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Cited by 108LGBTQ Health, Identity, and PolicyImpact of Technology on AdolescentsBullying, Victimization, and Aggression

Identity, victimization, and support: Facebook experiences and mental health among LGBTQ youth

Open access
McConnell, Elizabeth A., Clifford, Antonia, Korpak, Aaron K., Phillips, Gregory, Birkett, Michelle·2017·Computers in Human Behavior
DOI 10.1016/j.chb.2017.07.026PMC PMC5719498
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Abstract

The rise of social networking sites (SNSs) has created new contexts within which lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) youth and young adults manage their social identities and relationships. On one hand, SNSs provide important social support; on the other, they comprise another realm for victimization and discrimination. Context collapse refers to the ways diverse subgroups (e.g., family, co-workers) are often united in Facebook networks, which presents unique challenges related to outness. In this study, we examine the Facebook contexts of a cohort of LGBTQ youth and young adults with regard to outness, victimization, social support, and psychological distress by first examining descriptive statistics and correlations, and then testing a series of multiple regressions in an analytic sample of 175 (Mage = 24.02 years) LGBTQ youth. Participants reported levels of daily Facebook use comparable to other samples of non-LGBTQ youth; however, they reported greater use of security controls, which may function as a tool for managing outness. Participants reported slightly lower outness across relational subgroups on Facebook, and associations between outness to relational subgroups were slightly stronger on Facebook, illustrating the potential impact of context collapse. Regression results showed that great victimization, cyberbullying, and the offering of support online were positively associated with psychological distress. Study findings illuminate how LGBTQ youth use and manage their identities on Facebook and highlight the importance of online contexts in shaping wellbeing for LGBtQ outh and young adults.

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  • For TGD individuals, social support is a vitally important source of resilience and a protective factor against the effects of victimization.

    “For TGD individuals, social support is a vitally important source of resilience and a protective factor against the effects of victimization [12,25,28].”

    From A Phenomenological Investigation into Cyberbullying as Experienced by People Identifying as Transgender or Gender Diverse (2022) · cites this paper as [25]

    The Introduction (page not available) links social support with wellbeing among LGBTQ youth and young adults, a group that includes transgender youth. But it does not establish a protective effect against victimization specifically for TGD individuals. The Discussion (page not available) reports that social support was not significantly associated with distress after accounting for victimization. (LLM, conf=0.88)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • Research suggests that sexual minority adolescents use social media in different ways and experience unique challenges compared to heterosexual youth.

    “For example, research suggests that sexual minority adolescents use SM in different ways and experience unique challenges compared to heterosexual youth (e.g., identity development and management in online communities; McConnell et al., 2017), but research has yet to examine how SM use may impact sexual minority adolescents' body image.”

    From The Perfect Storm: A Developmental-Sociocultural Framework for the Role of Social Media in Adolescent Girls' Body Image Concerns and Mental Health. (2022) · cites this paper as McConnell et al., 2017

    The Introduction describes identity-related uses of social networking sites and heightened online victimization among LGBTQ youth. The Discussion reports identity-management strategies, but says the study could not directly test differences from non-LGBTQ youth; its sample was also aged 19–28, rather than adolescents alone. Thus the cited paper supports the example and the distinctive challenges, but not a direct comparison of adolescents’ social-media use with heterosexual peers. (LLM, conf=0.84)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • The ability to live authentically and to have their gender identity acknowledged and accepted by friends, both those TGD themselves and cisgender allies, appeared to lessen the impact of victimization, consistent with previous research.

    “The ability to live authentically and to have their gender identity acknowledged and accepted by friends, both those TGD themselves and cisgender allies, appeared to lessen the impact of victimization, which is consistent with previous research [12,25].”

    From A Phenomenological Investigation into Cyberbullying as Experienced by People Identifying as Transgender or Gender Diverse (2022) · cites this paper as [25]

    The Introduction reports that social support is associated with wellbeing among LGBTQ youth, including when accounting for victimization. But the paper does not establish that acceptance by TGD and cisgender friends lessens victimization’s impact; the Discussion says social support was not significantly associated with distress after accounting for victimization. No page numbers were available in our copy. (LLM, conf=0.83)

    Experimental — accuracy not yet measured

  • Cyberbullying contributes significantly to psychological distress for both LGBT youth and young adults.

    “Cyberbullying has been found to contribute significantly to psychological distress for both LGBT youth and young adults [25].”

    From A Phenomenological Investigation into Cyberbullying as Experienced by People Identifying as Transgender or Gender Diverse (2022) · cites this paper as [25]

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Authors
McConnell, E. A., Clifford, A., Korpak, A. K., Phillips, G., & Birkett, M.
Affiliations
  • DePaul University (US)
  • Northwestern University (US)
Corresponding author
McConnell, Elizabeth A.
ORCID
Venue
Computers in Human Behavior
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2017-11
Volume
76
Pages
237-244
ISSN
0747-5632 (ISSN-L)
DOI
10.1016/j.chb.2017.07.026
PMC
PMC5719498
OpenAlex
W2736970349
Cited by
107
References
54
Citations by year
2026: 8 · 2025: 9 · 2024: 22 · 2023: 17 · 2022: 14 · 2021: 12 · 2020: 12 · 2019: 8 · 2018: 5
FWCI
9.79
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • Computers in Human Behavior (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
  • National Institute of Mental Health (R21MH095413)
  • National Institute on Drug Abuse (K08DA037825, F31DA040524)
Topics
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › LGBTQ Health, Identity, and Policy
  • Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Impact of Technology on Adolescents
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Social Psychology › Bullying, Victimization, and Aggression
Keywords
LGBTQ youth, Facebook, social networking sites, outness, context collapse, cyberbullying, cyber victimization, social support, psychological distress, identity management, young adults

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