Sex, race/ethnicity, and romantic attractions: multiple minority status adolescents and mental health.
This study examined the association between multiple minority statuses and reports of suicidal thoughts, depression, and self-esteem among adolescents. Data from the National Longitudinal Study of Adolescent Health were used to examine mental health outcomes across racial/ethnic groups for same-sex-attracted youths and female youths. Hispanic/Latino, African American, and White female adolescents reported more suicidal thoughts, higher depression, and lower self-esteem compared with male adolescents in their racial/ethnic group. Same-sex-attracted youths did not consistently demonstrate compromised mental health across racial/ethnic groups. Follow-up analyses show that White same-sex-attracted female adolescents reported the most compromised mental health compared with other White adolescents. However, similar trends were not found for racial/ethnic minority female youths with same-sex attractions.
Department of Psychology, University of California, Davis, CA 95616, USA. tbconsolacion@ucdavis.edu
Theodora B
TB
Consolacion
Stephen T
ST
Russell
Stanley
S
Sue
D000293:Adolescent; D003380:Courtship; D003431:Cross-Cultural Comparison; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000453:epidemiology / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000523:psychology; D005006:Ethnicity / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005260:Female; D018452:Homosexuality, Female / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D018451:Homosexuality, Male / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D006801:Humans; D008149:Love; D008297:Male; D008913:Minority Groups / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011287:Prejudice; D012307:Risk Factors; D012649:Self Concept; D013406:Suicide, Attempted / Q000208:ethnology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D044465:White People / Q000523:psychology / Q000706:statistics & numerical data