Resilience and Depression in Young Black Men Who Have Sex with Men: A Social-Ecological Model

Which types of social support matter for Black sexual minority men coping with internalized homophobia? Findings from a mediation analysis

Background

Minority stress theory views social support as a protective factor against the effects of minority-specific stressors like internalized homophobia (IH) on mental health in sexual minority populations. However, much of the empirical validation of this theory has been conducted within predominantly White samples, resulting in a limited understanding of how the theory applies to Black sexual minority individuals. Current examinations of social support fail to capture the nuances of how Black sexual minority men may access support systems differently, resulting in a need to investigate how social support, IH, and mental health operate for Black sexual minority men. This study examined relationships between IH, depression, and different types of social support (i.e., family, friends, Black community, gay community) using a mediation model.

Methods

We used data from the POWER (Promoting Our Worth Equity and Resilience) Study, which recruited Black sexual minority men at Black Pride events across six cities in the United States from 2014 to 2017, to test four mediation pathways concurrently in Stata 17. Participants (N = 4,430) completed a questionnaire assessing a variety of health and life domains, including depression symptoms, internalized homophobia, and social support.

Results

IH was positively associated with depression. Lower levels of family, friend, and Black community support were all positively associated with depression symptoms. Additionally, IH was positively associated with all types of support. Finally, family, friend, and Black community support partially mediated the relationship between IH and depression.

Conclusions and implications

Results suggest that the relationship between social support and depression is complex for Black sexual minority men. Findings suggest family support is an important factor for clinical intervention efforts targeting depression, and that gay community support systems should assess how their environments can better support Black sexual minority men. Overall, findings demonstrate the necessity of future examination of how social support functions differently within Black sexual minority communities.

Structural Inequities, Syndemics, and Resilience: The Critical Role of Social Support in Overcoming Barriers and Empowering Engagement in HIV Care for Young Black Sexual-Minority Men in the US South

Young Black sexual minority men (YBSMM) living in the US South are among those most disproportionately impacted by HIV in the USA. This health inequity is, in part, due to lower rates of sustained engagement in the HIV care continuum, resulting in a lower prevalence of viral suppression and higher overall community-level viral load. Social, structural, and economic inequities have previously been linked with poorer HIV care engagement among YBSMM. HIV-related social support, individual-level resilience, and healthcare empowerment have been shown to be independently associated with improved HIV care engagement. The current study sought to assess the relative contribution of individual, structural, and economic factors on engagement in HIV care and to elucidate the potentially mediating role of healthcare empowerment. Data from 224 YBSMM with HIV in the US South indicated that greater levels of socioeconomic distress, intimate partner violence, and depressive symptoms were associated with lower levels of engagement in HIV care, while greater levels of individual-level resilience and healthcare empowerment were associated with higher levels of HIV care engagement. Importantly, healthcare empowerment mediated the association between resilience and engagement in HIV care and the association between social support and engagement in HIV care. Findings emphasize the critical role that HIV-related social support plays in fostering resilience and overcoming syndemic factors to promote empowerment and engagement in HIV care for YBSMM in the USA.

Ethnic identity and resilience: a moderated mediation analysis of protective factors for self-blame and racial microaggressions

Introduction

People of Color (PoC) in the United States encounter everyday racial microaggressions, and these commonplace experiences can wear and exhaust PoC's resources. Racial microaggressions have shown detrimental effects on physical and psychological well-being. Consequently, researchers have examined and tested different ways in which PoC cope and protect themselves from these everyday exchanges. Past findings have indicated that PoC might blame themselves for racism-related occurrences to cope with these commonplace discriminatory experiences. Ethnic identity and resilience have emerged in research as protective factors that can moderate and buffer the impact of racism on PoC's well-being. We used a combination of mediation, moderation, and conditional analyses to unpack the relationships between racial microaggression (predictor), psychological distress (outcome), self-blame (mediator), resilience (moderator), and ethnic identity (moderator).

Methods

This study used a cross-sectional design and sampled 696 PoC regarding their experiences and responses to racial microaggressions. We tested the association between psychological distress and racial microaggressions and further examined whether self-blame mediated the relationship. We also tested ethnic identity and resilience as moderators and used a conditional analysis to determine whether these protective factors moderated the mediation model.

