“Unlocking Healthier Ways of Living and Being”: Black Same Gender Loving Men’s Insights Into Developing a Spirituality-Based Holistic Health Intervention

Black same gender loving (SGL) men in the United States continue to experience mental, physical, relational, and financial health inequities due to the impact of various systems of oppression. Despite this fact, there are few health interventions developed specifically for Black SGL men that address health outcomes beyond sexual health. Despite strong evidence that spirituality is a cultural strength associated with positive health outcomes for Black SGL men, it has seldom been incorporated into health interventions as a central mechanism for facilitating this group’s well-being. The present qualitative study utilized a hybrid (i.e., codebook and reflexive) approach of thematic analysis to analyze data from individual semi-structured interviews with 29 Black SGL men across the United States. Three themes were generated: (1) Harmful and Nonresponsive Institutions; (2) Diversity, Detail, and Black SGL Men’s Preferences in Intervention Design; and (3) Multilevel Positive Holistic Impact. Findings from this study may be used to develop spirituality-based holistic health interventions for Black SGL men in the United States. Such interventions have the potential to effectively reduce health inequities among this population.