title: Current psychological perspectives on adolescent lesbian identity development.
abstract: Developing a healthy identity is one of the main tasks of adolescence. This process is certainly full of challenges for all adolescents; however, the experiences are different for lesbian adolescents than they are for gay male adolescents, or even lesbian adults. This article aims to discuss what makes the lesbian adolescent identity development process unique (e.g., the role of femininity, the school context, friendships) and how this process can, or cannot, be conceptualized using current psychological models of sexual identity development. Future directions are suggested for researchers and educators in order to implement changes needed to support positive sexual identity development in young lesbian adolescents.
authors.affiliation: Department of Psychology, Suffolk University, 41 Temple Street, Boston, MA 02114, USA. kkbedard@suffolk.edu
authors.forename: Katherine K
authors.initials: KK
authors.lastname: Bedard
authors.forename: Amy K
authors.initials: AK
authors.lastname: Marks
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D041923:Adolescent Development; D005260:Female; D057227:Femininity; D018452:Homosexuality, Female / Q000523:psychology*; D006801:Humans; D007398:Interpersonal Relations; D012574:Schools; D012649:Self Concept; D012933:Social Identification