Application of an intersectional lens to bias-based bullying among LGBTQ+ youth of color in the United States

Suicidal ideation among youth: Examining the intersections of multiple social positions and bias-based bullying

OBJECTIVE

Suicidal ideation is prevalent among minoritized youth. This study identified disparities in suicidal ideation across youth with intersecting social positions-including race and ethnicity, sex assigned at birth, gender, and sexual orientation-and examined the role of bias-based bullying (based on race and ethnicity, gender identity, or sexual orientation) related to these disparities.

METHOD

Data for this study were drawn from the 2017-2019 California Healthy Kids Survey, with a sample of 458,963 students in grades 9 through 12. Around half of the participants identified as Latina/x/o (50.4 %), 49 % were assigned female at birth, 93.7 % identified as cisgender, and 81.9 % identified as straight. Exhaustive Chi-squared Automatic Interaction Detection was used to analyze how rates of suicidal ideation vary among youth with intersecting social positions and multiple forms of bias-based bullying experiences.

RESULTS

Youth with intersecting minoritized social positions, particularly those with both minoritized sexual and gender identities, reported the highest rates of suicidal ideation in the past year (43.9 % to 63.3 %), three to four times higher than the overall sample rate (16.5 %). Furthermore, all youth in the highest prevalence groups of suicidal ideation experienced at least one form of bias-based bullying. Suicidal ideation rates were 26.3 % to 59.0 % higher among youth who experienced bias-based bullying compared to those with the same social positions who did not experience bullying.

CONCLUSION

Suicidal ideation is especially prevalent among youth with intersecting minoritized social positions who have also experienced multiple forms of bias-based bullying.

Posttraumatic Growth and Meaning in Life Mediate the Relationship between Severity of Adolescent Bullying Victimization and Adulthood Health Outcomes

Bullying victimization afflicts adolescents at high rates and predicts negative health sequelae into adulthood. Park's (2010) meaning-making model theorizes protective pathways following traumatic experiences and has been applied to a variety of traumas, but not yet bullying victimization. Consistent with Park's model, the present work assessed both meaning-making efforts-operationally defined as posttraumatic growth (PTG), or positive changes perceived to have resulted from a traumatic experience-and meanings successfully made-operationally defined concurrent presence of meaning in life-as factors mitigating adverse psychological and physical health outcomes in adulthood among targets of adolescent bullying victimization. Using path modeling with the MPlus v5 macro, the hypothesized serial process model was tested in two samples of adults who had experienced adolescent bullying (Sample 1: US adult convenience sample [N = 125]; Sample 2: International sexual minority adult sample [N = 137]). Participants reported the severity of their adolescent bullying victimizations, resulting PTG, concurrent presence of meaning in life, severity of psychological distress, and frequency of physical illness symptoms, as well as demographics. Supporting Park's (2010) model across samples, the severity of adolescent bullying victimization predicted greater PTG, and, in turn, the presence of meaning in life, ultimately predicting mitigated psychological and physical health outcomes in adulthood. As such, the results highlighted the importance of meanings successfully made per se, underscoring the attendant risks generated by the meaning-making efforts that appear necessary but insufficient to mitigate negative health sequelae. Practical implications, strengths and limitations, and directions for future research are discussed.

A Longitudinal Analysis of Risk and Protective Factors of Bias-Based Bullying Victimization Among Adolescents

Bias-based bullying (i.e., bullying targeting actual or perceived aspects of one's identity) is a form of interpersonal victimization that has adverse consequences for youth functioning. While research has documented foundational knowledge on bias-based bullying, few studies have incorporated a multilevel longitudinal approach to examining theorized risk and protective factors of this complex phenomenon. The current study addresses this gap by investigating predictors (e.g., school climate and state laws) at multiple social-ecological levels and comparing the magnitude of coefficients. Three data sources were used: (a) data from a sample of adolescents (N = 639) participating in a four-wave longitudinal study regarding their experiences with bias-based bullying, (b) external data on enumerated anti-bullying laws, and (c) external data on protected categories in state hate crime statutes. We estimated a series of latent growth curve models to examine trajectories of bias-based bullying victimization over the 18-month study period and added social-ecological predictors (sociodemographic characteristics, peer support, family support, school climate, enumerated anti-bullying laws, and an index of protected categories in state hate crime laws) of bias-based bullying victimization. Key findings documented that sexual minority youth and youth identifying as another racial identity, non-Hispanic had higher initial bias-based bullying victimization scores, with sexual minority youth decreasing at a significantly more rapid rate than heterosexual youth. Peer support, family support, school climate, and enumerated anti-bullying laws were significantly associated with the intercept factor (i.e., initial status) of bias-based bullying victimization. Notably, school climate emerged as an important protective factor in the fully adjusted model, predicting initial bias-based bullying victimization scores. This study provides new information on risk and protective factors and is critical for tailoring prevention and intervention efforts to mitigate this form of victimization. Bolstering support for vulnerable youth and promoting a positive school climate are recommended.