Results

Findings from the mediation, moderation, and conditional analyses supported our four hypotheses: (H1) self-blame mediated the relation between racial microaggressions and psychological distress (mediation), (H2) ethnic identity moderated the association between racial microaggressions and self-blame but only at low and average levels (moderation), (H3) resilience moderated the relation between self-blame and psychological distress but only at low and average levels (moderation), and (H4) evidence of moderated mediation were found for all five variables (conditional). While statistically significant, most moderation effects were minimal to small.

Conclusion

PoC may engage in self-blame when experiencing racial microaggressions, which explains why these everyday, commonplace occurrences might lead to psychological distress. There was evidence that ethnic identity and resilience can protect PoC from the negative effects of racial microaggressions. These buffering effects, however, only emerged for PoC endorsing high levels of ethnic identity and resilience, and it should be noted that for most participants, the link between racial microaggressions and psychological distress was still significant. Future studies might need to explore additional individual and interpersonal alongside institutional factors that can protect PoC from racism-related harms.

Resilience and Its Limits: The Roles of Individual Resilience, Social Capital, Racial Discrimination, and Binge Drinking on Sexual Behavior Among Black Heterosexual Men

In response to the increased recognition of racism as a public health crisis, we assessed links between racial discrimination and HIV-related risk behavior for Black men. Specifically, using survey data from 530 Black heterosexual men (18-44 years old, M = 31.0, SD = 7.8), we tested two moderated-mediation models: (1) a protective model, in which resilience and social capital protected against the indirect effect of racial discrimination on alcohol-related sexual behavior via binge drinking, and (2) a bounded model, in which racial discrimination limited the indirect effects of resilience and social capital on alcohol-related sexual behavior via binge drinking. We found support for the bounded model only. Specifically, resilience was indirectly associated with decreased alcohol-related sexual behavior via lower binge drinking when racial discrimination was low to moderately high, but not when racial discrimination was at its highest levels. Resilience was not directly associated with alcohol-related sexual behavior. Social capital was directly related to lower odds of alcohol-related sexual behavior. At high levels of racial discrimination, however, social capital was indirectly related to increased alcohol-related sexual behavior via binge drinking. High levels of racial discrimination limit beneficial effects of resilience on alcohol-related sexual behavior. Social capital maintains a beneficial effect if social bonds are not associated with binge-drinking norms or behaviors. Results highlight the limitations of individual-level resilience and the need to conceptualize and support resilience as a social-structural resource.

Feasibility, Acceptability, and Preliminary HIV Care and Psychological Health Effects of iTHRIVE 365 for Black Same Gender Loving Men

OBJECTIVES

This uncontrolled pilot study examined the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary HIV and psychological health effects of iTHRIVE 365, a multicomponent intervention designed by and for Black same gender loving men (SGLM) to promote: health knowledge and motivation, Black SGLM social support, affirming health care, and housing and other economic resources.

DESIGN METHODS

We conducted a 14-day daily diary study with 32 Black SGLM living with HIV connected to THRIVE SS in Atlanta, GA. Daily surveys assessed intervention engagement, antiretroviral medication (ART) use, depressive symptoms, anxiety symptoms, and emotion regulation difficulties. App paradata (ie, process data detailing app usage) assessed amount of intervention engagement via page access. Participants began receiving access to the intervention on day 7. After the 14-day daily diary period, participants responded to follow-up items on the user-friendliness, usefulness, helpfulness, and whether they would recommend iTHRIVE 365 to others. Chi-square analyses examined associations between intervention engagement and ART use, and dynamic structural equation modelling assessed longitudinal associations from intervention engagement to next-day psychological health. This intervention trial is registered on ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT05376397).

RESULTS

On average, participants engaged with iTHRIVE 365 over once every other day and accessed intervention pages 4.65 times per day. Among participants who engaged with the intervention, 78% reported it was helpful to extremely helpful, 83% reported it was moderately to extremely useful, and 88% reported it was user-friendly and they would recommend it to others. On intervention engagement days, participants had higher odds of ART use, χ 2 (1) = 4.09, P = 0.04, than intervention nonengagement days. On days after intervention engagement, participants showed non-null decreases in depressive symptoms (τ = -0.14; 95% CI : = [-0.23, -0.05]) and emotion regulation difficulties (τ = -0.16; 95% CI : = [-0.24, -0.02]).

