Introduction to the Special Section on Bisexual Health: Can You See Us Now?

Abstract

Despite comprising the largest proportion of the “lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB)” population, research focusing on the unique health concerns and needs of bisexual individuals is relatively scarce. While health disparities are increasingly well documented among lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) individuals relative to their heterosexual and cisgender counterparts, gaps remain in our basic understanding of how health status, behaviors, and outcomes vary within these groups, especially bisexual individuals. The lack of specified research on bisexual health is even more curious given that, when separated from both heterosexual and gay/lesbian individuals, bisexual individuals consistently report higher rates of a wide range of negative health outcomes, including mood and anxiety disorders, substance use, suicidality, as well as disparities related to healthcare access and utilization. Indeed, in scientific research, mass media, and in public health interventions, bisexual individuals remain relatively invisible. This Special Section represents an effort to shed light on a new generation of quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods research studies that examine health-related concerns, outcomes, and intervention opportunities specifically among diverse samples of bisexual individuals from a variety of social and cultural contexts. The research herein focuses on intersections of multiple identities, the development of new measures, the use of large national data sets, and diverse groups of self-identified bisexual men (who tend to be least visible in health research). Findings from these studies will significantly advance our knowledge of factors associated with health disparities, as well as health and wellbeing more generally, among bisexual individuals and will help to inform directions for future health promotion research and intervention efforts.

Improving the Health of Cisgender Men Who Identify as Bisexual: What Do They Want from Interventions?

“…In recent years, HIV prevention programs have been developed for behaviorally bisexual men (i.e., men who have sex with men and women; Harawa et al, 2013), but these programs are not tailored to the unique needs of self-identified bisexual men. This parallels the general trend in research on bisexual men, most of which has focused on their sexual behavior more so than their identity (Bostwick & Dodge, 2018). However, bisexual identity is highly stigmatized, especially among men (Dodge et al, 2016;Friedman, Dodge, et al, 2014;Herek, 2002), and bisexual individuals face discrimination from both heterosexual and gay/lesbian individuals .…”

“…Interventions may need to address different topics and be delivered in different formats to meet the unique needs of self-identified bisexual men. For example, given the invisibility of bisexuality (Bostwick & Dodge, 2018), men who identify as bisexual may be particularly likely to prefer interventions that connect them to other bisexual men in the interest of building community.…”

Sexual orientation and adolescent suicide attempt and self‐harm: a co‐twin control study

“…Prior research examining specific minority groups of sexual orientation has found support that those identifying as bisexual and ‘unsure’ are at increased risk for suicidality compared to gay/lesbian identification (Salway et al, 2019). Research suggests that bisexual young adults may be at increased risk for numerous outcomes, such as depression, anxiety, and substance use, compared with both heterosexual and gay/lesbian young adults (Bostwick & Dodge, 2019; Feinstein & Dyar, 2017). These findings apply to various definitions of bisexuality, including attraction, behavior, and identity (Feinstein & Dyar, 2017).…”

Meeting the Sexual Health Needs of Bisexual Men in the Age of Biomedical HIV Prevention: Gaps and Priorities

“…For example, they could include skill building for negotiating safer sex and successful termination of abusive relationships. For both bisexual men and women, these issues also intersect with disparate rates of poverty, lack of healthcare access, and other structural disparities faced by bisexual individuals that must be taken into account, in addition to intersecting issues related to race/ethnicity, socioeconomic status, age, and other factors (Bostwick & Dodge, 2019).…”