Interventions Used in Practice to Reduce Prejudice and Stereotypes Toward Lesbian and Gay People: Theory Based Evaluation

Various interventions are used in practice to reduce prejudice against lesbian women and gay men. Often these have not been developed or evaluated for effectiveness by researchers. In this study, we used theory-based evaluation (TBE) to determine whether the assumptions underlying three types of interventions (knowledge interventions, guessing games, and theater and movie interventions) often used in practice in the Netherlands are in line with evidence from the scientific literature. As a first step, we consulted the developers of prominent examples of the three types of interventions on their assumptions about why their interventions would work to construct a theory of change for each type of intervention. Next, we undertook a review of the literature to assess whether these theories of change were supported by theory and research. We found that of the three theories of change (ToC) guiding the three types of interventions often used in the Netherlands, only one was supported. These findings can guide developers of interventions to reduce prejudice and stereotypes toward LGBT people in practice in deciding which type of intervention is best to develop. We recommend that researchers and practitioners cooperate more closely on intervention development.