The State of the State Survey is one of the largest mental health and wellness surveys of LGBTQ+ Coloradans. We asked LGBTQ+ community members across the state to share experiences that will inform LGBTQ+ behavioral health priorities for community organizations and state leaders.
The 2021 State of the State Survey has closed. Stay tuned for the final report, to be released in January 2022.
Thank you to our research partner OMNI Institute for their work and dedication to this effort, and to the Denver Foundation for financially supporting this crucial initiative to better understand the challenges LGBTQ+ Coloradans face.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the purpose of the survey, focus groups, and interviews?
The goal of the survey, focus groups, and interviews is to learn from LGBTQ+ Coloradans about their behavioral health and wellness experiences and needs. This data will be critical to informing our work to advance equity for LGBTQ+ individuals living with mental health and substance use disorders in Colorado.
What languages are available for survey, focus group and interview participants?
Survey, focus groups, and interviews will all be available in both English and Spanish.
What will I be asked to do and what are my rights?
You will be asked questions about your personal experiences with behavioral health services in Colorado, as well as your health and behaviors. Whether you are taking the survey or participating in a focus group or interview, your participation is completely voluntary. You can skip any questions or stop your participation at any time.
Will anyone know what I shared on the survey or in a focus group or interview?
Your survey responses and/or anything you share in a focus group or interview will be completely confidential. The information you provide during the survey and/or focus group or interview will be combined with answers from other people and will be summarized in a report.
Individual responses will not be shared. The report will not have the names of people who shared their thoughts and ideas and will combine the ideas of everyone who took part. The only time this would not be true is if you told us that someone was hurting you or that you were hurting someone else.
We will only ask you to provide personally identifiable information so that we can mail you your gift card after you participate. This information will not be attached to your survey, focus group, or interview information.
What are the benefits and risks of participating?
We don’t know of any risks for people taking the survey or having these conversations, but it is always possible that you could feel uncomfortable or upset talking about your experiences or hearing other people talk about their experiences. If you do get upset and want to talk more with someone, we can give you a list of resources that may offer additional support. To better protect your privacy, during focus groups, you will have the option to leave your camera off and/or use a nickname or alias in your Zoom name.
There are no consequences for deciding you don’t want to participate.
Who is eligible to take the survey?
This survey has been designed to be taken by any and all members of Colorado's LGBTQ+ community. Our team has also intentionally prioritized outreach to people of color, trans and nonbinary community members, folks living in rural communities, aging folks, and formerly incarcerated community members to ensure diverse perspectives and lived experience are represented.