Being humorous & seeking diversion: Promoting healthy coping skills among LGBTQ+ youth
Craig, S. L., Austin, A., & Huang, Y. (2018). Being humorous & seeking diversion: Promoting healthy coping skills among LGBTQ+ youth. Journal of Gay and Lesbian Mental Health, 1, 20–35. https://doi.org/10.1080/19359705.2017.1385559
Highlights
Background
LGBTQ+ youth encounter pervasive stigma-related stress that requires effective coping skills.
Study Description
This study explored the coping patterns of LGBTQ+ youth participants (n = 30) in a cognitive behavioral therapy-based coping skills training
Participants—aged 15–18 with a range of gender, sexual, racial and ethnic identities—completed a coping skills inventory (A-COPE) with 12 subscales at two time points
Based on the stigma-coping framework, coping skills were broadly classified as disengagement or engagement strategies
Key Findings
LGBTQ+ youth were most likely to utilize avoiding problems as a strategy to cope with stress, followed closely by being humorous, relaxing, and ventilating feelings
Notably, seeking professional and spiritual support were the least adopted coping strategies
Post-intervention, participants reported significant increases in the areas of primary control (solving family problems) and secondary control (seeking spiritual support, seeking diversion, engaging in demanding activities, and being humorous).
Conclusion
The findings demonstrate the versatility of LGBTQ+ youth’s coping strategies and show the potential of the AFFIRM intervention to promote engagement coping patterns among this population.
