6.3: Profile - Minority Stress and Same-Sex Couples

Sexual minority individuals continue to experience prejudice and discrimination as a result of the social stigma that most societies place on sexual behavior and sexual identities outside heteronormative ideals. This stigma persists across many domains of life, including education and the workplace, but is arguably most pronounced in the domain of intimacy and romantic relationships. In this profile, I provide an overview of several studies my colleagues and I have conducted aimed at understanding how sexual minority individuals and members of same-sex relationships experience stigma in the context of their intimate relationships. I demonstrate how experiences of stigma can lead to negative outcomes for members of same-sex relationships in terms of their mental health and in the quality of their relationships. This research illustrates how theories of minority stress can be used to understand how social stigma can be detrimental to the health and relationships of sexual minority individuals and same-sex couples.

The Minority Stress Model

The minority stress model, as proposed by Ilan Meyer, attempts to explain why sexual minority individuals, on average, experience higher rates of mental health problems relative to their straight peers. Noting that these inequalities in mental health are not likely to be caused by sexual orientation itself, the minority stress model contends that the reason for poorer mental health outcomes among sexual minority populations lies in sexual minority individuals having a disadvantaged status in society relative to their straight peers. This disadvantaged social status is created by the stigma that societies place on same-sex sexual behavior and sexual minority identities, which does not apply to straight individuals given the privileging of heterosexuality as normative.^[48]

As a result of this disadvantaged social status, sexual minority individuals are exposed to social stress that straight individuals are not. Social stressors include being fired from your job because you are lesbian (i.e., prejudice), being called names because you are bisexual (i.e., harassment), being socially avoided because you are gay (i.e., everyday discrimination), having to worry about when it is safe to disclose your sexual orientation (i.e., stigma concealment), and thinking you are not valued as a person as much as others are because of your sexual orientation (i.e., internalized stigma). These are all examples of social stress that sexual minorities experience that their straight peers do not. As a result of excess exposure to these and other forms of minority stress, sexual minorities are more likely to experience mental health problems like elevated rates of depression, anxiety, substance use, and suicidal ideation. Thus, the minority stress model contends that sexual minority individuals experience higher rates of mental health problems than their straight peers because of excess exposure to social stress stemming from their stigmatized and disadvantaged social status.^[49]

Stigma and Minority Stress in Same-Sex Relationships

As of 2020, same-sex marriage is either performed or recognized in thirty-two countries throughout the world, and attitudes toward homosexuality and same-sex marriage are dramatically improved according to opinion polls in most Western countries.^[50] However, it is important to recognize that the vast majority of countries across the globe do not legally recognize same-sex couples, and in some countries same-sex sexual behavior continues to be criminalized. Even in countries with equal marriage laws, many same-sex couples experience stigma and discrimination from coworkers, peers, and family. Thus, the domain of intimacy and romantic relationships remains a significant part of sexual minority individuals’ lives in which they continue to experience social stigma.

Minority Stress as a Barrier to Achieving Relationship Goals

To understand how experiences of minority stress in the relational domain might explain inequalities in mental health between sexual minority individuals and their straight peers, my colleagues and I conducted a survey of 431 lesbian, gay, and bisexual (55 percent) individuals and straight-identified (45 percent) individuals living in the United States and Canada. We specifically wanted to examine the extent to which participants felt stress related to experiencing barriers to achieving their goals in romantic relationships (e.g., getting married, buying a house, planning to have children, moving in together) compared with other areas such as the workplace and education. Participants were asked to complete the Personal Project Inventory on the goals they were pursuing across these life domains and the intensity of perceived barriers to the achievement of these goals, which served as our measure of stress. We also asked participants to complete previously validated measures of depression and psychological well-being.^[51]

We found that sexual minority individuals reported significantly more depressive symptoms and lower levels of psychological well-being than their straight peers. Sexual minorities also reported more barriers to goal pursuit than straight participants. People who reported more stress in the form of frustrated goal pursuit scored significantly poorer on mental health and well-being outcomes, and their inclusion in models attenuated sexual orientation differences in mental health. Importantly, when we held constant the differences in the stress related to frustrated goal pursuit, differences between sexual minorities and straight individuals in mental health and well-being were much less pronounced. Thus, our research demonstrates that this frustrated goal pursuit is the critical factor explaining sexual minority differences in mental health and well-being. These barriers to relationship projects came from interpersonal sources, like family, friends, and neighbors.

