Alcohol Occasional 4: Alcohol and LGBTQIA+ Communities

Our final seminar of our 2025 Alcohol Occasionals, will be delivered by Beth Meadows and Kat Petrilli who will discuss their projects which focus on alcohol and LGBTQIA+ communities.

Exploring Alcohol-Free Nightlife Spaces for LGBTQIA+ Communities.

First, we will hear from Beth Meadows who will discuss findings from her PhD project.

About Beth

Beth (she/her) is a Sociology of Public Health researcher, specialising in experiences of LGBTQIA+ communities. She previously worked on an ESRC funded Equalise Nightlife Project (at Liverpool John Moores University’s Public Health Institute), a qualitative, feminist study exploring gendered experiences of nightlife. She has also held a range of third sector roles in frontline support work, namely with the LGBTQIA+ communities. Beth is a member of the Substance Use research group at Glasgow Caledonian University’s Research Centre for Health and in the final year of her PhD entitled ‘Are you being served? Exploring Alcohol-free Nightlife Spaces for LGBTQIA+ Communities’. This qualitative study critically assesses and explores the creation, experience and sustainability of alcohol-free nightlife spaces for LGBTQIA+ communities in Scotland from an intersectional lens. Beth will present the findings of the project during the seminar.

About Beth's Research

LGBTQIA+ communities are more likely to experience alcohol related harm, such as alcohol dependency, and have poorer mental health, than cisgender, heterosexual populations. However, alcohol plays a central role in almost all LGBTQIA+ social and cultural spaces. This issue was debated in Scottish parliament in 2022. Alcohol-free nightlife (AFN) provides opportunities for LGBTQIA+ people to meet and socialise which are not centred around alcohol. These events are becoming increasingly popular, but have received little research attention. This study aimed to investigate the characterisation and sustainability of AFN, alongside its potential inclusivity for LGBTQIA+ communities.

We conducted qualitative interviews with n=7 individuals who organise AFN events in the UK and n=8 focus groups with LGBTQIA+ adults interested in AFN in Scotland. The study used an intersectional theoretical framework and purposively included marginalised LGBTQIA+ subcommunities including adversely racialised groups, and participants who identified as working class. Qualitative data was analysed with Thematic Analysis.

Documenting alcohol marketing targeting LGBTQ+ communities

Next, we will hear from Kat Petrilli (Institute of Alcohol Studies) who will discuss findings from their research which explores alcohol marketing targeting LGBTQ+ communities.

About Kat

Kat Petrilli is a senior researcher at the Institute of Alcohol Studies (IAS), an independent body bringing together evidence, policy and practice from home and abroad to promote an informed debate on alcohol’s impact on society. As well as their work with IAS, they are a Research Associate at the Policy Research Unit in Addictions at King’s College London.

Kat holds a BSc in Neuroscience from King’s College London, and an MRes in Cognitive Neuroscience from University College London, and completed their PhD at the Addiction and Mental Health Group (AIM) at the University of Bath.

About Kat's Research

Research exploring the reasons behind higher risks of alcohol consumption and dependence in LGBTQ+ communities is limited, particularly regarding the alcohol industry’s marketing practices. Alcohol marketing has been consistently linked to increased alcohol consumption, and research has reported the existence of a complex web of alcohol marketing strategies targeting LGBTQ+ communities. Despite this, the impact of alcohol marketing on LGBTQ+ communities remains unexplored. Such practices often exploit performative allyship to increase alcohol sales, disproportionately impacting communities already at higher risk of alcohol-related harm. Therefore, understanding the effect of such strategies on LGBTQ+ communities is important in order to inform policy recommendations. The aim of this study is to increase our understanding of how alcohol is marketed to LGBTQ+ communities and how these messages are received, as well as to generate policy recommendations shaped by people from the communities.

This qualitative project involves two components. Part 1 involves a textual and visual analysis of Instagram marketing materials from six alcohol brands over six years (2019-2024). Part 2 involves focus groups to explore LGBTQ+ community members’ perceptions of these marketing strategies and the broader role of the alcohol industry within their communities. Collaborative research methods will engage people from LGBTQ+ communities in data analysis and the development of policy recommendations.

The study is ongoing and it will generate evidence and policy recommendations aimed at mitigating the impact of alcohol marketing in LGBTQ+ communities.