Premium
What Reduces Sexual Minority Stress? A Review of the Intervention “Toolkit”
Author(s) -
Chaudoir Stephenie R.,
Wang Katie,
Pachankis John E.
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
journal of social issues
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.618
H-Index - 122
eISSN - 1540-4560
pISSN - 0022-4537
DOI - 10.1111/josi.12233
Subject(s) - psychological intervention , sexual minority , psychosocial , sexual orientation , coping (psychology) , psychology , interpersonal communication , health care , mental health , health equity , clinical psychology , medicine , social psychology , nursing , public health , psychiatry , political science , law
Sexual orientation health disparities are rooted in sexual minorities’ exposure to stress and challenges to effective coping. This article reviews the “toolkit” of psychosocial interventions available to reduce sexual minority stress effects. A systematic search uncovered 44 interventions that both seek to reduce sexual minority stress at its source in unjust and discriminatory social structures as well as bolster sexual minorities’ stigma‐coping abilities. These interventions were implemented in a variety of contexts (e.g., education, health care delivery) and utilized heterogeneous modalities to create change (e.g., policy implementation, role‐playing activities). They were designed to affect change across structural, interpersonal, and individual levels. The interventions reviewed here, while in early stages of efficacy testing, possess potential for meeting the needs and resources of mental and medical health care providers, policy makers, and other stakeholders who aim to lessen the burden of sexual minority stress and the health disparities it generates.