Sexual Orientation and Substance Use Among Adolescents and Young Adults

Karin L. Brewster · Kathryn Harker Tillman

88 citations0/0 files storedAmerican Journal of Public Health

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LGBTQ Health, Identity, and Policy Substance Abuse Treatment and Outcomes Adolescent Sexual and Reproductive Health

Abstract

OBJECTIVES: We examined interrelationships among the 3 dimensions of sexual orientation-self-identity, sexual attraction, and sexual experience-and their associations with substance use among adolescents and young adults. METHODS: To estimate total and net associations of sexual identity, attraction, and experience with use of tobacco, drugs, and alcohol, we applied logistic regression to cross-sectional data from the National Survey of Family Growth Cycle 6. RESULTS: We found a lack of concordance among the different dimensions of sexual orientation. More youths reported same-gender sexual attraction and same-gender sexual experiences than identified as lesbian, gay, or bisexual. Estimates of substance use prevalence differed significantly by gender and across dimensions of sexual orientation. Sexual experience was the most consistent predictor of substance use. Women and men with no sexual experience had the lowest odds of all forms of substance use; those reporting sexual experience with partners of both genders had the highest odds. CONCLUSIONS: Our findings indicate that sexual identity was less strongly associated with substance use than sexual experience and attraction were, pointing to the need for more nuanced indicators of sexual orientation in public health studies.

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References

2003Prejudice, social stress, and mental health in lesbian, gay, and bisexual populations: Conceptual issues and research evidence.1995Minority Stress and Mental Health in Gay Men 1989The Sociological Study of Stress 1995The social organization of sexuality: sexual practices in the United States 1999The Prevalence, Distribution, and Mental Health Correlates of Perceived Discrimination in the United States 1987Understanding Labeling Effects in the Area of Mental Disorders: An Assessment of the Effects of Expectations of Rejection 2001Mental Health Correlates of Perceived Discrimination Among Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual Adults in the United States 2003Prevalence of mental disorders, psychological distress, and mental health services use among lesbian, gay, and bisexual adults in the United States.

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