In:
Social Psychiatry and Psychiatric Epidemiology, Springer Science and Business Media LLC, Vol. 57, No. 11 ( 2022-11), p. 2319-2332
Abstract:
Lesbian,
gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals, and LB women specifically, have an increased risk for psychiatric morbidity, theorized to result from stigma-based
discrimination. To date, no study has investigated the mental health disparities between LGB and heterosexual AQ1individuals in a large
cross-national population-based comparison. The current study addresses this gap by examining differences between LGB and heterosexual participants in 13
cross-national surveys, and by exploring whether these disparities were associated with country-level LGBT acceptance. Since lower social support has
been suggested as a mediator of sexual orientation-based differences in psychiatric morbidity, our secondary aim was to examine whether mental health
disparities were partially explained by general social support from family and friends. Methods Twelve-month
prevalence of DSM-IV anxiety, mood, eating, disruptive behavior, and substance disorders was assessed with the WHO Composite International Diagnostic
Interview in a general population sample across 13 countries as part of the World Mental Health Surveys. Participants were 46,889 adults (19,887 males; 807
LGB-identified). Results Male
and female LGB participants were more likely to report any 12-month disorder (OR 2.2, p 〈 0.001 and OR 2.7, p 〈 0.001, respectively) and most individual
disorders than heterosexual participants. We found no evidence for an association between country-level LGBT acceptance and rates of psychiatric
morbidity between LGB and heterosexualAQ2 participants. However, among LB women, the increased risk for mental disorders was partially explained by lower
general openness with family, although most of the increased risk remained unexplained. Conclusion These results provide cross-national evidence for an association between sexual minority status and psychiatric morbidity, and highlight that for women, but not men, this association was partially mediated by perceived openness with family. Future research into individual-level and cross-national sexual minority stressors is needed.
Type of Medium:
Online Resource
ISSN:
0933-7954
,
1433-9285
DOI:
10.1007/s00127-022-02320-z
Language:
English
Publisher:
Springer Science and Business Media LLC
Publication Date:
2022
detail.hit.zdb_id:
1463160-X
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