The Influence of Concerns About a Child's Sexual Orientation on Mental Health Among Parents of Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Children in Hong Kong.

Sexual minority stress affects not only lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals, but also their families. Due to the pervasiveness of stigma and discrimination, parents of LGB children often express concerns about the public perception of their child's sexual orientation and its possible impact on children, parents, and families. The concerns are particularly pertinent to parents in Chinese families, where there is a strong bond between parents and children. The present study seeks to understand the different dimensions of concerns among Chinese parents of LGB children and examine how these concerns affect their mental health. A total of 146 parents of LGB children in Hong Kong were recruited to participate in a survey regarding attitudes and concerns about their child's sexual orientation. The results revealed three areas of concern, which reflect parental worries about how a child's LGB identity may negatively impact the child, parent, and family. Parents who viewed homosexuality and bisexuality as innate and accepted their child's sexual orientation were likely to show fewer concerns. The results of structural equation modeling indicated that parental acceptance was negatively related to depression and anxiety symptoms through lower levels of child-oriented and family-oriented concerns. As accepting a child's sexual orientation is the key to reducing parental concerns and mental health problems, family-focused psychoeducation is needed to provide parents with accurate information about sexual orientation and foster supportive attitudes toward their LGB child. Clinicians and human service providers should also address child-oriented and family-oriented concerns among parents of LGB adolescents who are more inclined to be concerned about their child's sexual orientation.

Chan RCH ，Suen YT ，Wong EMY 《-》

Effects of general and sexual minority-specific COVID-19-related stressors on the mental health of lesbian, gay, and bisexual people in Hong Kong.

The impact of COVID-19 on mental health has begun to be widely recognized, but there is an absence of studies on how the mental health of lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) people have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. A total of 857 LGB people in Hong Kong participated in a community-based survey study. Over one-fourth of them met the criteria for probable clinical depression (31.5%) and generalized anxiety disorder (27.9%). Besides general stressors, we identified sexual minority-specific stressors during the pandemic. 4.2% of the participants indicated that they had frequently experienced family conflict related to sexual orientation. One-third responded that they had largely reduced connection to the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender plus (LGBT+) community (34.7%). The results showed that sexual minority-specific COVID-19-related stressors explained significant variance in depressive and anxiety symptoms, above and beyond the contribution of general COVID-19-related stressors. Since LGB people are particularly vulnerable to poor mental health during the COVID-19 pandemic, LGB people-targeting organizations need to understand more about family, space, and privacy concerns in order to provide better support, and LGB safe spaces and shelters may be needed as a policy response.

Suen YT ，Chan RCH ，Wong EMY 《-》

Effects of Family Demographics and the Passage of Time on Parents' Difficulty with Their Lesbian, Gay, or Bisexual Youth's Sexual Orientation.

Huebner DM ，Roche KM ，Rith KA 《-》

Stressors Based on Sexual Orientation and Mental Health Among Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Individuals in China: Minority Stress and Perceived Pressure to Get Married.

Zheng L ，Hart TA ，Noor SW ，Wen G ... -  《-》

Bisexual individuals are at greater risk of poor mental health than lesbians and gay men: The mediating role of sexual identity stress at multiple levels.

Although earlier studies have indicated that lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals are at greater risk of psychiatric symptoms than heterosexual individuals, limited attention has been paid to the mental health disparities within LGB populations, especially in non-Western societies. This study examined the disparities in depression, anxiety, and mental well-being between gay/lesbian and bisexual individuals and investigated how the disparities are explained by the greater sexual identity stress experienced by bisexual individuals compared to their gay and lesbian counterparts. The study sample included 931 cisgender LGB individuals in Hong Kong, with 70.1% identifying as gay/lesbian and 29.9% identifying as bisexual. They completed a self-report questionnaire on sexual identity stress and mental health. Bisexual individuals showed higher levels of depressive and anxiety symptoms than lesbians and gay men. Structural equation modeling showed that, compared with lesbians and gay men, bisexual individuals were more likely to report identity uncertainty, conceal their sexual orientation, and have a weaker sense of connection to the LGBT community, which were in turn associated with greater affective symptoms and poorer mental well-being. The use of cross-sectional data does not allow conclusions on causal relationships among variables. Given the greater vulnerability of bisexual individuals to common mental health problems, evidence-based psychological interventions that strategically target their identity stress at multiple levels should be developed and made available to those in need. Social and psychoeducational interventions are also necessary to transform the monosexist culture and eradicate binegativity in the LGBT and wider communities.

Chan RCH ，Operario D ，Mak WWS 《-》