“…In short, Dobinson and Young and Kivel and Kleiber identified a number of ways in which GLB individuals interact with the media in such a way that increases their comfort with their GLB identity. Although past research has suggested possibilities for the manner in which the media may influence GLB individuals (Basow & Howe, 1980;Boon & Lomore, 2001;Karunanayake & Nauta, 2004;Lockwood, 2006;Matthews, 2005;Ochman, 1996;Wohlford et al, 2004) and has qualitatively examined the influence of the media on GLB subgroups such as lesbians (Dobinson & Young, 2000) and GLB youth (Kivel & Kleiber, 2000), there is a dearth of empirical research that has systematically examined the influence of the media on GLB individuals' identities. The purpose of the current investigation was to address this gap by examining the relationship between the media and GLB identity in depth, with a particular focus on the influence of media role models on GLB identity.…”