Disparities in sleep among diverse adolescents in two large statewide samples: A need for intersectional interventions

OBJECTIVES

Examine very short sleep among adolescents across multiple intersecting social positions and experiences of sexual orientation-based bullying and cyberbullying in two statewide samples.

METHODS

A harmonization of two large statewide school-based datasets from grades 9-12 (2019 Minnesota Student Survey, and 2018-2019 California Healthy Kids Survey) was utilized for the analysis (N = 379,710). Exhaustive chi-square automatic interaction detection (an approach for quantitative intersectionality research) explored variability in very short sleep (≤5 hours/night) among adolescents from multiple intersecting social positions (race/ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, and sex assigned at birth), grade, state, and two types of bullying experiences (sexual orientation-based bullying and cyberbullying). Intersectional groups reporting the highest prevalence of very short sleep were identified. We compared very short sleep rates among adolescents from the same social positions who experienced bullying with those who did not experience bullying.

RESULTS

Very short sleep was common among this sample of adolescents (19.2%), especially among those holding multiple marginalized social positions (36.9%-51.4%). Adolescents who were transgender or gender diverse or questioning gender identity, and with minoritized sexual and racial/ethnic identities were overrepresented among high prevalence groups of very short sleep. Bullying experiences were reported by all highest prevalence groups. Adolescents who were bullied had 24.9%-51.3% higher rates of very short sleep than adolescents from the same intersecting social positions who were not bullied.

CONCLUSIONS

Very short sleep is pervasive among marginalized adolescents. Findings suggest that victimization contributes to adolescents' very short sleep rates. Individual-level interventions may fall short of promoting better sleep among adolescents; systemic interventions addressing bullying are needed.

CLINICAL TRIAL REGISTRATION

N/A.

An Intersectional Perspective on Cyberbullying: Victimization Experiences Among Marginalized Youth

INTRODUCTION

The impact of cyberbullying victimization on youth development, encompassing mental health, academic performance, and socioemotional well-being, has been widely documented. Research highlights the heightened vulnerability of sexual and gender minoritized youth, along with other youth from marginalized groups, to cybervictimization. However, there is a gap in understanding how intersecting marginalized social identities affect experiences of cyberbullying.

METHODS

This study employs an intersectionality framework to examine cybervictimization among youth. The sample consists of 444,224 students in grades 9-12 from the 2017-2019 California Healthy Kids Survey. Using exhaustive chi-square automatic interaction detection (ECHAID), the analysis identifies the prevalence of cybervictimization across multiple intersecting social identities, including sex assigned at birth, gender modality (cisgender 97.6%), sexual orientation, race/ethnicity, grade level, and socioeconomic status.

RESULTS

Cybervictimization was reported by 22.7% of youth in the sample. Rates were two to three times higher among youth with multiple marginalized identities. Youth at the intersection of bisexual sexual orientation, transgender gender modality, and racial/ethnic minoritized identities faced a particularly high risk of cybervictimization.

CONCLUSIONS

There is an urgent need for future research in cyberbullying and youth development. Such research should focus on identifying and understanding the intersectional nature of discrimination and victimization, both in-person and online, to develop evidence-based prevention programs that effectively address the complexities of minoritized identities and discrimination in the digital world.

Firearm Access and Socio-Structural Factors Related to Suicidality Among Youth With Diverse Sexual, Gender, and Racial Identities

OBJECTIVE

Elevated rates of suicidal ideation (SI) and suicide attempts (SA) among youth, particularly multiply marginalized youth, are occurring in the context of youths' access to household firearms. Research examining how perceived access to firearms is related to SI and SA among youth with marginalized identities is limited and often neglects to consider intersectionality. This study explored how intersecting social identities and positions, access to firearms, and socio-structural factors were associated with SI and SA for youth.

METHOD

The analytic sample (N = 17,794) included 7-12th grade students who participated in the 2021 Dane County Youth Assessment. Exhaustive CHAID - a decision tree matrix approach - examined all possible combinations of self-reported sociodemographic characteristics (gender identity, sexual identity, racial identity, grade, and firearm access) and socio-structural variables (bias-based bullying, school belongingness, and social pressure) to predict mutually exclusive groups of youth based on past-year SI and SA.

RESULTS

SI and SA was most prevalent among intersectional groups with multiply marginalized identities and access to firearms. Socio-structural factors, including bias-based bullying victimization, lack of school belongingness, and social pressure, were characteristic of groups with higher prevalence of SI and SA.

