjoy but from which same-sex couples are excluded. However, lesbian and gay activists and social workers are notably …
Who's Oppressing Whom? Homosexuality, Christianity, and Social Work
Journal Article Who's Oppressing Whom? Homosexuality, Christianity, and Social Work Get access Michael P. Melende, MSW, Michael P. Melende, MSW associate professor School of Social Work, Simmons College, 300 The Fenway, Boston, MA 02555; e-mail: [email protected] Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic PubMed Google Scholar Michael C. LaSala, PhD, LCSW Michael C. LaSala, PhD, LCSW associate professor School of Social …
Queering Ideas: The Descriptive and Theory-Building Potential of Qualitative Research with Lesbian and Gay Families
Qualitative findings can describe the largely uncharted, complex lives and experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) persons. However, in addition to these descriptive purposes, qualitative findings from LGBT samples can be used to question and even modify existing theories, concepts, and norms that describe general human behavior. In this way, the experiences of LGBT people can potentially inform society as a whole. Using exa…
Monogamy of the Heart: Extradyadic Sex and Gay Male Couples
Sixty-five coupled gay men were qualitatively interviewed to examine how they decided whether or not to be monogamous, and how some maintained openly nonmonogamous relationships. Unlike their monogamous counterparts, men in open relationships cognitively separated sex from intimacy and prized sexual variety. Although outside sex could stimulate insecurity, men in open couples established guidelines that safeguarded their health and affirmed coupl…
When Interviewing “Family”: Maximizing the Insider Advantage in the Qualitative Study of Lesbians and Gay Men
Lesbian and gay investigators who study lesbians and gay men may bring special knowledge and understanding to their research, which can facilitate data collection and analysis. However, inside investigators may mistakenly assume common cultural understandings with interviewees and fail to explore their respondents' unique perceptions. Furthermore, social desirability effects can bias respondent reports. Using illustrations from the author's resea…
The importance of partners to lesbians' intergenerational relationships
The strong likelihood of parental disapproval of a daughter's lesbianism indicates that for gay women intergenerational dynamics may be uniquely challenging and complex. In this qualitative study, 40 lesbians in 20 couples were interviewed about their relationships with their parents and their partner's parents. Respondents reported that since coming out, their parents' attitudes about their lesbianism shifted over time from profound disapproval …
Gay Male Couples: The Importance of Coming Out and Being Out to Parents
This exploratory study applied grounded theory methodology to examine what coupled gay men thought were the relationship impacts of being out to parents and in-laws. Data were collected from an accidental sample of 40 men in 20 homosexual couples using a standardized, open-ended interview. Virtually all of the respondents who had come out to their parents experienced initial and ongoing parental and in-law disapproval for their lifestyles and rel…
Monogamy of the Heart: Extradyadic Sex and Gay Male Couples
Sixty-five coupled gay men were qualitatively interviewed to examine how they decided whether or not to be monogamous, and how some maintained openly nonmonogamous relationships. Unlike their monogamous counterparts, men in open relationships cognitively separated sex from intimacy and prized sexual variety. Although outside sex could stimulate insecurity, men in open couples established guidelines that safeguarded their health and affirmed coupl…
When Interviewing “Family”: Maximizing the Insider Advantage in the Qualitative Study of Lesbians and Gay Men
Lesbian and gay investigators who study lesbians and gay men may bring special knowledge and understanding to their research, which can facilitate data collection and analysis. However, inside investigators may mistakenly assume common cultural understandings with interviewees and fail to explore their respondents' unique perceptions. Furthermore, social desirability effects can bias respondent reports. Using illustrations from the author's resea…
Gay Male Couples: The Importance of Coming Out and Being Out to Parents
This exploratory study applied grounded theory methodology to examine what coupled gay men thought were the relationship impacts of being out to parents and in-laws. Data were collected from an accidental sample of 40 men in 20 homosexual couples using a standardized, open-ended interview. Virtually all of the respondents who had come out to their parents experienced initial and ongoing parental and in-law disapproval for their lifestyles and rel…
LGBT Faculty, Research, and Researchers: Risks and Rewards
