Substance Use Among Sexual and Gender Minorities: The Role of Everyday Discrimination and Identity
Abstract
Sexual Gender minorities (SGMs) frequently experience high rates of identity-based discrimination, harassment, stigma, and microaggressions. Compared to the general population, SGMs experience disproportionate rates of emotional, social, and physical abuse, stalking, and intimate partner violence (Jackson et al., 2019; Stray etal., 2021SteelFisher et al., 2019; Edwards et al., 2022; Vasquez et al., 2021). These minority stressors can impact overall health, resulting in health disparities such as increased odds of mental health and substance use disorders (Anzani et al., 2021; Lee et al., 2016; Kidd et al., 2022; Fish et al., 2021; Newcomb et al., 2020; Anzani et al., 2021). Several studies have found that SGMs are more likely to use illicit drugs such as opioids, tranquilizers, and heroin (Medley et al., 2016; NIDA, 2021; Schuler et al., 2019). Current literature also suggests a significant association between minority stressors and the likelihood of using substances (Barger et al., 2021; Lee et al., 2016; Fish et al., 2021).
OBJECTIVE
Understand the association between everyday discrimination and substance misuse within the SGM community