2 - (SYM 128) Associations Between Suicide Risk and Intraminority Stress in Sexual Minority Men

Sexual minority (SM) populations are at increased risk for suicide compared to heterosexual individuals. Prior literature has demonstrated that discrimination and emotion dysregulation are associated with risk factors for suicide. Extant research in SM populations has primarily focused on external stressors. Thus, the present study examined associations between intraminority stress (i.e., stress generated within SM groups based on status hierarchies) and emotion dysregulation with suicide risk. Participants were (N = 188) SM men who completed a measure of intraminority stress, suicide risk, and emotion dysregulation. Linear regression models examined cross-sectional associations between intraminority stress facets (e.g., exclusion, status, sexual capital, competition), emotion dysregulation, and suicidality. Results indicate significant effects of intraminority exclusion, emotion dysregulation and their respective interaction effects with suicide risk (ps < .037). Specifically, at low levels of exclusion the association between emotion dysregulation and suicide risk was stronger (b = .60), and at high levels of exclusion the association between emotion dysregulation and suicide risk was weaker (b = .36; ps < .001). Moreover, intraminority exclusion, status, and competition moderated associations between emotion dysregulation and the likelihood of future suicidal behavior (ps < .031), such that at low levels of status, competition, or exclusion, emotion dysregulation was more strongly associated (bs > .57) with the likelihood of future suicide behavior (ps < .003), where at high levels of status, competition, or exclusion, emotion dysregulation was weakly associated with likelihood of future suicide behavior (bs < .31; ps < .003). Our findings indicate that intraminority stress, especially exclusion, is associated with greater suicide risk and the likelihood of future suicidal behavior in SM men. This is consistent with research supporting that thwarted belongingness is associated with suicide in SM populations. However, our finding extends on this research in the sense that within group processes may also contribute to suicidality in SM men.