Disparities in Health-Related Quality of Life: A Comparison of Lesbians and Bisexual Women

Fredriksen-Goldsen, Karen I.; Kim, Hyun Jun; Barkan, Susan E.; Balsam, Kimberly F.; Mincer, Shawn L.

doi:10.2105/ajph.2009.177329

Cited by 194 publications

(148 citation statements)

References 43 publications

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“…12 Most of these associations have been identified in LGBT adolescents, although research on sexual minority women has found reduced mental health to be associated with poor health-related quality of life, 44 lack of exercise, 12 and poor general health. 45,12 Mediational models and clinical implications A major goal of this study was to create a path model linking outness through social support and mental health to wellness behavior. Consistent with the hypothesis, in the first model the indirect effects of outness to family and wellness behaviors through social support from family and depression were significant.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multiple Mediational Model of Outness, Social Support, Mental Health, and Wellness Behavior in Ethnically Diverse Lesbian, Bisexual, and Queer Women

2015

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Purpose: A growing body of research has begun to examine wellness behaviors in sexual minority women. While a number of constructs have been associated with wellness behaviors in this population, including outness, social support, and mental health, no research has attempted to forge the specific and unique connections among them. The aim of the current study was to construct a theoretical chain among these variables leading to wellness behaviors among an ethnically diverse sample of sexual minority women. Methods: A sample of 150 ethnically diverse, cisgender women identifying as lesbian, bisexual, queer, or an ''other'' non-heterosexual sexual orientation completed a web-administered national survey. Scales assessed participants' outness, social support, mental health, and wellness behaviors. Results: In a series of simultaneous, multiple regressions, outness to one's family was positively associated with wellness behavior and social support; social support from one's family and friends was positively associated with mental health; and depression was negatively associated with wellness behaviors. Two multiple mediational models generally suggested a cascading influence of outness to one's family on wellness behaviors through social support from one's family and depression. Conclusion: The study is one of the first to find potentially cascading links among personal, social, and mental health variables with health behaviors in a sample of diverse lesbian, bisexual, and queer (LBQ) women. It thereby illuminates a number of potential targets for health promotion interventions in this population.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multiple Mediational Model of Outness, Social Support, Mental Health, and Wellness Behavior in Ethnically Diverse Lesbian, Bisexual, and Queer Women

2015

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“…The absence of multivariate models that directly compare bisexual and lesbian women limits our ability to understand the extent to which these two groups actually differ. 9 In two studies that included direct comparisons of bisexual and lesbian women, results were not consistent. In a study using data from the Washington State BRFSS survey, the authors found that even after adjusting for demographic differences, including age and living in poverty, bisexual women had significantly higher odds of frequent mental distress and poor general health than lesbian women.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 97%

“…In a study using data from the Washington State BRFSS survey, the authors found that even after adjusting for demographic differences, including age and living in poverty, bisexual women had significantly higher odds of frequent mental distress and poor general health than lesbian women. 9 Another, more recent study, which relied on a pooled sample of 2010 BRFSS surveys from 10 states, directly compared bisexual and lesbian women on a wide range of health behaviors and outcomes in addition to comparisons to heterosexual women. 13 Once age, race, education and income were controlled, bisexual and lesbian women no longer differed significantly in regard to fair/poor health status, current smoking, HIV risk, or screening behaviors.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Health Behavior, Status, and Outcomes Among a Community-Based Sample of Lesbian and Bisexual Women

Hughes

Everett

2015

LGBT Health

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Purpose: To compare health behaviors, and physical and mental health outcomes in a community-based sample of bisexual and lesbian women. Methods: The Chicago Health and Life Experiences of Women (CHLEW) study is a longitudinal study of sexual minority women's health. Wave 3 of the CHLEW used a modified version of respondent-driven sampling to recruit a supplemental sample of bisexual-identified women into the study, with an additional focus on younger women, and Black and Latina women. Face-to-face interviews were conducted and data were captured using computer-assisted interviews. Data from the supplemental Wave 3 sample are reported here. Results: Bisexual (n = 139) and lesbian women (n = 227) did not differ on most health outcomes, either in terms of prevalence or adjusted odds. Bisexual women were at higher risk of ever being diagnosed with a sexually transmitted infection (STI) (AOR = 3.01) and scoring 10 or more on the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) (AOR = 1.73) compared to lesbian women. Conclusion: In contrast to the prevailing view of bisexual women as being at higher risk for many/most negative health outcomes, we found relatively few differences between bisexual and lesbian women in the current study. Additional research is needed to better understand risk and resilience factors among bisexual women specifically, and sexual minority women more broadly.

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“…There is a small speculative literature on the issues older bisexually-identified people are likely to face when encountering support services (Dworkin, 2006;Rodriguez Rust, 2012;Scherrer, 2017) and some evidence that bisexually-identified women are at increased risk of negative health outcomes across the life course compared to lesbians (Colledge, Hickson, Reid, & Weatherburn, 2015;Fredriksen-Goldsen, Kim, Barkan, Balsam, & Mincer, 2010).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Older bisexual people: Implications for social work from the ‘Looking Both Ways’ study

Jones

Almack

Scicluna³

2018

Journal of Gerontological Social Work

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AcknowledgementsThe authors would like to thank all the participants in the research for so generously sharing their experiences. They would also like to thank the two anonymous peer reviewers. AbstractThere is a growing social work literature about lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) older people. However, research and guidance are predominantly based on the experiences of older gay men and, to a lesser extent, older lesbians. There is little to help practitioners work with older bisexual people. The Looking Both Ways study aimed to contribute to this gap in knowledge. We undertook in-depth purposely-sampled qualitative interviews with 12 people aged over 50, all of whom have bisexual relationship histories and half of whom also currently identify as bisexual. There were three main findings. Firstly, biphobia (prejudice against bisexual people) impacts on older people with bisexual histories in ways that may affect their wellbeing in later life. Secondly, concerns around receiving care are similar in some ways and different in others from the concerns of lesbians and gay men.Thirdly, people with bisexual relationship histories may have developed strong support networks and resilience, factors that may be very beneficial in later life. Three recommendations for social work professionals were identified: 1) understand biphobia, 2) recognise the legitimacy of concerns about receiving care, and 3) ask about support networks rather than assuming family support.

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Disparities in Health-Related Quality of Life: A Comparison of Lesbians and Bisexual Women

Abstract: Despite the standard practice of collapsing sexual minority women into a single group, lesbian and bisexual women in this study emerge as distinct groups that merit specific attention. Bisexual women are at elevated risk for poor HRQOL.

Cited by 194 publications

References 43 publications

Multiple Mediational Model of Outness, Social Support, Mental Health, and Wellness Behavior in Ethnically Diverse Lesbian, Bisexual, and Queer Women

Multiple Mediational Model of Outness, Social Support, Mental Health, and Wellness Behavior in Ethnically Diverse Lesbian, Bisexual, and Queer Women

Health Behavior, Status, and Outcomes Among a Community-Based Sample of Lesbian and Bisexual Women

Older bisexual people: Implications for social work from the ‘Looking Both Ways’ study

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