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Department of Human Development and Family Science

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https://hdl.handle.net/10919/24252

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Browsing Department of Human Development and Family Science by Author "Atte, Tita"

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    Differences in Mental Health Symptoms Across Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Questioning Youth in Primary Care Settings
    Shearer, Annie; Herres, Joanna; Kodish, Tamar; Squitieri, Helen; James, Kiera; Russon, Jody M.; Atte, Tita; Diamond, Guy S. (Elsevier, 2016-07)
    Purpose: Lesbian, gay, bisexual, and questioning (LGBQ) youth exhibit significantly higher rates of mental health problems, including anxiety, depression, suicidal ideation, and nonsuicidal selfinjury than their heterosexual peers. Past studies tend to group LGBQ youth together; however, more recent studies suggest subtle differences in risk between sexual minority groups. This study examined differences in mental health symptoms across male and female youth who are attracted to the same sex (gay and lesbian), opposite sex (heterosexual), both sexes (bisexual), or are unsure of whom they were attracted to (questioning) in a sample of 2,513 youth (ages 14e24 years). Methods: Data were collected using the Behavioral Health Screenda Web-based screening tool that assesses psychiatric symptoms and risk behaviorsdduring routine well visits. Results: Bisexual and questioning females endorsed significantly higher scores on the depression, anxiety, and traumatic distress subscales than did heterosexual females. Lesbians, bisexual females, and questioning females all exhibited significantly higher lifetime suicide scores than heterosexual females. Interestingly, bisexual females exhibited the highest current suicide scores. Gay and bisexual males endorsed significantly higher scores on the depression and traumatic distress subscales than did heterosexual males. Gay males also exhibited higher scores on the anxiety subscale than heterosexual males, with bisexual males exhibiting a nonsignificant trend toward higher scores as well. Conclusions: Findings highlight varying level of risk across subgroups of LGBQ youth and suggest the importance of considering LGBQ groups separately in the context of a behavioral health assessment, especially for females.
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    The relationship between disordered eating and sexuality amongst adolescents and young adults
    Shearer, Annie; Russon, Jody M.; Herres, Joanna; Atte, Tita; Kodish, Tamar; Diamond, Guy S. (Elsevier, 2015-12)
    Research shows that gay and bisexual males are at increased risk for disordered eating symptoms (DES); however, studies examining DES amongst lesbians and bisexual women have produced mixed findings. Furthermore, few studies have included questioning or “unsure” individuals. This study examined DES symptoms in adolescents and young adults across self-reported sexual attraction and behavior. Participants were recruited from ten primary care sites in Pennsylvania and administered the Behavioral Health Screen (BHS) – a web-based screening tool that assesses psychiatric symptoms and risk behaviors – during a routine visit. As expected, males who were attracted to other males exhibited significantly higher disordered eating scores than those only attracted to members of the opposite sex. Males who engaged in sexual activities with other males also exhibited significantly higher scores than those who only engaged in sexual activities with females. Amongst females, there were no significant differences in DES scores between females who were only attracted to females and those only attracted to males. Those who reported being attracted to both sexes, however, had significantly higher scores, on average, than those only attracted to one sex. More surprisingly, females who were unsure of who they were attracted to reported the highest DES scores of all. These findings are contrary to previous assumptions that same-sex attraction plays a protective role against eating pathology in females. Females who are unsure or attracted to both sexes may actually be at increased risk for developing DES.