CONCLUSIONS

While the marginalized youth in this sample have lower access to firearms, the prevalence of SI and SA was highest among multiply marginalized youth who reported access to firearms in the context of bias-based bullying, social pressure, and a lack of school belongingness. Youth suicide prevention efforts would be strengthened by policies that address firearm access and improve the school environment.

Bias-Based Bullying Among Sexual and Gender Minority Youth Living With Disabilities

Both sexual and gender minority youth (SGMY) and youth living with disabilities are disproportionately impacted by bias-based bullying in school settings. While research has separately examined how sexual and gender minority status and disability status are associated with experiences of bullying, very little research has explored the experiences of youth living with these identities simultaneously. This study examined to what extent SGMY report differential experiences of bias-based bullying depending on various identities and the type of disability an individual reports. Utilizing a diverse sample of SGMY aged 13-17 (N = 2,239), multinomial logistic regression analyses were conducted to test whether there were differences in the likelihood of being bullied for having specific identities, based on disability type, among SGMY. Results indicated a variety of differences in bullying based on gender expression, gender identity, sexual orientation, sexual and gender minority identity, and disability. Participants who reported having a mental disability were more likely to experience multiple forms of bias-based bullying surrounding their gender identity, gender expression, sexual orientation, sexual and gender minority status, and disability type when compared with other gender minority youth with disabilities. These findings may help to inform supportive services in school settings.

Barriers to Participation in Organized Physical Activity Among LGBTQ+ Youth: Differences by Sexual, Gender, and Racial Identities

BACKGROUND

LGBTQ+ youth engage in organized physical activity to a lesser degree than their cisgender and heterosexual counterparts. Existing literature on this organized physical activity disparity is limited, particularly with LGBTQ+ youth samples. The current analysis examined individual and systemic barriers to organized physical activity for LGBTQ+ youth across sexual, gender, and racial identities.

METHODS

A subsample of LGBTQ+ students (N = 4566) from the 2021 Dane County Youth Assessment completed items that measured barriers to organized physical activity and systemic factors (ie, family money problems and bias-based bullying) associated with access to organized physical activity. Latent class analysis discerned patterns of individual and systemic barriers to organized physical activity. Latent class regression modeling tested gender, sexual, and racial identities as correlates of latent class membership.

RESULTS

More than half of the sample did not participate in organized physical activity. Four profiles of LGBTQ+ youth were discerned based on self-reported barriers: high barrier (8%), bullied (16%), low interest or perceived skills (28%), and low barrier (48%). The low-barrier class included a greater proportion of LGBTQ+ youth who identified as White, or cisgender, or heterosexual as well as youth self-reporting higher organized physical activity. The high-barrier and bullied classes comprised more marginalized gender and sexual identities.

CONCLUSIONS

LGBTQ+ youth experience individual and systemic barriers to organized physical activity, including inequitable access and bullying, and barriers are uniquely experienced across sexual, gender, and racial identities. Physical activity promotion among LGBTQ+ youth would be strengthened by policies that address inequitable access to opportunities and bias-based bullying.

Sexual Minority Youth Reporting SOGIE-Based Harassment to Adults at School: The Roles of Experienced Harassment, Outness, Safety, and Adult Support at School

Despite a proliferation of bullying prevention programs in recent time, limited work has investigated support-seeking behaviors in response to elevated bullying levels among sexual minority youth (SMY). To address this gap, the current study examined how harassment targeting SOGIE (sexual orientation, gender identity, and gender expression), sexual identity outness, school safety, and perceptions of teacher/staff support were associated with SMY talking to an adult at school about harassment. A large contemporary national sample of SMY (N = 5538) between the ages 13-18 (Mage = 15.53, SD = 1.33) who experienced at least one form of SOGIE-based harassment in the past year was leveraged for analyses. Hierarchical multivariable logistic regressions revealed more frequent SOGIE-based harassment was associated with greater odds of reporting harassment to school personnel, particularly among SMY who felt safe at school. Findings highlight the need for school-based interventions to foster school safety among SMY who experience peer harassment to promote their reporting of this behavior.

Unaccompanied unstable housing among racially, ethnically, sexually, and gender diverse youth: Intersecting identities bearing the greatest burden

Disparities in youth homelessness by racial/ethnic, sexual, and gender identities are well documented, though this literature lacks specificity regarding intersectional social identities of youth who are most likely to experience homelessness. Population-based cross-sectional data on youth from the 2019 Minnesota Student Survey (N = 80,456) were used to examine the relationship between parent caring and intersections of minoritized identities that experience the highest prevalence of two distinct types of unaccompanied unstable housing with expanded categories of sexual and gender identities. Exhaustive chi-square automatic interaction detection models revealed that low parent caring was the most common predictor of unaccompanied homelessness and running away, but there was important variation among youth of color at the intersection of sexual and gender identities. The findings reveal a more complex story of disparities in unaccompanied unstable housing among youth with multiple marginalized social identities and highlight the need to create culturally informed prevention and intervention strategies for parents of LGBTQ+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and questioning) youth of color. The implications for prevention and intervention among subgroups with the highest prevalence are discussed in the context of interlocking systems of power and oppression. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2024 APA, all rights reserved).

