Category: LGBTQ+
Nicholas Perry, Ph.D. (he/him/his)
Research assistant professor
University of Denver
Denver, Colorado
David Pantalone, Ph.D. (he/him/his)
University of Massachusetts Boston
Boston, Massachusetts
Amelia Stanton, Ph.D. (she/her/hers)
Assistant Professor
Boston University
Boston, Massachusetts
Roberto Renteria, Ph.D. (he/him/his)
Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Science
Chicago, Illinois
Michael Newcomb, Ph.D. (he/him/his)
Associate Professor
Northwestern University
Chicago, Illinois
Sarah Whitton, Ph.D. (she/her/hers)
Professor
University of Cincinnati
Cincinnati, Ohio
Nicholas Perry, Ph.D. (he/him/his)
Research assistant professor
University of Denver
Denver, Colorado
Sexual and gender minority individuals continue to face persistent mental health disparities (e.g., depression, anxiety, problematic alcohol/substance use), despite our best scientific efforts to understand these disparities and reduce them through intervention. Multiply marginalized sexual and gender minority individuals (e.g., those who also identify as racial and ethnic minority) are at even greater risk for poorer mental health; yet, they have been less often focused on in research. Thus, more work is needed to identify complex influences on the mental health of sexual and gender minority individuals. Doing so can inform more effective interventions and, ultimately, allow sexual and gender minority people to experience greater emotional well-being and better quality of life.
A promising approach to improving our understanding of mental health concerns for sexual and gender minority communities is to examine influences on mental health across ecological levels (e.g., individual, interpersonal, community). This symposium will present data on influences across levels among diverse sexual and gender minority adults, including dyadic, generational, and intersectional (i.e., racial and ethnic identity intersections) influences. These presentations also use a range of rigorous scientific methods, such as longitudinal analyses, dyadic data collection, and qualitative methods. Finally, many of these presentations include sexual and gender minority individuals who are also diverse in their racial and ethnic identities, highlighting influences on mental health among some of the most vulnerable sexual and gender minority people.
First, Dr. Amelia Stanton will present data on variability in depression and anxiety across intersections of gender, racial, and ethnic identity using a large sample from a community-based healthcare clinic. Dr. Roberto Renteria will present on the association of intersectional discrimination and mental health among Latinx sexual minority adults and the role of coping as a mediator. Dr. Michael Newcomb will examine whether mental health improves over time and across generations among diverse cohorts of sexual and gender minority young people. Next, Dr. Sarah Whitton will describe the influence of intimate partner violence victimization on mental health among a racially diverse longitudinal cohort of sexual minority young adults. Dr. Nicholas Perry will present rich qualitative data on the mutual influences of mental health and relationship dynamics during the early formation of romantic relationships for cisgender sexual minority couples. Dr. David Pantalone, an international expert in sexual and gender minority mental health and mental health interventions for these communities, will integrate these presentations and guide a rich discussion of what these findings mean for moving the field forward.
These presentations will provide attendees with a deeper understanding of the complexity with which mental health disparities emerge for and are experienced by sexual and gender minority individuals. This knowledge will be critical as cognitive behavioral science endeavors to be more inclusive in the populations it reaches and more effective at improving well-being in diverse populations.
