"Bringing home more than a paycheck:" an exploratory analysis of Black lesbians' experiences of stress and coping in the workplace.
Although the workplace stress that Black women and lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people experience due to prejudice and discrimination has been well-documented in the social science literature, much of this literature focuses on Black women or LGBTs as if these groups were distinct and mutually exclusive. Consequently, there is a void of theory and research on the workplace stress that Black lesbians experience. This qualitative study involved exploratory analyses of workplace stress due to race, sex/gender, and sexual orientation, and coping strategies among a predominantly middle-class, highly educated sample of 19 Black lesbians between the ages of 26 and 68. Four workplace stressors emerged, those relevant to: heterosexism/ sexual identity; racism/race; sexism/sex/gender; and intersections of race, sex/gender, and sexual orientation. Three primary coping strategies emerged: being out and managing being out, covering their sexual orientation, and confronting or educating coworkers about prejudice and discrimination.
Bowleg
Lisa
L
Behavioral Sciences Program, Department of Psychology, University of Rhode Island, Kingston, RI 02881-0808, USA. bowlegl@uri.edu
Brooks
Kelly
K
Ritz
Susan Faye
SF
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D001741:Black or African American / Q000523:psychology*; D000368:Aged; D004651:Employment / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D018452:Homosexuality, Female / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D008875:Middle Aged; D011287:Prejudice; D012938:Social Perception; D012944:Social Support; D014481:United States; D014931:Women, Working / Q000523:psychology*; D017132:Workplace