Minority Stress and Loneliness in a Global Sample of Sexual Minority Adults

The Roles of Social Anxiety, Social Inhibition, and Community Involvement

Datos Bibliográficos

ID8355243
AutoresEddy Elmer (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, autor de correspondencia), Eddy M Elmer (0000-0001-7924-7564), Theo G Van Tilburg (0000-0002-1005-6732, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam), Tineke Fokkema (0000-0002-0763-663X, University of Groningen)
Año2022
Volumen51
Número4
Páginas2269-2298
Fecha de publicación2022-05-01
Peer ReviewedSí
Open AccessSí
TipoARTICLE
RevistaArchives of Sexual Behavior (JOURNAL)
Identificadores de la revistaISSN: 0004-0002 • E-ISSN: 1573-2800
EditorialSpringer Science and Business Media LLC (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1007/s10508-021-02132-3
PMID35084615
OpenAlexW4210646858
IdiomaEN
Citas recibidas34
Referencias citadas175

Research suggests that loneliness among sexual minority adults is associated with marginalization, but it is unclear which processes may underlie this relationship. This cross-sectional study examined five possibilities: stigma preoccupation, internalized homonegativity, sexual orientation concealment, social anxiety, and social inhibition. The study also examined the possible protective role of LGBTQ community involvement. Respondents were 7856 sexual minority adults aged 18–88 years from 85 countries who completed an online survey. Results of structural equation modeling indicated that marginalization was positively associated with both social and emotional loneliness, and that part of this relationship was indirect via proximal minority stress factors (especially stigma preoccupation) and, in turn, social anxiety and social inhibition. Moreover, while LGBTQ community involvement was associated with greater marginalization, it was also associated with lower levels of proximal stress and both forms of loneliness. Among those who were more involved in the LGBTQ community, the associations between marginalization and proximal stress were somewhat weaker, as were those between stigma preoccupation and social anxiety, and between social inhibition and social loneliness. In contrast, the associations between concealment and social anxiety were somewhat stronger. Model fit and patterns of association were similar after controlling for the possible confounding effect of dispositional negative affectivity, but several coefficients were lower. Findings underscore the continuing need to counter marginalization of sexual minorities, both outside and within the LGBTQ community, and suggest possible avenues for alleviating loneliness at the individual level, such as cognitive-behavioral interventions targeting stigma preoccupation and social anxiety

Anxiety · Developmental psychology · Loneliness · Minority stress · Psychiatry · Psychological intervention · Sexual minority · Sexual orientation · Social anxiety · Social isolation · Social stigma · Social stress · Social support · Structural equation modeling · Clinical Psychology · Health disparities and outcomes · LGBTQ Health, Identity, and Policy · Medicine · Psychology · Social Psychology