Predicting Psychosocial Consequences of Homophobic Victimization in Middle School Students

Bibliographic Data

ID11670801
AuthorsPaul Poteat (0000-0002-0289-9289, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, corresponding author), Dorothy Espelage (0000-0003-0658-2067, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign)
Year2007
Volume27
Issue2
Pages175-191
Publication date2007-04-16
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueThe Journal of Early Adolescence (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0272-4316 • E-ISSN: 1552-5449
PublisherSAGE Publishing (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/0272431606294839
OpenAlexW2009611209
LanguageEN
Citations received116
References cited45

This investigation examined the extent to which homophobic victimization predicted multiple indicators of psychological and social distress for middle school students ( n = 143) during a 1-year assessment period. Hierarchical regression analyses indicated that homophobic victimization significantly predicted increased anxiety and depression, personal distress, and lower sense of school belonging in males and higher levels of withdrawal in females after controlling for previously reported levels of each variable. Results suggest that being the target of homophobic victimization has significant psychological and social consequences for students, although differentially for males and females. Although use of such content may occur within peer groups and appear to be harmless banter between friends, teachers and administrators should intervene during these occurrences, and school policies and programming should specifically address and seek to decrease this social problem

Anxiety · Developmental psychology · Distress · Multilevel model · Peer victimization · Poison control · Psychiatry · Psychosocial · Social anxiety · Suicide prevention · Bullying, Victimization, and Aggression · Clinical Psychology · Education Discipline and Inequality · LGBTQ Health, Identity, and Policy · Medicine · Psychology