Retrospective recall of sexual orientation identity development among gay, lesbian, and bisexual adults.
- 1 January 2011
- journal article
- Published by American Psychological Association (APA) in Developmental Psychology
- Vol. 47 (6), 1658-1673
- https://doi.org/10.1037/a0025508
Abstract
Although recent attention has focused on the likelihood that contemporary sexual minority youth (i.e., gay, lesbian, bisexual [GLB]) are "coming out" at younger ages, few studies have examined whether early sexual orientation identity development is also present in older GLB cohorts. We analyzed retrospective data on the timing of sexual orientation milestones in a sample of sexual minorities drawn from the California Quality of Life Surveys. Latent profile analysis of 1,260 GLB adults, ages 18-84 years, identified 3 trajectories of development: early (n = 951; milestones spanning ages 12-20), middle (n = 239; milestones spanning ages 18-31), and late (n = 70; milestones spanning ages 32-43). Motivated by previous research on variability in adolescent developmental trajectories, we identified 2 subgroups in post hoc analyses of the early profile group: child onset (n = 284; milestones spanning ages 8-18) and teen onset (n = 667; milestones spanning ages 14-22). Nearly all patterns of development were identity centered, with average age of self-identification as GLB preceding average age of first same-sex sexual activity. Overall, younger participants and the majority of older participants were classified to the early profile, suggesting that early development is common regardless of age cohort. The additional gender differences observed in the onset and pace of sexual orientation identity development warrant future research.Funding Information
- National Institutes of Health (DA15539; DA20826)
- National Center on Minority Health and Health Disparities (MD000508)
- Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (F32HD066792)
This publication has 37 references indexed in Scilit:
- Suicide and Suicide Risk in Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Populations: Review and RecommendationsJournal of Homosexuality, 2010
- Burden of psychiatric morbidity among lesbian, gay, and bisexual individuals in the California Quality of Life Survey.Journal of Abnormal Psychology, 2009
- Gay-related Development, Early Abuse and Adult Health Outcomes Among Gay MalesAIDS and Behavior, 2007
- Physical Health Complaints Among Lesbians, Gay Men, and Bisexual and Homosexually Experienced Heterosexual Individuals: Results From the California Quality of Life SurveyAmerican Journal of Public Health, 2007
- Coming-Out Across the Life Course: Implications of Age and Historical ContextArchives of Sexual Behavior, 2006
- Test–Retest Reliability of Self-Reported Sexual Behavior, Sexual Orientation, and Psychosexual Milestones Among Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual YouthsArchives of Sexual Behavior, 2006
- Sexual identity development among lesbian, gay, and bisexual youths: Consistency and change over timeThe Journal of Sex Research, 2006
- Sex Differences in the Flexibility of Sexual Orientation: A Multidimensional Retrospective AssessmentArchives of Sexual Behavior, 2005
- The Formation of Homosexual IdentitiesJournal of Homosexuality, 1989
- A Critical Examination of Stage Theories of Lesbian Identity DevelopmentJournal of Homosexuality, 1986