CONCLUSIONS

Findings suggest iTHRIVE 365 is feasible, acceptable, and positively affects daily ART use, depressive symptoms, and emotion regulation difficulties.

A conditional embrace-Swedish LGBTQ+ spaces through the eyes of ethnic minority non-heterosexual individuals

Introduction

In research on sexuality, marginalized sub-groups within sexual minorities have often been overlooked. From the vantage point of Sweden, internationally ranked as an exemplary progressive nation in equality issues and LGBTQ+ rights, and with an increasingly diversified population, the lived experiences of ethnic minority non-heterosexual people are still very much lacking in voice and visibility. The present study aimed to examine experiences within Swedish non-heterosexual spaces, held by ethnic minority non-heterosexual individuals.

Method

A thematic analysis of in-depth interviews with 22 Swedish non-heterosexual individuals, 13 cis-men and nine cis-women, with diverse first- and second-generation immigration backgrounds, was conducted.

Results

Two main themes were identified. The first theme, "Constantly contested identities," is composed of the sub-themes "Ingrained, intersecting ideals" and "Prejudiced spaces," and the second theme, "Effects and counteractions," of the sub-themes "Never fully human" and "Representation and separatism." The results, presented starting from a more theoretical level, moving to situated knowledge, and finally to psychological and practical implications, demonstrate that ethnic minority non-heterosexual people experience problematic and intersecting ideals, with related discrimination, in various Swedish non-heterosexual settings. Experiences of alienation, exotification, and tokenism were common among the participants and had negative psychological effects, including multiple-minority stress and a constant outsider feeling. Representation and participation in separatist forums were utilized as primary strategies to counteract the negative effects.

Discussion

The findings shed light on previously under-researched ideals and actions within Swedish LGBTQ+ spaces, and raises questions about how positive belonging can be achieved for multiple-minorities. Further research and continued critical discussions about ethnic minority non-heterosexual people's plight within non-heterosexual settings in Sweden, and beyond, is advocated.

Intersectionality and Mental Health Among Emerging Adult Black American Men: a Scoping Review

PURPOSE OF REVIEW

We conducted a scoping review to evaluate the degree to which literature published within the past 5 years concerning mental health among Black emerging adult men in the USA engaged with intersectionality.

METHODS

Using scoping review methods, we applied the following a-priori eligibility criteria: (i) sample included Black/African American men who were aged 18-29 years, (ii) pertained to general mental wellness, depression, or anxiety, (iii) published within between 2017 and 2022, (iv) empirical and/or theoretical literature including reviews, pre-prints, and reports from organizations or professional groups, (v) conducted in the USA. In total, 1384 studies were identified from the databases, after which 224 duplicates were removed, resulting in 1160 unique citations that were screened in the title/abstract phase. Overall, 376 sources were assessed for full-text eligibility, and 20 studies were included for extraction. Information pertaining to sample characteristics, intersectionality, and main mental health results were extracted from the included studies.

RECENT FINDINGS

Findings from this review indicate that there is a paucity of research that has investigated the mental health of Black American, emerging adult men. Of the studies that have been conducted in recent years, there are few that have used an intersectional framework to examine how different social identities intersect to affect mental health. This review underscores that the mental health of emerging adult Black men is of considerable concern given the developmental stage, social and historical context as well as intersecting identities that men in this stage embody.

Socio-Ecological Influences on HIV Care Engagement: Perspectives of Young Black Men Who Have Sex with Men Living with HIV in the Southern US

Young Black men who have sex with men (MSM) living with HIV evidence the lowest rates of linkage to care and viral suppression of all US MSM. Kentucky, identified by the US Department of Health and Human Services as a "hot spot" state with elevated HIV incidence compared to the rest of the country, exhibits similar racialized outcomes. Structural, interpersonal, and individual drivers of engagement along the HIV care continuum among people living with HIV have been identified, primarily through quantitative designs. However, the mechanisms by which these factors shape HIV care engagement, and the ways they may combine or reinforce each other, as well as from the lived experience of young Black MSM living with HIV, have been studied to a lesser extent. In this study, a purposive sample of n = 29 HIV-positive young Black MSM (age M = 25 years old; 38% retained in care) residing in Kentucky participated in in-depth interviews. Factors that were most influential on engagement varied along the continuum, with health insurance status and knowledge of HIV being relatively more influential to diagnosis, and housing stability, psychological processes, and interpersonal relationships being more influential on retention. For some participants, barriers to care at multiple levels had a mutually influencing and intensifying impact on care engagement. Additional efforts to center the voices of young Black MSM living with HIV will help illuminate acceptable and sustainable interventions for increasing their care engagement and narrowing persistent racial disparities in HIV morbidity and mortality.

