Mental health and resilience in transgender individuals: What type of support makes a difference?

Abstract

Research has generally shown the benefits of social support, such as the buffering effects on life stressors, yet there has been little empirical investigation of different types of support resources for transgender individuals. We examined family support, support from friends, and connectedness to a transgender community and how these forms of support come together to influence mental health and resilience. The sample included 695 transgender participants (mean age ϭ 25.52 years, SD ϭ 9.68, range ϭ 16 -73; 75.7% White) who completed an online survey. Greater than half of participants reported moderate to severe levels of anxious and depressive symptoms. Family social support had the strongest correlations with symptoms of anxiety and depression (r ϭ Ϫ.31 and Ϫ.37, respectively, p Ͻ .01) and was the only form of support associated with resilience when controlling for other forms of support. Latent profile analyses revealed 4 groups based on levels of social support from family and friends and community connectedness. Notably, Class 1 (n ϭ 323; 47.1%) had high levels of support from family and friends and high levels of community connectedness. This class had lower levels of depression and anxiety symptoms and higher levels of resilience compared to other classes (Class 2, n ϭ 276, 40.3%, high friend/community, low family; Class 3, n ϭ 47, 6.9%, low support; Class 4, n ϭ 39, 5.7%, high family, low friend/community). This study highlights the importance of examining support from a more holistic approach and provides insight into unique associations between familial social support and resilience.

Comparing the Impact of COVID-19-Related Social Distancing on Mood and Psychiatric Indicators in Sexual and Gender Minority (SGM) and Non-SGM Individuals

“…Empirical evidence further documents the importance of social support for SGM individuals' mental health. Perceptions of support from family and friends are negatively associated with mental health (36)(37)(38)(39) outcomes. Social support not only directly impacts mental health, but also indirectly through engagement in effective behavioral coping mechanisms (40,41).…”

Biocultural approaches to transgender and gender diverse experience and health: Integrating biomarkers and advancing gender/sex research

“…Notably, these effects may vary in important ways by race, ethnicity, and sexual orientation (Whitton, Dyar, Newcomb, & Mustanski, 2018). Published research on these issues with TGD people is currently limited, but is beginning to confirm the importance of close relationships on health outcomes (Fuller & Riggs, 2018; Meier, Sharp, Michonski, Babcock, & Fitzgerald, 2013; Puckett, Matsuno, Dyar, Mustanski, & Newcomb, 2019; Riggs, von Doussa, & Power, 2015; Sansfaçon et al, 2018; Wilson, Chen, Arayasirikul, Wenzel, & Raymond, 2015). Although there is strong evidence that structural, interpersonal and individual manifestations of stigma are related to poorer health for TGD people (White Hughto et al, 2015), there is little investigation of how stigma affects the initiation, maintenance, and experience of relationships and how variation in these may help explain health outcomes.…”

“…In their most extreme form, health risks include high rates of suicidality, often in response to intense social stigma and inequality. TGD people also report more depression and anxiety symptoms (Budge, Adelson, & Howard, 2013; Puckett, Matsuno, et al, 2019) than the general population. Data from the 2014 to 2016 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System found TGD people have a higher burden of chronic medical conditions, disabilities, and poor mental health than cisgender people (Downing & Przedworski, 2018).…”

Negotiating mental health amongst transgender parents in Australia

“…Trans people experience significantly poorer mental health compared to their cisgender counterparts (Bockting et al, 2013;Leonard et al, 2015), attributed to the psychological impact of discrimination and systematic oppression of trans people (Hatchel et al, 2018). For trans parents, issues around parenting and mental health may be complicated by a history of discrimination and pathologization by the medical community and the family court system (Bockting et al, 2013;Charter et al, 2018;Puckett et al, 2019;Rodriguez et al, 2018). Much like the broader population, trans people may seek support for issues around their mental health.…”