These findings suggest that stigma in intimacy and relationships may prevent sexual minorities from achieving their goals for intimacy and relationships and in doing so contributes to mental health inequalities observed between sexual minority and straight individuals. These findings have relevance to the changing social context regarding marriage equality. Interpersonal attitudes may affect the everyday relationship activities of sexual minority individuals in ways that are detrimental to their health and well-being.

The Persistence of Minority Stress in a Post–marriage Equality Context

To examine whether minority stress continues to affect the mental health of same-sex couples in the United States after access to equal marriage became available, my colleagues and I examined the degree to which the perception of unequal recognition—as a minority stressor—explained variation in mental health above and beyond legal relationship recognition. We predicted that members of same-sex couples with legal marital status would report more positive mental health outcomes compared with members of same-sex couples who were not legally married. We also predicted that perceiving the social climate as not affording equal recognition to same-sex couples would be related to worse mental health for members of same-sex couples, regardless of legal marital status. Dyadic data from both members of 106 same-sex couples—diverse in terms of couple gender, length of relationship, location in the United States, and race/ethnicity—were collected and analyzed. The survey contained measures of legal marital status, perceived unequal social recognition, and mental health outcomes (e.g., depressive symptoms, nonspecific psychological distress, and problematic drinking behavior).^[52]

The results demonstrated that perceived unequal relationship recognition predicted poorer mental health, whether or not members of same-sex couples were in a legally recognized relationship. Focusing on potential differences in mental health by levels of legal relationship recognition, the study found that members of same-sex couples recognized as registered domestic partners or civil unions, but not as legal marriages, demonstrated significantly lower levels of mental health compared with those with legal marriages and those with no legal relationship status. Those who were legally married reported the most positive mental health outcomes but were not statistically distinguishable from those with no legal recognition for their relationship.

These findings illustrate a consistent and robust pattern of associations with multiple indicators of mental health, suggesting that the degree to which members of same-sex couples perceive their relationship to have unequal recognition is a meaningful factor underlying mental health outcomes. In other words, although institutionalized forms of discrimination, such as unequal access to legal marriage, have documented associations with mental health in sexual minority populations, the lived experience of perceived inequality likely represents a more proximal form of minority stress. This form of minority stress is one that potentially exists as shared lived experience at the couple level “and may even persist in contexts where structural stigma has been reduced or eliminated.”^[53] These findings also highlight how equal access to legal marriage is an important social change but is not sufficient to eliminate long-standing social stigma as a risk for mental health problems faced by sexual minority individuals and members of same-sex couples. The constantly shifting social and policy climate facing sexual minorities and same-sex couples continues to warrant attention from social scientists, public health scholars, and policy makers in light of its potential impact on mental health.

Resilience and Resistance to Minority Stress in Same-Sex Relationships

It is important to qualify that the research findings discussed up to this point pertain to groups of sexual minority individuals and same-sex couples and reflect the average experience of the participants. Not all sexual minority individuals and members of same-sex couples experience minority stress and not all who do are affected by it in the same way. In fact, many sexual minority individuals and members of same-sex couples live healthy lives in rewarding relationships. Recognizing this variability in individual experience highlights how sexual minority individuals and members of same-sex relationships are resilient in the face of minority stress.