Self-identified lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) faculty along with heterosexuals with scholarly interests in these populations can face heterosexism, heterocentrism, homophobia, and hostility within and outside of social work programs. This article describes the risks and rewards of being an LGBT faculty based on the experiences of the authors. Myths and realities relating to coming out, promotion, and funding are discussed, along …
Estonian child protection workers’ assessment perspectives: The need for competence and confidence
After years of Soviet occupation, the country of Estonia is in transition, as are their newly developed child protection services. This quantitative study examines Estonian child protection workers’ perspectives about child welfare work and assessment in the context of children in need. These findings indicate that workers seem to overly rely on a deficit-based, as opposed to a strengths-based approach and lack skills for understanding their role…
Too Many Eggs in the Wrong Basket: A Queer Critique of the Same-Sex Marriage Movement
The fight for legally recognized same-sex marriage dominates the contemporary gay rights movement and has ignited national debate. However, missing from the current discourse is a critical view of the privileges of marriage. Arguments for legal, same-sex marriage center on the many rights and benefits married heterosexual couples enjoy but from which same-sex couples are excluded. However, lesbian and gay activists and social workers are notably …
Queering Ideas: The Descriptive and Theory-Building Potential of Qualitative Research with Lesbian and Gay Families
Qualitative findings can describe the largely uncharted, complex lives and experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) persons. However, in addition to these descriptive purposes, qualitative findings from LGBT samples can be used to question and even modify existing theories, concepts, and norms that describe general human behavior. In this way, the experiences of LGBT people can potentially inform society as a whole. Using exa…
The importance of partners to lesbians' intergenerational relationships
The strong likelihood of parental disapproval of a daughter's lesbianism indicates that for gay women intergenerational dynamics may be uniquely challenging and complex. In this qualitative study, 40 lesbians in 20 couples were interviewed about their relationships with their parents and their partner's parents. Respondents reported that since coming out, their parents' attitudes about their lesbianism shifted over time from profound disapproval …
I Had to Go to the Streets to Get Love: Pathways From Parental Rejection to HIV Risk Among Young Gay and Bisexual Men
Young, gay, and bisexual men (YGBM) are at increased risk of family rejection, which is related to HIV infection. What remains unknown is how family rejection leads to HIV risk. In this exploratory study, qualitative interviews were conducted with 21 HIV-positive YGBM aged 18 to 24. Most participants reported family rejection, which decreased instrumental and emotional support and resulted in participants using riskier ways to support themselves,…
It Would Have Been Impossible Before: Reflections on Current Gay Life in Estonia
Estonian gays and lesbians currently enjoy more freedom than ever before. However, they still lack many basic legal protections as well an ongoing, organized political movement. The findings of this small, exploratory study along with the personal experiences of the first author, suggests how cultural factors like individualism, a strong preference for privacy, and distrust of the government not only impede political action and community organiza…
Who's Oppressing Whom? Homosexuality, Christianity, and Social Work
Journal Article Who's Oppressing Whom? Homosexuality, Christianity, and Social Work Get access Michael P. Melende, MSW, Michael P. Melende, MSW associate professor School of Social Work, Simmons College, 300 The Fenway, Boston, MA 02555; e-mail: [email protected] Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic PubMed Google Scholar Michael C. LaSala, PhD, LCSW Michael C. LaSala, PhD, LCSW associate professor School of Social …
A Bioethics Approach to Social Work Practice With Transgender Clients
Increased advocacy for the informed consent model of transgender health care specifies that patients should be in control of access to receiving medical interventions such as hormone therapy or surgery. However, in practice, mental health clinicians, including clinical social workers, are increasingly called upon by medical providers to serve as gatekeepers for these processes. It is frequently the role of social workers to assess transgender cli…
What Parents and Their Gay and Bisexual Sons Say About HIV Prevention
Despite ongoing prevention efforts, young gay and bisexual men (YGBM) accounted for more than three fourths of all recent HIV infections. Furthermore, they continue to engage in high-risk sexual behaviors at alarming rates. Nowadays, families are beginning to emerge as important resources for these youth. However, the viewpoints of YGBM and their families are largely missing from HIV prevention research and intervention development. To address th…
