Moore Kiara L, Camacho David, Munson Michelle R
Silver School of Social Work, New York University, New York, NY, USA.
School of Social Work, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA.
J Gay Lesbian Soc Serv. 2020;32(1):21-48. doi: 10.1080/10538720.2019.1677542. Epub 2019 Oct 21.
The transition to adulthood presents particular challenges for Black and Latinx sexual minorities in need of mental health services. Identity formation and marginalization during this developmental period can interfere with help-seeking and lead to health disparities. Identity-specific psychosocial supports are needed to assist young adults to successfully navigate these challenges, but research on identity processes, help-seeking, and service-utilization among sexual minority young people of color is very limited. To better understand how multiple minority young people navigate their identities in the context of using, or choosing not to use, mental health services, this study qualitatively explored the experiences of 31 emerging adults. Through in-depth interviews, analyses revealed that young adults negotiated social identity norms about mental health help-seeking by separating from unhelpful norms, managing stigmatized aspects of identity, integrating helpful identity alternatives, and forming individualized perspectives on help-seeking that allowed them to maintain important connections to their minority group identities. Findings are discussed in relation to previous research on ethnic and sexual minority identity development and service utilization. Practice and research recommendations for increasing knowledge, improving help-seeking, and promoting resilience around young adults' intersectional identities are offered.
向成年期的过渡给需要心理健康服务的黑人和拉丁裔性少数群体带来了特殊挑战。在这个发育阶段的身份形成和边缘化可能会干扰求助行为，并导致健康差异。需要有针对性的心理社会支持来帮助年轻人成功应对这些挑战，但关于有色人种性少数群体年轻人的身份认同过程、求助行为和服务利用的研究非常有限。为了更好地理解多个少数群体的年轻人在使用或选择不使用心理健康服务的背景下如何塑造他们的身份，本研究对31名新兴成年人的经历进行了定性探索。通过深入访谈，分析发现，年轻人通过摆脱无益的规范、管理身份中受污名化的方面、整合有益的身份选择以及形成关于求助的个性化观点，来协商关于心理健康求助的社会身份规范，这些观点使他们能够与自己的少数群体身份保持重要联系。研究结果结合先前关于种族和性少数群体身份发展及服务利用的研究进行了讨论。针对增加知识、改善求助行为以及增强年轻人交叉身份的复原力，提出了实践和研究建议。
