Reward Processing in Gender-Diverse Youth: The Role of Minority Stress on the Anticipation of Loss

Despite the growing population of youth identifying with a transgender or nonbinary gender identity, research on gender-diverse individuals’ educational outcomes is limited. This study takes advantage of the first nationally representative, population-based data set that includes measures of gender identity and educational outcomes: the High School Longitudinal Study of 2009. Using minority stress and structural symbolic interactionist frameworks, we examine the association between gender identity and high school and college educational outcomes. We compare the educational outcomes of gender-diverse youth—binary transgender, nonbinary, and gender unsure—with those of cisgender youth, and also examine differences within the gender-diverse population. Given the strong link between minority stress and educational experiences among gender-diverse youth, we examine differences in outcomes before and after accounting for school belonging and emotional distress. We also account for individuals’ social-structural location, arguing that social positionality shapes both gender identity and educational outcomes. Results indicate important differences in educational outcomes within the gender-diverse population: Whereas binary transgender and gender-unsure youth exhibit educational disadvantage, relative to cisgender youth, nonbinary youth do not. The gender-unsure disadvantage remains even after accounting for differences in social-structural location and social-psychological factors associated with minority stress.

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The Role of Resilience in Sexual and Gender Minority Mental Health

The Oxford Handbook of Sexual and Gender Minority Mental Health ◽

10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190067991.013.38 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 428-442

Author(s):

Dawn M. Szymanski ◽

Kirsten A. Gonzalez

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Minority Stress ◽

Quantitative Research ◽

Social Stigma ◽

Therapeutic Interventions ◽

Future Research ◽

Minority Mental Health ◽

And Gender ◽

Structural Levels

Many lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) persons are able to persevere and flourish despite pervasive social stigma and minority stress based on their sexual orientation and gender identity. This chapter reviews the research on LGBTQ resilience that can occur at individual, interpersonal/family, community, and contextual/structural levels. The authors describe qualitative research that has examined pathways to resilience and positive LGBTQ identity. The authors also review quantitative research on LGBTQ resilience via mediator, moderator, and moderated mediation models. Variables are described that have been found to explain or buffer the links between external and internalized minority stressors and mental health outcomes. The authors review the small but growing body of research that has begun to examine the efficacy of therapeutic interventions aimed at promoting LGBTQ resilience. Limitations are discussed and directions for future research are suggested.

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Minority Stress and Relationship Well-Being in Sexual Minorities: The Varying Role of Outness on Relationship and Sexual Satisfaction

International Journal of Sexual Health ◽

10.1080/19317611.2021.1909684 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-15

Author(s):

Michael T. Vale ◽

Toni L. Bisconti

Keyword(s):

Sexual Satisfaction ◽

Minority Stress ◽

Sexual Minorities ◽

Well Being

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Gender dysphoria in adolescents: can adolescents or parents give valid consent to puberty blockers?

Journal of Medical Ethics ◽

10.1136/medethics-2020-106999 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. medethics-2020-106999

Author(s):

Simona Giordano ◽

Fae Garland ◽

Soren Holm

Keyword(s):

Gender Dysphoria ◽

Pubertal Development ◽

Hormonal Treatment ◽

Conveyor Belt ◽

Decision Makers ◽

Healthcare Settings ◽

Gender Diverse ◽

Valid Consent ◽

Diverse Youth

This article considers the claim that gender diverse minors and their families should not be able to consent to hormonal treatment for gender dysphoria. The claim refers particularly to hormonal treatment with so-called ‘blockers’, analogues that suspend temporarily pubertal development. We discuss particularly four reasons why consent may be deemed invalid in these cases: (1) the decision is too complex; (2) the decision-makers are too emotionally involved; (3) the decision-makers are on a ‘conveyor belt’; (4) the possibility of detransitioning. We examine each of these reasons and we show that none of these stand up to scrutiny, and that some are based on a misunderstanding of the nature and purposes of this stage of treatment and of the circumstances in which it is usually prescribed. Moreover, accepting these claims at face value could have serious negative implications, not just for gender diverse youth, but for many other minors and families and in a much broader range of healthcare settings.

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Minority stress, resilience, and health in Italian and Taiwanese LGB+ people: A cross-cultural comparison

Current Psychology ◽

10.1007/s12144-021-01387-2 ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Roberto Baiocco ◽

Cristiano Scandurra ◽

Fausta Rosati ◽

Jessica Pistella ◽

Salvatore Ioverno ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Minority Stress ◽

Online Survey ◽

Health Problems ◽

Sexual Stigma ◽

Common Path ◽

Mediating Role ◽

Cross Cultural Comparison ◽

Moderated Mediation Model ◽

The Relationship

AbstractThe present study, using a moderated mediational model, explored levels of distal/proximal stressors, rumination, resilience, and health in a group of Italian and Taiwanese LGB+ people. The study also examined the role of internalized sexual stigma (ISS) and rumination as mediators between discrimination and health, and resilience as a moderator of the relationship between discrimination and ISS, rumination, and health, respectively. An online survey was administered to 508 LGB+ participants (270 Italian and 238 Taiwanese) whose age ranged from 18 to 70 years (M = 37.93, SD = 13.53). The moderated mediation model was tested through a series of path analyses stratified by group nationality. Italian participants reported higher discrimination and resilience, but lower ISS, rumination, and health problems compared to their Taiwanese counterparts. The only common path between groups was the direct effect of discrimination on health problems. The mediating role of ISS and rumination in the relationship between discrimination and health, as well as the moderating role of resilience, were partly significant only for the Italian group. Conclusions: The findings suggest that mediators and moderators used to evaluate the effects of minority stress on health may differ between groups; further culturally sensitive research in the field of LGB+ health is needed.

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