Gay Male Couples: The Importance of Coming Out and Being Out to Parents
This exploratory study applied grounded theory methodology to examine what coupled gay men thought were the relationship impacts of being out to parents and in-laws. Data were collected from an accidental sample of 40 men in 20 homosexual couples using a standardized, open-ended interview. Virtually all of the respondents who had come out to their parents experienced initial and ongoing parental and in-law disapproval for their lifestyles and rel…
The importance of partners to lesbians' intergenerational relationships
The strong likelihood of parental disapproval of a daughter's lesbianism indicates that for gay women intergenerational dynamics may be uniquely challenging and complex. In this qualitative study, 40 lesbians in 20 couples were interviewed about their relationships with their parents and their partner's parents. Respondents reported that since coming out, their parents' attitudes about their lesbianism shifted over time from profound disapproval …
When Interviewing “Family”: Maximizing the Insider Advantage in the Qualitative Study of Lesbians and Gay Men
Lesbian and gay investigators who study lesbians and gay men may bring special knowledge and understanding to their research, which can facilitate data collection and analysis. However, inside investigators may mistakenly assume common cultural understandings with interviewees and fail to explore their respondents' unique perceptions. Furthermore, social desirability effects can bias respondent reports. Using illustrations from the author's resea…
Monogamy of the Heart: Extradyadic Sex and Gay Male Couples
Sixty-five coupled gay men were qualitatively interviewed to examine how they decided whether or not to be monogamous, and how some maintained openly nonmonogamous relationships. Unlike their monogamous counterparts, men in open relationships cognitively separated sex from intimacy and prized sexual variety. Although outside sex could stimulate insecurity, men in open couples established guidelines that safeguarded their health and affirmed coupl…
Queering Ideas: The Descriptive and Theory-Building Potential of Qualitative Research with Lesbian and Gay Families
Qualitative findings can describe the largely uncharted, complex lives and experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) persons. However, in addition to these descriptive purposes, qualitative findings from LGBT samples can be used to question and even modify existing theories, concepts, and norms that describe general human behavior. In this way, the experiences of LGBT people can potentially inform society as a whole. Using exa…
Who's Oppressing Whom? Homosexuality, Christianity, and Social Work
Journal Article Who's Oppressing Whom? Homosexuality, Christianity, and Social Work Get access Michael P. Melende, MSW, Michael P. Melende, MSW associate professor School of Social Work, Simmons College, 300 The Fenway, Boston, MA 02555; e-mail: [email protected] Search for other works by this author on: Oxford Academic PubMed Google Scholar Michael C. LaSala, PhD, LCSW Michael C. LaSala, PhD, LCSW associate professor School of Social …
Old Maps, New Territory: Family Therapy Theory and Gay and Lesbian Couples
Family therapy models often do not reflect the realities and desires of many gay and lesbian couples. Therapists working with this population are left to decide whether to apply these models as they are, to discard them, or to attempt to modify them as they assist their clients. Using research findings and case examples that describe the intergenerational boundaries for gay and lesbian couples as well as the nonmonogamous relationships of gay men…
Too Many Eggs in the Wrong Basket: A Queer Critique of the Same-Sex Marriage Movement
The fight for legally recognized same-sex marriage dominates the contemporary gay rights movement and has ignited national debate. However, missing from the current discourse is a critical view of the privileges of marriage. Arguments for legal, same-sex marriage center on the many rights and benefits married heterosexual couples enjoy but from which same-sex couples are excluded. However, lesbian and gay activists and social workers are notably …
LGBT Faculty, Research, and Researchers: Risks and Rewards
Self-identified lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) faculty along with heterosexuals with scholarly interests in these populations can face heterosexism, heterocentrism, homophobia, and hostility within and outside of social work programs. This article describes the risks and rewards of being an LGBT faculty based on the experiences of the authors. Myths and realities relating to coming out, promotion, and funding are discussed, along …
It Would Have Been Impossible Before: Reflections on Current Gay Life in Estonia