Characterizing Racial Differences of Mental Health Burdens, Psychosocial Determinants, and Impacts on HIV Prevention Outcomes Among Young Men Who have Sex With Men: a Community-based Study in Two U.S. Cities

Few studies examine racial differences (e.g., Black vs. White) regarding the psychosocial pathways linking mental health burdens and various HIV-related outcomes among young men who have sex with men (MSM) in the U.S. We conducted a community-based study to examine the racial differences of mental health burdens (e.g., depression, anxiety, stress), the psychosocial determinants (e.g., HIV stigma, homonegativity, resilience, social support, loneliness, housing/food security) and impact on HIV-related outcomes (e.g., event-level alcohol/drug use before sex, condomless insertive/receptive anal sex, recent HIV testing, and PrEP awareness/willingness/use) among young Black MSM (YBMSM; n = 209) and young White MSM (YWMSM; n = 109) from two cities (Nashville, TN and Buffalo, NY) in the United States. Overall, we found YBMSM were more likely (p < 0.05) to experience anxiety and depression compared to YWMSM. Among YBMSM, we found structural inequities (housing instability, food insecurity, internalized homonegativity) were positively associated with anxiety/depression/stress (p < 0.001); we also found anxiety/depression was associated with increased alcohol/drug use before sex, and stress was associated with reduced recent HIV testing and pre-exposure prophylaxis awareness/willingness/use. Among YWMSM, we found psychological buffers (perceived social support, resilience) were associated with reduced anxiety/depression/stress (p < 0.001); anxiety was associated with increased condomless insertive/receptive anal sex and recent HIV testing among this subgroup. YBMSM and YWMSM differed in psychosocial determinants and HIV-related consequences regarding their mental health. Our findings provide important implications for developing culturally and contextually tailored interventions to address mental health burdens and HIV prevention outcomes among young MSM at highest risk for HIV acquisition.

Prevalence and Correlates of Sexual Violence Experienced by Young Adult Black Men Who Have Sex with Men

Men who have sex with men (MSM) experience high prevalence of sexual violence (SV), and SV has well-documented effects on health. Research gaps are especially evident for young Black MSM (YBMSM), who experience significant HIV disparities and syndemics, including multiple forms of violence victimization. We examined lifetime prevalence of SV (having been forced or frightened into sexual activity) in a cross-sectional sample of YBMSM (N = 1732), and tested associations of demographic, psychosocial, and structural factors using multivariable regression. YBMSM were recruited between 2013 and 2015 using modified venue-based time-location sampling (e.g., at bars and clubs) in Dallas and Houston, Texas. Approximately 17% of YBMSM experienced any SV in their lifetimes. SV was associated with high school non-completion (OR 1.78; 95% CI 1.15-2.77), lower psychological resilience (OR 0.84; 95% CI 0.71-0.98), lifetime history of homelessness (OR 5.52; 95% CI 3.80-8.02), recent financial hardship (OR 2.16; 95% CI 1.48-3.14), and recent transactional sex (OR 3.87; 95% CI 2.43-6.15). We also examined differences by age of SV onset (childhood versus adulthood). YBMSM with adolescent/emerging adult-onset SV may have been more ambivalent in reporting lifetime SV experience, compared to men with childhood-onset SV, and correlates differed by age of onset. Childhood-onset SV was associated with high school non-completion, lower levels of psychological resilience, history of homelessness, recent financial hardship, and recent transactional sex. Adolescent/emerging adult-onset SV was associated with greater depressive symptoms, history of homelessness, and recent financial hardship. There is a need for multi-level approaches to SV prevention and treatment, including services and supports that are culturally-relevant and responsive to the needs of YBMSM.