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Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender (LGBT) people of color (POC) have experienced a long history of oppression and marginalization both in broader society and within their own communities.. The biopsychosocial costs of social exclusion, low self-esteem and depression related to internalized racism[ab1] and homophobia have been well documented (McCallum & McLaren, 2011, Hatzenbuehler et. al., 2012, Rothman et. al., 2012, Rosario et. al., 2014). If a supportive spiritual community and higher level of outness provide LGBT people with protection from these negative outcomes by increasing a sense of belonging and general happiness, than these factors warrant more attention in the field of social work. Sense of belonging and general happiness are of great significance as each have been shown to decrease depression (McCallum & McLaren, 2011, Rothman et. al., 2012), substance abuse (Rothman et. al., 2012), suicide (McCallum & McClaren) and high risk health behaviors (Rosario et. al, 2014, Hatzenbuehler et. al., 2012) in the LGBT community.
In order to increase protective factors that lead to an increased sense of happiness within LGBT communities of color, this study looks at a variety of variables that may impact happiness as experienced by this population, including religio-spirituality, degree of “outness”, and connection[ab2] to the broader LGBT community.
Methodology
The data set of the Social Justice Sexuality Project: 2010 National Survey, including Puerto Rico (SJSP) was acquired from the Inter-University Consortium for Political and Social Research, ICPSR 34363. The study had a response rate of 99.06% for in-person, mailed and web-based surveys given to a mixed convenience sampling of almost 5,000 people of color within the Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgendered (LGBT) community (Battle, Pastrana., and Daniels, 2010). SPSS Version 21 was used for data analysis including demographic analysis, correlational analyses, and multiple regression modeling.
Results
Standard multiple regression was used to assess the ability of religio-spirituality and outness to explain variance in the dependent variable of happiness. Preliminary analyses were conducted to ensure no violation of the assumptions of normality, linearity, multicollinearity and homoscedasticity. The total variance explained by the model was 4.4%, F (2, 4300) = 98.75, p <.001. Both variables were statistically significant, with religio-spirirtuality making the larger contribution to the variance.
Standard multiple regression was also used to assess the ability of outness and connectedness with LGBT community to explain variance in the dependent variable of happiness. Preliminary analyses were conducted to ensure no violation of the assumptions of normality, linearity, multicollinearity and homoscedasticity. The total variance explained by the model was 2.9%, F (2,4300)=65.96, p <.001. Both variables were statistically significant.
Implications
Religious and racial factors must be considered when social workers interact with LGBT clients that struggle with coming out to friends and family. Social workers would benefit from enhanced education regarding the complexities of the sexual identity and gender identity spectrums and significant environmental intersections.