Mental health among sexual and gender minority adolescents: Examining interactions with race and ethnicity.

Sexual and gender minority (SGM) young people are coming of age at a time of dynamic social and political changes with regard to LGBTQ rights and visibility around the world. And yet, contemporary cohorts of SGM youth continue to evidence the same degree of compromised mental health demonstrated by SGM youth of past decades. The authors review the current research on SGM youth mental health, with careful attention to the developmental and contextual characteristics that complicate, support, and thwart mental health for SGM young people. Given a large and rapidly growing body of science in this area, the authors strategically review research that reflects the prevalence of these issues in countries around the world but also concentrate on how mental health concerns among SGM children and youth are shaped by experiences with schools, families, and communities. Promising mental health treatment strategies for this population are reviewed. The chapter ends with a focus on understudied areas in the SGM youth mental health literature, which may offer promising solutions to combat SGM population health disparities and promote mental health among SGM young people during adolescence and as they age across the life course.

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Introduction

The Oxford Handbook of Sexual and Gender Minority Mental Health ◽

10.1093/oxfordhb/9780190067991.013.1 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. xvi-8

Author(s):

Esther D. Rothblum

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Clinical Social Work ◽

Psychiatric Nursing ◽

Health Programs ◽

Evidence Based ◽

Gender Minority ◽

Minority Mental Health ◽

Sexual And Gender Minority ◽

And Gender ◽

Mental Health Programs

The Oxford Handbook of Sexual and Gender Minority Mental Health provides an overview of the current research on the mental health of sexual and gender minority (SGM) populations. It is aimed at researchers conducting studies on the mental health of SGM populations, clinicians and researchers interested in psychiatric disorders that affect SGM populations, clinicians using evidence-based practice in the treatment of SGM patients/clients, students in mental health programs (clinical psychology, psychiatry, clinical social work, and psychiatric nursing), and policymakers. This chapter defines some terms and provides an overview of current and past SGM research methods.

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Disproportionate Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Perceived Social Support, Mental Health and Somatic Symptoms in Sexual and Gender Minority Populations

Journal of Homosexuality ◽

10.1080/00918369.2020.1868184 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 1-15

Author(s):

Scott Emory Moore ◽

Kelly L. Wierenga ◽

Dana M. Prince ◽

Braveheart Gillani ◽

Laura Janine Mintz

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Social Support ◽

Perceived Social Support ◽

Somatic Symptoms ◽

Minority Populations ◽

Gender Minority ◽

Sexual And Gender Minority ◽

And Gender

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Mental Health Challenges and Needs among Sexual and Gender Minority People in Western Kenya

International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health ◽

10.3390/ijerph18031311 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 18 (3) ◽

pp. 1311

Author(s):

Gary W. Harper ◽

Jessica Crawford ◽

Katherine Lewis ◽

Caroline Rucah Mwochi ◽

Gabriel Johnson ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Mental Health ◽

