Category: LGBTQ+
Nathan Hollinsaid, B.S. (he/him/his)
Clinical Science Doctoral Student
Department of Psychology, Harvard University
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Nicole Cardona, M.A. (she/they (either set))
PhD Candidate
Boston University
Brighton, Massachusetts
Amelia Aldao, Ph.D.
Together CBT
New York, New York
Nathan Hollinsaid, B.S. (he/him/his)
Clinical Science Doctoral Student
Department of Psychology, Harvard University
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Nicole Cardona, M.A. (she/they (either set))
PhD Candidate
Boston University
Brighton, Massachusetts
Andreas Bezahler, B.S. (he/him/his)
Graduate Student
Fordham University
New York, New York
Ilana Seager van Dyk, Ph.D. (she/her/hers)
Senior Lecturer in Clinical Psychology
Massey University
Wellington, Wellington, New Zealand
Stigma—the co-occurrence of labeling, stereotyping, separation, status loss, and discrimination in a context of unequal power—has been conceptualized as a chronic form of identity invalidation that undermines sexual and gender minorities’ emotional experiences and expressions (Cardona et al., 2022). Indeed, research consistently demonstrates that sexual and gender minorities’ stigma experiences (e.g., discrimination) hinder specific emotion processes (e.g., emotional awareness) and necessitate the use of particular emotion regulation strategies (e.g., suppression), which may ultimately contribute to these groups’ disproportionate risk for internalizing psychopathology (Hatzenbuehler et al., 2009). Despite key insights produced by these studies, this work remains limited by its foci on (1) predictors of emotion processes linked to aspects of the individual and immediate situation (e.g., internalized/interpersonal stigma) but not of the broader social environment (e.g., structural stigma); (2) quantitative relations between stigma- and emotion-related variables, with few qualitative accounts of how stigma exerts influence over emotions; (3) models of emotion regulation variables as distinct constructs rather than unfolding stages; and (4) emotions’ role in the etiology and treatment of a relatively narrow range of mental health disorders despite their relevance to a wide array of conditions.
To address these gaps, our symposium aims to broaden the lens of stigma and emotion research by featuring four studies comprising diverse sexual and gender minority samples from the US and abroad. These studies draw on an array of methodologies—from qualitative inquiry to clinical intervention evaluation to population-based designs—conducted by leading stigma and emotion scholars at varying career stages. Results from these studies provide novel evidence that sexual and gender minorities’ exposure to stigmatizing environments (i.e., structural stigma)—in addition to their experiences of stigmatizing interpersonal interactions—negatively impacts various emotion processes (e.g., suppression, clarity, expression). Additionally, findings implicate emotion regulation difficulties at multiple stages (e.g., selection, monitoring) not only in heightened risk for depression, but also in elevated OCD symptom severity, and they suggest that existing cognitive-behavioral treatments may help to reduce such disparities.
After these four talks, our discussant will draw on their extensive experience as a leading emotion researcher and practicing clinical psychologist to discuss future directions for integrating the stigma, emotion, and intervention literatures. These directions will include (1) incorporating other characteristics of macro-social contexts into emotion research generally; (2) applying emotion-focused conceptualizations to illuminate how stigma and other forms of traumatic invalidation give rise to emotional processes underlying sexual and gender minorities’ mental health disparities; and (3) ensuring that cognitive-behavioral interventions for sexual and gender minorities target not only dynamic stages of emotion processes but a wider range of mental health concerns as well.
