We developed a Program for Respect, Inclusion, and Diversity of LGBTQþ Employees (PRIDE), a training program for human resource staff and health professionals to promote appropriate responses to the stress and harassment experienced by lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer or questioning (LGBTQþ) individuals in the workplace. A randomized controlled trial was used to assess the efficacy of the PRIDE. Sixty-six participants were randomly assigned to the intervention (n = 33) or the wait-list control group (n = 33), and the intervention group received the PRIDE consisting of four sessions. The participants were human resource staff and health professionals in the workplace. To evaluate the effectiveness of the PRIDE, measures of overt and potential homophobia and transphobia, knowledge aboutLGBTQþ people, subjective comprehension of LGBTQþ people, and self-efficacy in responding toLGBTQþ people were completed by both the groups before the intervention, after the second session, after the fourth session, and about 1 month later, and the changes were compared between the groups. The analysis of variance results, in which measurement time and group were taken as independent variables, demonstrated a significant reduction in overt homophobia and transphobia in the intervention group. Additionally, the PRIDE was found to improve the level of participants' knowledge, subjective comprehension, and self-efficacy. The PRIDE developed in this study might be effective in reducing homophobia and transphobia among human resource staff and health professionals.
Public Significance StatementA randomized controlled trial was conducted to assess the efficacy of PRIDE, a training program that promotes appropriate responses toward LGBTQþ people in the workplace. The results suggest PRIDE may increase knowledge regarding LGBTQþ people, subjective comprehension of LGBTQþ people, and self-efficacy when responding to and providing support to LGBTQþ people and reduce explicit homophobia and transphobia among occupational health staff and human resource staff with the potential to provide LGBTQþ consultation services.