Attitudes toward gay men and lesbians and related factors among nurses in Southern Taiwan.

Objectives: The aims of this study were to explore different dimensions of the attitudes toward gay men and lesbians among nurses in southern Taiwan and to examine the association between attitudes and intention to provide care to homosexual individuals. The factors related to attitudes towards gay men and lesbians by nurses were also examined.

Methods: In total, 1824 nurses from a medical centre and two regional teaching hospitals in southern Taiwan were recruited into this study. We used the Attitudes Toward Homosexuality Questionnaire (ATHQ) to examine four-dimensional concepts toward homosexuality among nurses. The association of attitudes with the intention of taking care of homosexual patients was examined. Correlations of attitudes toward homosexuality with demographic and occupational data, sexual orientation, knowledge about homosexuality, and experiences of having contact with gay men and lesbians were examined using a stepwise multiple linear regression.

Results: Participants had the most negative attitude toward homosexuality in the 'contact' and 'stereotypes' dimensions, followed by the 'morality' dimension and then the 'condemnation/tolerance' dimension. Nurses with more negative attitudes toward homosexuality had lower intentions of taking care of patients with a homosexual orientation. Nurses who had friends or relatives with a homosexual orientation, had a higher educational degree, and had provided care to homosexual patients were more likely to have positive attitudes toward homosexuality. In contrast, nurses who had worked for a longer period, labelled themselves as being absolutely heterosexual, and were religious were more likely to have negative attitudes toward homosexuality.

Conclusions: The factors related to attitudes toward homosexuality identified in this study have to be taken into consideration when intervening for nurses' attitudes toward gay men and lesbians.