An example of this resilience can be seen in a study of the meaning-making processes same-sex couples use in negotiating minority stress in their relationships.^[54] To explore how members of same-sex couples potentially exercise resilience in the face of minority stress, I asked ninety-nine people in same-sex relationships to write about their relational high points, low points, decisions, and goals, as well as their experiences of stigma directly related to their relationships. Narrative analysis of these stories revealed that participants had several psychological strategies for making meaning of their experiences of stigma. Some strategies emphasized a negative, delimiting, and contaminating effect of stigma on relationships, as is commonly found in existing research. However, other strategies emphasized how stigma can be made sense of in ways that allow individuals to overcome its negative effects.

For example, some same-sex couples who participated in this research constructed meanings of stigma-related stressors as challenges that reaffirmed their commitment to and bond with their partners. Others saw stigma as providing an opportunity to redefine notions of commitment and relational legitimacy. These narrative strategies for making meaning of stigma-related stressors represent more than simply coping strategies for minority stress. They represent attempts to reclaim experiences of being stigmatized in ways that allow individuals to resist and even thrive in the face of social stigma. Thus, through individual and group-level meaning-making processes of minority stressors, social stigma can, indirectly, result in positive outcomes for sexual minorities’ well-being and same-sex relationships.

Summary

My colleagues and I have conducted studies that collectively demonstrate how social stigma can affect the health and relationships of sexual minority individuals and same-sex couples. These are by no means the only studies on this topic.^[55] It is my hope that the details of these studies illustrate the potential utility of minority stress theory to highlight that the continued stigmatization of same-sex couples, even in areas that have progressive laws and policies, puts sexual minority individuals and same-sex couples at risk for negative health and relationship outcomes. This research has been useful for efforts to change laws and policies to be more inclusive of same-sex couples’ rights and to eliminate discrimination against same-sex couples, efforts that are by no means complete and will continue for years to come. However, research on minority stress can also be useful in informing the work of community health workers, counselors, and clinicians working with sexual minority communities to help them cope with, overcome, and resist the potential negative impact of social stigma.^[56]

Check Your Knowledge

Contributed by Has Arakelyan, Rio Hondo College

Multiple-Choice Questions

1. According to the minority stress model, why do sexual minority individuals experience higher rates of mental health problems than their straight peers?
A) Because of their sexual orientation itself
B) Due to excess exposure to social stress from stigma and discrimination
C) Because they have fewer friends
D) Due to lack of education

2. Which of the following is an example of a social stressor faced by sexual minorities?
A) Winning an award at work
B) Traveling abroad
C) Getting a promotion
D) Being called names because of sexual orientation

3. What did research find about the relationship between barriers to relationship goals and mental health among sexual minorities?
A) More barriers to relationship goals were linked to poorer mental health and well-being.
B) Barriers had no effect on mental health.
C) Barriers improved mental health.
D) Only financial barriers mattered.

4. After marriage equality, what factor still predicted poorer mental health for same-sex couples?
A) Legal marital status only
B) Age of the couple
C) Perceived unequal social recognition
D) Number of children

5. How do some same-sex couples demonstrate resilience in the face of minority stress?
A) By ignoring their experiences
B) By using meaning-making strategies that turn stigma into opportunities for growth and commitment
C) By moving to another country
D) By ending their relationships

Discussion Questions

1. How does the minority stress model help explain mental health disparities between sexual minorities and straight individuals?
2. In what ways can social stigma nd prejudice affect the relationship goals and well-being of same-sex couples?
3. Why might legal recognition of same-sex marriage not be enough to eliminate mental health disparities for same-sex couples?
4. What are some examples of resilience and resistance that same-sex couples use to cope with minority stress and how can research on minority stress inform the work of counselors, clinicians, and policymakers working with sexual minority communities?
5. How does the history of research on homophobia and prejudice against LGBTQ+ people relate to political struggles for LGBTQ+ equality?

Multiple-Choice Questions - Answers

1. B) Due to excess exposure to social stress from stigma and discrimination
2. D) Being called names because of sexual orientation
3. A) More barriers to relationship goals were linked to poorer mental health and well-being.
4. C) Perceived unequal social recognition
5. B) By using meaning-making strategies that turn stigma into opportunities for growth and commitment