Mental health service experiences regarding sexual orientation: Relations with demographics, depression, and suicidality among queer adults.
Year: 2026
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: to some degree, and 18% found the experience neither unhelpful nor helpful. Regression results indicate that compared to individuals who had never talked with a mental health professional about their sexual orientation, those who had an unhelpful experience reported slightly higher levels of depressive symptoms, were nearly three times more likely to have seriously considered suicide, and were nearly four times more likely to have attempted suicide. Lack of education and training for mental health professionals about queer-specific issues, experiences, language, and affirmative practice may contribute to unhelpful experiences. Improvements in training, services, and policies are needed so that service use is helpful and not associated with elevated depression and suicidality. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2026 APA, all rights reserved).
Source: Psychological Services
DOI: 10.1037/ser0001009
Language: English
Subfield: Social Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: hybrid
Funders: 3M, City University of Hong Kong, Réseau en Bio-Imagerie du Quebec, Australian Government, Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife, Institute for Clinical and Translational Research, University of Maryland, Baltimore, Flu Lab, W. L. Gore and Associates, National Institute for Health and Care Research, Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, Agence Nationale de la Recherche, Schweizerischer Nationalfonds zur Förderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung, Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo, National Natural Science Foundation of China, Erasmus Universiteit Rotterdam, Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior, Ministero della Salute, Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico, National Research Foundation of Korea, Natural Science Foundation of Shanxi Province, Emil Aaltosen Säätiö, Natural Science Foundation of Heilongjiang Province, Hainan Medical University, Health Commission of Jilin Province, National Institutes of Health, Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, Canadian Institutes of Health Research, Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council, Guangzhou Science and Technology Innovation Center, National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, National Institute on Aging, National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke, National Institute of Biomedical Imaging and Bioengineering, National Institute on Minority Health and Health Disparities, Division of Microbiology and Infectious Diseases, National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, Key Research and Development Program of Zhejiang Province
Awards: G2680157374, G9000222536
OpenAlex ID: W7122766757
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