Estonian gays and lesbians currently enjoy more freedom than ever before. However, they still lack many basic legal protections as well an ongoing, organized political movement. The findings of this small, exploratory study along with the personal experiences of the first author, suggests how cultural factors like individualism, a strong preference for privacy, and distrust of the government not only impede political action and community organiza…
African American Gay Youth and Their Families: Redefining Masculinity, Coping with Racism and Homophobia
The findings of this small, exploratory qualitative study of young African American gay men and their parents, combined with the extant theoretical literature, describes the unique challenges facing black gay male youths and their families. Parents and youths alike worry that gay men cannot meet the rigid expectations of exaggerated masculinity maintained by their families and communities, and they also struggle to cope with the intersecting oppr…
Estonian child protection workers’ assessment perspectives: The need for competence and confidence
After years of Soviet occupation, the country of Estonia is in transition, as are their newly developed child protection services. This quantitative study examines Estonian child protection workers’ perspectives about child welfare work and assessment in the context of children in need. These findings indicate that workers seem to overly rely on a deficit-based, as opposed to a strengths-based approach and lack skills for understanding their role…
Assessment of the developmental needs of children in need: Estonian child protective workers' case reflections
Child protective workers must be able to evaluate children's developmental needs in order to assess problems and delays. Skilful and comprehensive assessment leads to outcomes for children that promote their well‐being and development. This paper presents the findings of a qualitative study on a sample of Estonian child protective workers that investigated their assessments of the developmental needs of children in cases with child protection con…
What Parents and Their Gay and Bisexual Sons Say About HIV Prevention
Despite ongoing prevention efforts, young gay and bisexual men (YGBM) accounted for more than three fourths of all recent HIV infections. Furthermore, they continue to engage in high-risk sexual behaviors at alarming rates. Nowadays, families are beginning to emerge as important resources for these youth. However, the viewpoints of YGBM and their families are largely missing from HIV prevention research and intervention development. To address th…
I Had to Go to the Streets to Get Love: Pathways From Parental Rejection to HIV Risk Among Young Gay and Bisexual Men
Young, gay, and bisexual men (YGBM) are at increased risk of family rejection, which is related to HIV infection. What remains unknown is how family rejection leads to HIV risk. In this exploratory study, qualitative interviews were conducted with 21 HIV-positive YGBM aged 18 to 24. Most participants reported family rejection, which decreased instrumental and emotional support and resulted in participants using riskier ways to support themselves,…
The Influence of Families on LGBTQ Youth Health: A Call to Action for Innovation in Research and Intervention Development
Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, questioning, and other sexual and gender minority youth (LGBTQ) experience myriad health inequities relative to their cisgender heterosexual peers. Families have a profound impact on adolescent health, but little is known about this influence on LGBTQ youth specifically. We draw on work presented at a public symposium that aimed to characterize existing scientific evidence, identify gaps in knowledge, a…
A Bioethics Approach to Social Work Practice With Transgender Clients
Increased advocacy for the informed consent model of transgender health care specifies that patients should be in control of access to receiving medical interventions such as hormone therapy or surgery. However, in practice, mental health clinicians, including clinical social workers, are increasingly called upon by medical providers to serve as gatekeepers for these processes. It is frequently the role of social workers to assess transgender cli…
Current Landscape of Doctoral Education in Social Work: A Look at the PhD and DSW Programs
The 2020 GADE Director Survey aimed to understand program and student characteristics, support for students, curriculum focus and design, and students’ job search support and outcomes in PhD and DSW programs. In general, PhD programs focus on building students’ research capacities, including interdisciplinary research and leadership in higher education and research-oriented organizations, whereas DSW programs prepare students to contribute in the…
Psychology (16 works) · LGBTQ Health, Identity, and Policy (14 works) · Sociology (14 works) · Social Psychology (11 works) · Developmental psychology (8 works) · Gender Studies (8 works) · Social Psychology (8 works) · Homosexuality (7 works) · Medicine (7 works) · Reproductive Health and Technologies (7 works)