A positive look at a difficult time: a strength based examination of coming out for lesbian and bisexual women.

This study reports the results of 337 lesbian and 59 bisexual women who completed a survey of sexual and health behaviors collected at gay, lesbian, and bisexual community events in New York City and Los Angeles. The Stress Related Growth Scale was adapted to capture the unique experience of managing a gay or bisexual identity. Stress related growth (SRG)was positively correlated with age, ethnic community attachment, number of female partners, generativity, and number of years out to self. Women with higher levels of education and women of color scored significantly higher on SRG. Findings indicate that SRG may be more salient when used to explore inherent personal characteristics such as sexual orientation or minority status than general stressful life events.