Bisexual-Specific Minority Stressors, Psychological Distress, and Suicidality in Bisexual Individuals: the Mediating Role of Loneliness

Mereish, Ethan H.; Katz-Wise, Sabra L.; Woulfe, Julie

doi:10.1007/s11121-017-0804-2

Cited by 118 publications

(88 citation statements)

References 39 publications

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“…This calls into question in which spaces bisexuals can feel safe and accepted. These findings are consistent with quantitative work showing that experiences of anti-bisexual prejudice and identity concealment are associated with increased loneliness, and in turn poor mental health (Mereish et al, 2017b). Additional research is needed to understand the health impacts of bisexual invalidation and erasure, particularly as they affect mental health.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 89%

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Perceived Discrimination, Coping Mechanisms, and Effects on Health in Bisexual and Other Non-Monosexual Adults

et al. 2018

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Bisexual individuals experience unique discrimination related to their sexual orientation, which may increase their risk of adverse health outcomes. The study goal was to investigate how bisexual and other non-monosexual individuals experience discrimination, understand how they perceive discrimination to affect their health, and examine the ways in which they cope with discrimination by analyzing responses to open-ended survey questions. The sample included 442 bisexual and other non-monosexual adults, ages 18-68 years (M = 28.97, SD = 10.30), who either reported a bisexual identity or reported attractions to more than one gender. Gender identities included women (n = 347), men (n = 42), and transgender/non-binary individuals (n = 53); 29% of participants were currently located outside of the U.S. Participants completed an online survey, including three open-ended questions regarding their experiences with discrimination, how discrimination affects their health, and methods used to cope with discrimination. Themes related to perceived discrimination included: double discrimination of bisexuals and other non-monosexual individuals by heterosexuals, lesbian and gay individuals; bisexual invalidation and erasure; and sexual victimization. Themes related to the perceived effects of discrimination on health included: impact on mental health; impact on physical health; and effect of discrimination in healthcare. Themes related to coping with discrimination included: social support; resilience; and identity-specific media consumption. Findings demonstrate that bisexual and other non-monosexual individuals' experiences of discrimination can be additive, based on other marginalized facets of identity, including race/ethnicity, gender, and socioeconomic status. Our findings have implications for advancing bisexual health research from an intersectionality framework.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 89%

“…Among other measures reported elsewhere (Katz-Wise et al, 2017; Mereish et al, 2017a; Mereish et al, 2017b), participants were asked three open-ended questions at the end of the survey: (1) What are your experiences with discrimination? (2) What helps you cope with these experiences with discrimination?…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Perceived Discrimination, Coping Mechanisms, and Effects on Health in Bisexual and Other Non-Monosexual Adults

et al. 2018

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“…However, limited research has examined mediators of the association between minority stress and suicide risk. Interpersonal mechanisms may be strong candidates given their role in both the relationship between minority stress and health (Mereish, Katz‐Wise, & Woulfe, ; Mereish & Poteat, ) and in driving suicide risk (Van Orden et al., ). Thus, this study examined two relational mechanisms that might explain these associations that have not yet been tested in the literature: shame and rejection sensitivity.…”

Section: Theoretical Models Explaining Suicide Risk Among Sexual Minomentioning

confidence: 99%

Minority Stress and Relational Mechanisms of Suicide among Sexual Minorities: Subgroup Differences in the Associations Between Heterosexist Victimization, Shame, Rejection Sensitivity, and Suicide Risk

Mereish

Peters

Yen

2018

Suicide & Life Threat Behav

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Despite sexual orientation disparities in suicide, there is limited research examining factors associated with suicide risk among sexual minorities while considering subgroup differences within this group. This study identified differences between sexual minorities at risk for suicide and those not at risk. The study also examined heterosexist victimization, as one form of minority stress, and two relational mechanisms (i.e., shame and rejection sensitivity) as risk factors for suicidality. We examined a moderated-mediation model, in which we tested gender and sexual orientation differences in the mediating effects of the relational mechanisms on the association between heterosexist victimization and suicide risk. Participants were recruited online and completed an online survey. The sample included 719 sexual minority adults. Of the sample, 27.7% were at risk for suicide. Suicide risk varied by age, gender, sexual orientation, income, education, and relationship status. Heterosexist victimization, shame, and rejection sensitivity were significant risk factors for suicide. Shame and rejection sensitivity were mediators of the association between heterosexist victimization and suicide risk for subgroups of sexual minorities, mostly lesbian and gay individuals and to some extent bisexual individuals. The findings underscore minority stress, shame, and rejection sensitivity as key intervention points.

