Social Support, Depression, and Self-Acceptance Among Gay Men

Abstract

This study analyzes how low social support of gay men when coming out affects the reported levels of depression and self-acceptance in a non-clinical sample of Flemish (Belgium) gay men. The model used is nonrecursive. It incorporates the mutual causation between depression and self-acceptance. The manipulation of social support is considered as part of the general process of social control. After delineating the methodological problems associated with studying the relationship between the perception of support and depression, it is shown that low social support because one is gay leads first to depression and then to low levels of gay self-acceptance. Findings are discussed within the framework of social stress research and the characteristics of the social context of the setting where the data was collected.