A Causal Loop Diagram for LGBTQIA+ Inclusive Evidence-Informed Practice Adoption by Teachers

Monday, July 20, 2026, 11:00 AM

Session: SOC Poster Session (Overflow 2) (In-person)

Sexual and gender diverse adolescents (SGDA) experience heightened minority stress that contributes to poorer mental health outcomes than their heterosexual and cisgender peers. School-based inclusive evidence-informed practices (EIPs) can buffer these stressors and strengthen belonging, yet teacher adoption varies widely across schools. This work-in-progress applies a system dynamics and implementation science lens to understand the feedback processes shaping staff adoption of SGDA-inclusive practices. The causal loop diagram (CLD) in this study maps how teachers move from receiving inclusive practice training to adopting, sustaining, or de-adopting SGDA-inclusive evidence-informed practices, and how administrative support shapes these dynamics. The model was built from empirical literature and refined using study records and staff liaison interviews from 11 high schools implementing the Make Space intervention, identifying key inner- and outer-context factors influencing adoption and sustainment. Most systems science research on SGDA youth has focused on foster care and health care disparities, with limited attention to school-based implementation dynamics. Amid intensified sociopolitical pressures on SGDA-inclusive practices in U.S. K–12 schools, this work applies a system dynamics lens to examine how administrative support, teacher preparedness, peer visibility of inclusive practices, and internal and external pushback interact over time to shape adoption, sustainment, and belonging for SGDA students.