Sexual Minority ◽

Partner Violence ◽

Intimate Partner ◽

Ptsd Symptoms ◽

Western Kenya ◽

Gender Minority ◽

Sexual And Gender Minority ◽

Clinically Significant ◽

And Gender

Background: Sexual and gender minority (SGM) people in Kenya face pervasive socio-cultural and structural discrimination. Persistent stress stemming from anti-SGM stigma and prejudice may place SGM individuals at increased risk for negative mental health outcomes. This study explored experiences with violence (intimate partner violence and SGM-based violence), mental health outcomes (psychological distress, PTSD symptoms, and depressive symptoms), alcohol and other substance use, and prioritization of community needs among SGM adults in Western Kenya. Methods: This study was conducted by members of a collaborative research partnership between a U.S. academic institution and a Kenyan LGBTQ civil society organization (CSO). A convenience sample of 527 SGM adults (92.7% ages 18–34) was recruited from community venues to complete a cross-sectional survey either on paper or through an online secure platform. Results: For comparative analytic purposes, three sexual orientation and gender identity (SOGI) groups were created: (1) cisgender sexual minority women (SMW; 24.9%), (2) cisgender sexual minority men (SMM; 63.8%), and (3) gender minority individuals (GMI; 11.4%). Overall, 11.7% of participants reported clinically significant levels of psychological distress, 53.2% reported clinically significant levels of post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, and 26.1% reported clinically significant levels of depressive symptoms. No statistically significant differences in clinical levels of these mental health concerns were detected across SOGI groups. Overall, 76.2% of participants reported ever using alcohol, 45.6% home brew, 43.5% tobacco, 39.1% marijuana, and 27.7% miraa or khat. Statistically significant SOGI group differences on potentially problematic substance use revealed that GMI participants were less likely to use alcohol and tobacco daily; and SMM participants were more likely to use marijuana daily. Lifetime intimate partner violence (IPV) was reported by 42.5% of participants, and lifetime SGM-based violence (SGMV) was reported by 43.4%. GMI participants were more likely than other SOGI groups to have experienced both IPV and SGMV. Participants who experienced SGMV had significantly higher rates of clinically significant depressive and PTSD symptoms. Conclusions: Despite current resilience demonstrated by SGM adults in Kenya, there is an urgent need to develop and deliver culturally appropriate mental health services for this population. Given the pervasiveness of anti-SGM violence, services should be provided using trauma-informed principles, and be sensitive to the lived experiences of SGM adults in Kenya. Community and policy levels interventions are needed to decrease SGM-based stigma and violence, increase SGM visibility and acceptance, and create safe and affirming venues for mental health care. Political prioritization of SGM mental health is needed for sustainable change.

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Associations of Relationship Experiences, Dating Violence, Sexual Harassment, and Assault With Alcohol Use Among Sexual and Gender Minority Adolescents

Journal of Interpersonal Violence ◽

10.1177/08862605211001469 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 088626052110014

Author(s):

W. J. Kiekens ◽

L. Baams ◽

J. N. Fish ◽

R. J. Watson

Keyword(s):

Sexual Assault ◽

Alcohol Use ◽

Sexual Harassment ◽

Dating Violence ◽

Heavy Episodic Drinking ◽

Gender Minority ◽

Minority Adolescents ◽

Relationship Experiences ◽

Sexual And Gender Minority ◽

And Gender

Sexual and gender minority (SGM) adolescents report higher rates of dating violence victimization compared with their heterosexual and cisgender peers. Research on dating violence often neglects diversity in sexual and gender identities and is limited to experiences in relationships. Further, given that dating violence and alcohol use are comorbid, research on experiences of dating violence could provide insights into alcohol use disparities among SGM adolescents. We aimed to map patterns of relationship experiences, sexual and physical dating violence, and sexual and physical assault and explored differences in these experiences among SGM adolescents. Further, we examined how these patterns explained alcohol use. We used a U.S. non-probability national web-based survey administered to 13–17-year-old SGM adolescents ( N = 12,534). Using latent class analyses, four patterns were identified: low relationship experience, dating violence and harassment and assault (72.0%), intermediate dating experiences, sexual harassment, and assault and low levels of dating violence (13.1%), high dating experiences, dating violence, and sexual assault (8.6%), and high dating experiences, dating violence, and sexual harassment and assault (6.3%). Compared to lesbian and gay adolescents, bisexual adolescents reported more experiences with dating, dating violence, and sexual assault, whereas heterosexual adolescents reported fewer experiences with dating, dating violence, and sexual harassment and assault. Compared to cisgender boys, cisgender girls, transgender boys, and non-binary/assigned male at birth adolescents were more likely to experience dating violence inside and outside of relationship contexts. Experiences of dating, dating violence, and sexual harassment and assault were associated with both drinking frequency and heavy episodic drinking. Together, the findings emphasize the relevance of relationship experiences when studying dating violence and how dating violence and sexual harassment and assault might explain disparities in alcohol use.

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