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“…Prior work exploring the sexual identity development experiences of sexual minority adolescents has failed to understand the sexual development of youth who may exist at the intersection of multiple marginalized identities, such as Black and bisexual (Dubé & Savin-Williams, 1999; Jamil, Harper,& Fernandez, 2009; Rosario, Schrimshaw,& Hunter, 2004,2008; Rosario, Schrimshaw, Hunter,& Braun, 2006; Toomey, Huynh, Jones, Lee, & Revels-Macalinao, 2017; Wade & Harper, 2015). Past work suggests that bisexual youth of color, including Black bisexual male adolescents (BBMA), may have significant and unmet sexual and reproductive as well as mental health needs during sexual development (Chun & Singh, 2010; Dodge et al, 2016; Friedman et al, 2014; Saewyc et al, 2009), which are unique and distinct from those adolescents who identify as gay, lesbian or heterosexual (Friedman et al, 2014; Mereish, Katz-Wise, & Woulfe, 2017). Understanding the context of sexual orientation development in BBMA may uncover key insights into opportunities for programmatic intervention in this population.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exploring the Sexual Development Experiences of Black Bisexual Male Adolescents Over Time

et al. 2018

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Scant research has sought to explore the development of dimensions of sexual orientation among Black bisexual male adolescents (BBMA). Understanding how sexual attractions, behaviors, and identities evolve among BBMA over time is crucial to understanding the most appropriate support strategies to provide during this developmental period. We sought to understand and describe the sexual orientation development experiences in a sample ofBBMA overthe course of 1 year. We further sought to understand the sociocontextual factors that may play a role during this development process. Fifteen BBMA, aged 15–19 years, were interviewed about sexual debut experiences (baseline) and were re-interviewed three times over a 1-year period about sexual attractions, behaviors, and identity at each follow-up point. A three-person team used inductive open coding to analyze each participant’s data set. The mean Kinsey scale score for the sample was 2.93 (SD = 1.2) most closely translating to“heterosexual/gay-equally.”A case study analysis was used to identify themes related to sexual attractions, behavior, and identity over time, within and across participants. Among the sample of young men, two unique groups were identified based on self-reported sexual identity and experiences of same- and other-sex sexual attractions and behaviors over time. The first group consisted of seven young men who consistently described their sexual identity as bisexual from baseline to the final follow-up. These young men also described similar experiences related to same- and other-sex sexual and romantic attractions and more consistently described same- and other-sex sexual behaviors. The second group consisted of eight young men that described changing sexual identity and same- and other-sex sexual romantic attractions overtime. Participants described sociocontextual factors such as religion, masculinity, and homophobia played during their development. Findings from this study underscore the complexity of sexual orientation development and sociocultural factors and expectations that may influence sexual identity and behavior among BBMA.

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Bisexual-Specific Minority Stressors, Psychological Distress, and Suicidality in Bisexual Individuals: the Mediating Role of Loneliness

Cited by 118 publications

References 39 publications

Perceived Discrimination, Coping Mechanisms, and Effects on Health in Bisexual and Other Non-Monosexual Adults

Perceived Discrimination, Coping Mechanisms, and Effects on Health in Bisexual and Other Non-Monosexual Adults

Minority Stress and Relational Mechanisms of Suicide among Sexual Minorities: Subgroup Differences in the Associations Between Heterosexist Victimization, Shame, Rejection Sensitivity, and Suicide Risk

Exploring the Sexual Development Experiences of Black Bisexual Male Adolescents Over Time

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