Do Double Minority Students Face Double Jeopardy? Testing Minority Stress Theory

Data from 2 studies revealed that ethnic and sexual minority clients experienced greater psychological distress on multiple dimensions than did European American or heterosexual clients, respectively, as did ethnic and sexual minority students who were not clients. Among sexual minority students, ethnicity was not an added source of distress. Among ethnic minority students, sexual minority status was associated with heightened psychological distress. ********** Members of cultural minority groups tend to experience disproportionate amounts of psychological distress and disorders in comparison to the general population (Mays & Cochran, 2001; Szymanski & Stewart, 2010; U.S. Surgeon General, 2001). One explanation for this state of affairs is offered by minority stress theory (Meyer, 2003), which posits that members of cultural minority groups are exposed to frequent and deleterious stressors, such as prejudice, oppression, and discrimination. For example, because of societal factors such as harassment and discriminatory laws pertaining to marriage, child custody, and service in the military, gay men and lesbians have reported more mental health problems than have their heterosexual counterparts, including higher rates of substance use, affective disorders, and suicide (Cochran, 2001; Gilman et al., 2001; Herrell et al., 1999; Sandfort, dc Graaf, Bijl, & Schnabel, 2004). Similarly, members of racial and ethnic minority groups experience greater depression, anxiety, and helplessness than do European American individuals (Clark, Anderson, Clark, & Williams, 1999). It seems plausible that members of multiple minority groups would experience additional psychological distress beyond that experienced by members of a single minority group. This possibility is known as the double jeopardy hypothesis (Ferraro & Farmer, 1996). For example, for lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) people who also are ethnic minorities, distress may result from (a) the additive effects of being discriminated against within the dominant culture because of one's race and sexual orientation and (b) pervasive heterosexism within communities of color (Lemelle & Battle, 2004; Pachankis & Goldfried, 2004). Contrary to the double jeopardy hypothesis, however, is the view that although members of multiple minority groups may face greater discrimination, they also may develop enhanced coping skills as a result of that discrimination. Thus, the psychological "risk" associated with being a double minority (Greene, 1994) may be offset by the development of hardiness and resiliency (Wilson & Miller, 2002). The idea of risk and resiliency operating simultaneously in LGB persons of color has gained mixed support in recent research. For example, Moradi et al. (2010) found that, when compared with European American LGB individuals, LGB people of color experienced comparable amounts of heterosexist stigma and reported being equally comfortable disclosing their sexual orientation. However, it is interesting that LGB individuals of color reported disclosing their sexual orientation to a smaller number of people (Ragins, Cornwell, & Miller, 2003). With regard to resiliency, researchers using qualitative methodologies have shown that psychological hardiness among LGB persons of color may be fortified through individual and communal religious faith relationships (Fassinger & Arseneau, 2007; Miller, 2005). Furthermore, strategies that individuals have used to cope successfully with racism may help them contend with additional prejudices resulting from their sexual orientation (Wilson & Miller, 2002). Given that research has demonstrated that individuals can hold multiple identities and still develop a coherent and integrated sense of self, it can be hypothesized that these individuals possess sufficient resilience to help them manage the many social stressors associated with belonging to more than one minority cultural group (Singer, 2004). …