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Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) youth experience disproportionate mental health challenges due to minority stress. Little research, however, has considered how social support from intragenerational friends impacts the mental health of LGBTQ youth, particularly for LGBTQ youth of color. Based mainly on qualitative interviews from a longitudinal study with 83 LGBTQ youth from California and Texas, we develop the concept of intersectional social support—how multiply marginalized individuals subjectively interpret social support and how they view social support from similar multiply marginalized others. More specifically, the findings of this study capture how the intersecting identities of age, sexuality, gender, and race can shape the meanings and experiences of receiving familial support, emotional support, informational support, and instrumental support. This study is an important contribution to understanding how intersecting identities influence how people perceive social support practices and manage their mental health.
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The Emerging Science of Interacting Minds
For over a century, psychology has focused on uncovering mental processes of a single individual. However, humans rarely navigate the world in isolation. The most important determinants of successful development, mental health, and our individual traits and preferences arise from interacting with other individuals. Social interaction underpins who we are, how we think, and how we behave. Here we discuss the key methodological challenges that have limited progress in establishing a robust science of how minds interact and the new tools that are beginning to overcome these challenges. A deep understanding of the human mind requires studying the context within which it originates and exists: social interaction.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1848370
- PAR ID:
- 10479785
- Publisher / Repository:
- SAGE Publications
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Perspectives on Psychological Science
- Volume:
- 19
- Issue:
- 2
- ISSN:
- 1745-6916
- Format(s):
- Medium: X Size: p. 355-373
- Size(s):
- p. 355-373
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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