Faculty Sponsor
Ryan Carpenter
Final Abstract for URS Program
Those who identify with a sexual minority identity are more likely to experience stress in day to day life due to their identity. Given that alcohol use has been a recorded outlet for stress release, it was hypothesized that the discrimination and distress in those with a sexual minority identity would be positively associated with alcohol consumption. Additionally, it was hypothesized that there would be a negative association between perceived social support and alcohol consumption in individuals who identify as a sexual minority. Regression analysis failed to support all three hypotheses. However, significantly associated correlations were found between: Sexuality and Distress (r=-.368, p<.001), Sexuality and Perceived Social Support (r=1.90, p<.036), Perceived Social Support and Discrimination (r=.296, p< .001), Perceived Social Support and Distress (r=-.407, p<.001), and lastly Distress and Discrimination (r=-.247, p<.006). The only one found without a significant association was Sexuality and Discrimination. (r=1.67, p<.066). This could indicate that people are experiencing less discrimination based on their sexuality. These results also suggest that alcohol use may not be a stress outlet source for this particular sample. For future research it is recommended that a larger sample size of sexual minority individuals are used as in this study the majority identified as bisexual.
Presentation Type
Oral Presentation
Document Type
Article