Disclosure of Sexual Orientation during Military Service: Perceptions of Impact from Lesbian and Gay Veterans

Background and Purpose:

The repeal of the Don’t Ask Don’t Tell (DADT) policy in 2010 marked a major change for the United States military. From that moment, lesbian and gay (LG) persons could openly serve in the US Armed Forces. However, the repeal of DADT was not followed by an establishment of new policies and procedures that would promote the needed changes to military culture and processes in place prior to the repeal. Thus, an air of uncertainty remains for LG service members with regard to potential stigma and/or discrimination related to the open disclosure of a member’s sexual orientation. This research aims to highlight LG veterans’ experience and their likeliness to disclose their sexual orientation during their military service and compare whether these experiences differ by gender.

Methods:

Utilizing a cross sectional study design, a survey was distributed to veterans living in the San Francisco Bay Area (N= 722).  The survey gathered information on demographic characteristics, sexual orientation, and disclosure of sexual orientation during service.  The sample was predominantly male (80%) and White (54%) with 17% identifying as Black and 12% as Hispanic/Latino. All service branches were represented in the sample with the Army as the most represented branch (54%). Forty-six percent of the sample population were between the ages of 18 and 39, and 26%­ of participants reported having completed some college.  

Results:

Analysis revealed that 59% of male and 70% of female veterans that identified as LG indicated that their peers were never aware of their sexual orientation during their military service, and 54% of male and 82% of female veterans reported that their leaders were never aware of their sexual orientation.  In addition, 32% of males and 27%  of females reported that their sexual orientation was disclosed without their permission.  Furthermore, 39% of male and 12% of female LG veterans reported feeling that their sexual orientation negatively affected their opportunity for promotions during their military service and 31% of male and 9% of female veterans disclosed that their sexual orientation had negatively impacted their military experience.       

Conclusions:

Findings suggest that some LG veterans perceive negative associations between their military experience and their sexual orientation disclosure. Males were more likely to disclose their sexual orientation than women. Males also had higher rates than females of reporting that their disclosure had a negative impact on their opportunities for promotion and military experience.  Although a majority of veterans reported their LG status as having no impact on their military experience, a majority of participants never disclosed their LG status to their leaders or peers. Further research is needed to understand the military experience of LG service members after the repeal of DADT, its impact on disclosure of LG status and whether disclosure negatively impacts their military experience. Research should explore what policies are needed to promote confidence in disclosure of LG status and examine whether stress associated with sexual orientation disclosure can lead to challenges related to physical or mental health, or challenges to military service.