Emotional Distress Disparities Across Multiple Intersecting Social Positions: The Role of Bias-Based Bullying

OBJECTIVES

To apply an intersectional lens to disparities in emotional distress among youth, including multiple social positions and experiences with bias-based bullying.

METHODS

Data are from the 2019 Minnesota Student Survey (n = 80 456). Social positions (race and ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender) and 2 forms of bias-based bullying (racist, homophobic or transphobic) were entered into decision tree models for depression, anxiety, self-injury, suicidal ideation, and suicide attempts. Groups with the highest prevalence are described. Rates of emotional distress among youth with matching social positions but no bias-based bullying are described for comparison.

RESULTS

LGBQ identities (90%) and transgender, gender diverse, and questioning identities (54%) were common among the highest-prevalence groups for emotional distress, often concurrently; racial and ethnic identities rarely emerged. Bias-based bullying characterized 82% of the highest-prevalence groups. In comparable groups without bias-based bullying, emotional distress rates were 20% to 60% lower (average 38.8%).

CONCLUSIONS

Findings highlight bias-based bullying as an important point for the intervention and mitigation of mental health disparities, particularly among lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, gender-diverse, queer, and questioning adolescents. Results point to the importance of addressing bias-based bullying in schools and supporting lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, gender-diverse, queer, and questioning students at the systemic level as a way of preventing emotional distress.

Examining Mental Health and Bullying Concerns at the Intersection of Sexuality, Gender, Race, and Ethnicity Among a National Sample of Sexual and Gender Diverse Youth

Purpose: Most extant scholarship that examines the health experiences of sexual and gender diverse youth (SGDY) is limited in the ability to apply an intersectional framework due to small sample sizes and limitations in analytic methods that only analyze the independent contribution of social identities. To address this gap, this study explored the well-being of youth at the intersection of ethnic, racial, sexual, and gender identities in relation to mental health and bullying. Methods: Data were from a U.S. national survey of SGDY aged 13-18 years, collected in 2022 (N = 12,822). Exhaustive Chi-square Automatic Interaction Detection analysis identified intersectional social positions bearing the greatest burden of negative health-related experiences (depression, anxiety, and past 30-day in-person victimization). Results: Transgender boys were among those at the highest prevalence for compromised mental health and peer-based in-person victimization. Although the primary distinguishing factor was transgender identity for depression and anxiety, there were no racial/ethnic distinctions, corroborating some previous scholarship. Asian cisgender and transgender girl SGDY shared the lowest burden of peer-based in-person victimization in school. Conclusion: Our findings suggest a need for scholars, health professionals, and other stakeholders to better understand the mechanisms that drive negative health experiences and in-person victimization experiences at the intersections of sexual, gender, racial, and ethnic identities.

Bullying Involvement at the Intersection of Gender Identity/Modality, Sexual Identity, Race, Ethnicity, and Disability: Prevalence Disparities and the Role of School-Related Developmental Assets

Purpose: This study examines adolescents' self-reported school-based developmental assets and four intersecting social positions as they relate to prevalence of bullying involvement. Methods: Participants were 80,456 ninth and 11th grade students who participated in the 2019 Minnesota Student Survey (30.2% youth of color; 11% lesbian/gay/bisexual/pansexual/queer/questioning; 2.9% transgender/gender diverse [TGD] or gender questioning). Exhaustive Chi-square Automatic Interaction Detection analysis was used to identify school-based developmental assets (i.e., school safety, school adult support) and intersecting social positions (i.e., sexual identity; gender identity/modality; racial/ethnic identity; physical disabilities/chronic illness; and/or mental health/behavioral/emotional problems) associated with the highest prevalence of involvement as physical and relational bullies, victims, and bully-victims. Results: Adolescents with 2+ marginalized social positions who often lacked school-based developmental assets were part of nearly all the highest prevalence bullying involvement groups. TGD and gender questioning adolescents, Native American youth, and youth living with both physical disabilities/chronic illness and mental health/emotional/behavioral problems-most of whom had additional marginalized social positions and lacked school-based assets-were particularly overrepresented in high prevalence groups. For example, 31.1% of TGD or gender questioning youth of color living with both types of disabilities/health problems who did not feel strongly that school was safe reported involvement as physical bully-victims-nearly six times the sample average rate. Conclusion: Adolescents with multiple marginalized social positions and those lacking certain school-based assets-often overlapping categories-were involved in bullying at higher-than-average rates. Findings underscore the need for schools to address intersecting experiences of stigma and structural oppression that may perpetuate bullying involvement disparities.