Minority stress model meyer

Federal government websites often end in. The site is secure. In this article the author reviews research evidence on the prevalence of mental disorders in lesbians, gay men, and bisexuals LGBs and shows, using meta-analyses, that LGBs have a higher prevalence of mental disorders than heterosexuals. The author offers a conceptual framework for understanding this excess in prevalence of disorder in terms of minority stress —explaining that stigma, prejudice, minority stress model meyer, and discrimination create a hostile and stressful social environment that causes minority stress model meyer health problems.

Federal government websites often end in. The site is secure. Minority stress theory has widespread research support in explaining health disparities experienced by sexual and gender minorities. However, less is known about how minority stress impacts multiply marginalized groups, such as lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people of color LGBT POC. Also, although research has documented resilience in the face of minority stress at the individual level, research is needed that examines macro-level processes such as community resilience Meyer,

Minority stress model meyer

Minority stress describes high levels of stress faced by members of stigmatized minority groups. Over the past three decades, social scientists have found that minority individuals suffer from mental and physical health disparities compared to their peers in majority groups. This research has focused primarily on racial and sexual minorities. For example, Black Americans have been found to suffer elevated rates of hypertension compared to whites. One causal explanation for minority health disparities is the social selection hypothesis, which holds that there is something inherent to being in a minority group e. Instead, research suggests that environmental factors explain minority health disparities better than do genetic factors. A second hypothesis regarding the causes of minority health disparities suggests that minority group members face difficult social situations that lead to poor health. Minority stress theory extends the social causation hypothesis by suggesting that social situations do not lead directly to poor health for minority individuals, but that difficult social situations cause stress for minority individuals, which accrues over time, resulting in long-term health deficits. When being applied to sexual and gender minorities, the term minority stress first appeared in the book Minority Stress in Lesbian Women by Virginia Rae Brooks, later known as Winn Kelly Brooks. Minority Stress Theory, as it is currently referenced, was coined by Illan Meyer in his research study " Minority stress and mental health in gay men. Meyer's version of minority stress theory distinguishes between distal and proximal stress processes. Proximal stress processes are internal, and are often the byproduct of distal stressors; they include concealment of one's minority identity, vigilance and anxiety about prejudice, and negative feelings about one's own minority group. Together, distal and proximal stressors accrue over time, leading to chronically high levels of stress that cause poor health outcomes.

For example, they suffer higher rates of morbidity due to strokeperinatal disease, and diabetes mellitus compared to Whites. Most studies of minority stress are correlational. There are several reasons why this may be the case: In minority stress model meyer their own homosexuality and coming out, most LGB people have gone through an important self-defining period when increased introspection is likely.

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Minority stress refers to a conceptual model that describes stressors embedded in the social position of sexual minority individuals as causes of health-related conditions, such as mental disorders, psychological distress, physical disorders, health behaviors e. The minority stress model suggests that because of stigma, prejudice, and discrimination, lesbian, gay, and bisexual people experience more stress than do heterosexuals and that this stress can lead to mental and physical disorders. This chapter begins with a brief overview of the minority stress model. It then discusses the domains of health and well-being that are affected by minority stressors, including mental health, physical health, health behaviors, and well-being. Access to content on Oxford Academic is often provided through institutional subscriptions and purchases. If you are a member of an institution with an active account, you may be able to access content in one of the following ways:. Typically, access is provided across an institutional network to a range of IP addresses. This authentication occurs automatically, and it is not possible to sign out of an IP authenticated account. Choose this option to get remote access when outside your institution. Enter your library card number to sign in.

Minority stress model meyer

Federal government websites often end in. The site is secure. Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender LGBT older adults comprise a unique and growing subset of the aging population. The historical context in which they came of age was imbued with victimization and discrimination. These experiences are subjectively stressful and collectively known as minority stress. Older LGBT adults continue to face stressors related to their gender and sexual identities in their daily lives. Importantly, chronic minority stress CMS , like other forms of chronic stress, is harmful to health and well-being. CMS contributes to LGBT health disparities, including cardiovascular disease and depression, conditions that in turn increase risk for premature cognitive decline. Furthermore, long-term exposure to stress hormones is associated with accelerated brain aging.

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Using the distal—proximal distinction, I propose a minority stress model that incorporates the elements discussed above. In Chrisler, J. Annals of Epidemiology. This information has been used by law enforcement, policymakers, and social organizations to target and minimize the occurrence of distal stressors and, thus, to improve minority health on a large scale. GLSEN's national school climate survey: Lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender students and their experiences in school. Health Psychology. Sampling men who have sex with men: Strategies for a telephone survey in urban areas in the United States; pp. Racial and gender discrimination: Risk factors for high blood pressure? Structural stigma and the health of lesbian, gay, and bisexual populations. There are several reasons why this may be the case: In recognizing their own homosexuality and coming out, most LGB people have gone through an important self-defining period when increased introspection is likely. How women of color detect and respond to multiple forms of prejudice. Nebraska Symposium on Motivation. Failure to cope, failure of resilience, can therefore be judged as a personal, rather than societal, failing.

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Given the relatively small amount of variance in stress explained by our models, particularly for sexual minority men of color, future research should also investigate other factors that may contribute to stress e. Ken Cheung for statistical consultation. New York: Free Press; This pattern must lead us to conclude similarly to Saghir et al. Characteristics of identity may be related to mental health both directly and in interaction with stressors. American Psychologist. However, studies have yet to directly compare experiences, stress responses, and health outcomes among individuals from diverse minority groups. Discussion Stigma, Connection to LGBT Community, and Stress Study findings highlight the extent to which sexual minority men of color have different experiences of stigma than White sexual minority men. Research is needed to test these propositions. Effects of writing about stressful experiences on symptom reduction in patients with asthma or rheumatoid arthritis. Negotiating social identity when contexts change: Maintaining identification and responding to threat. Surveys have documented that lesbians and gay men are disproportionately exposed to prejudice events, including discrimination and violence.