Stress-Related Growth, Coming Out, and Internalized Homonegativity in Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Youth. An Examination of Stress-Related Growth Within the Minority Stress Model

TLDR

Social acceptance and identification shape stress‑related growth among LGB youth. The study examines whether coming‑out experiences lead to stress‑related growth and whether that growth mediates internalized homonegativity in LGB youth. Using an online survey of 502 LGB individuals aged 14‑30, the authors tested stress‑related growth as a mediator between coming‑out experiences and internalized homonegativity. Coming‑out indicators influence internalized homonegativity, but stress‑related growth does not mediate this relationship, though it directly reduces internalized homonegativity.

Abstract

This study investigates how young lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals deal with coming out and how perceived personal growth may result from that experience. We considered stress-related growth as a mediator between coming-out experiences and internalized homonegativity (IH). Our sample was taken from an online survey and is comprised of 502 LGBs aged 14-30. The social environment's acceptance of an individual's sexual orientation and the individual's social identification influence stress-related growth. Several coming-out indicators influence internalized homonegativity and, although growth perception does not function as a mediator between coming out and internalized homonegativity, it has a direct effect on IH.