Open AccessMental health and resilience in transgender individuals: What type of support makes a difference?
Author(s) -
Jae A. Puckett,
Emmie Matsuno,
Christina Dyar,
Brian Mustanski,
Michael E. Newcomb
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
journal of family psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.138
H-Index - 120
eISSN - 1939-1293
pISSN - 0893-3200
DOI - 10.1037/fam0000561
Subject(s) - social support , psycinfo , psychology , transgender , mental health , social connectedness , psychological resilience , stressor , clinical psychology , family support , minority stress , developmental psychology , psychiatry , medline , social psychology , medicine , sexual minority , sexual orientation , physical therapy , political science , psychoanalysis , law
Research has generally shown the benefits of social support, such as the buffering effects on life stressors, yet there has been little empirical investigation of different types of support resources for transgender individuals. We examined family support, support from friends, and connectedness to a transgender community and how these forms of support come together to influence mental health and resilience. The sample included 695 transgender participants (mean age = 25.52 years, SD = 9.68, range = 16-73; 75.7% White) who completed an online survey. Greater than half of participants reported moderate to severe levels of anxious and depressive symptoms. Family social support had the strongest correlations with symptoms of anxiety and depression ( r = -.31 and -.37, respectively, p < .01) and was the only form of support associated with resilience when controlling for other forms of support. Latent profile analyses revealed 4 groups based on levels of social support from family and friends and community connectedness. Notably, Class 1 ( n = 323; 47.1%) had high levels of support from family and friends and high levels of community connectedness. This class had lower levels of depression and anxiety symptoms and higher levels of resilience compared to other classes (Class 2, n = 276, 40.3%, high friend/community, low family; Class 3, n = 47, 6.9%, low support; Class 4, n = 39, 5.7%, high family, low friend/community). This study highlights the importance of examining support from a more holistic approach and provides insight into unique associations between familial social support and resilience. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2019 APA, all rights reserved).