Internalized Homophobia: A Covert Barrier to Mental Health

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Many individuals who experience same-sex attraction, behavior, or identity face discrimination, violence, and prejudice.

Researchers have found that religiousness, including practices and beliefs, can be linked to intolerance toward marginalized sexualities across many major religions. This relationship can vary across different groups, but countries with larger religious populations tend to be less accepting of same-sex sexuality and gender equality.

Unfortunately, people with marginalized sexualities who live in more religious contexts often experience harassment, discrimination, and abuse. As psychologists, we must recognize and address these challenges to promote acceptance and equality for all individuals.

Individuals with marginalized sexualities often face stress in religious environments. However, recent research by Tyler G. Lefevor and colleagues has shown that religiousness can be positively associated with well-being outcomes for LGBTQ+ individuals. Such findings suggest that some people with marginalized sexualities can find strength and support in their religious beliefs and experiences.

However, psychologists are still exploring which factors may moderate the relationship between religiousness and health. Although research indicates that religiousness can help reduce depression in heterosexual individuals, the relationship between religiousness and depression may be more complicated for people with marginalized sexualities.

To address this gap, I collaborated with Lefevor and Skidmore of Utah State University to examine how internalized homonegativity may affect the link between religiousness and health for individuals with marginalized sexualities. Sampling 260 participants, we found that the buffering effects of religion on depression were reduced for LGBTQ+ individuals reporting higher levels of internalized homonegativity.

Aspects of religiousness that may help heterosexual individuals find support, meaning, and community may not be as helpful for people with marginalized sexualities. While religion can provide a sense of support and worldview for heterosexual individuals, religion may not be as positive of an experience for people with marginalized sexualities. In fact, almost half of the participants sampled in our study no longer affiliated with a religion.

However, these findings also indicate that being religious could be beneficial for LGBTQ+ individuals, as long as they experience little internalized stigma. Self-views and views of marginalized sexualities as a whole are likely impacting how people with marginalized sexualities experience religion and how this dynamic in turn contributes to their mental health and well-being. Clinicians can address these intersectional factors by working with clients to develop a sense of self-acceptance and self-compassion, and to build a life that aligns with their values and beliefs.

Branching off of this work, there are several clinical recommendations for psychologists to follow when working with LGBTQ+ individuals from religious backgrounds:

• Foster a safe and non-judgmental therapeutic environment: Create a safe and non-judgmental space where individuals feel comfortable discussing their sexual and religious identities. This may require therapists to set aside their personal beliefs and biases to create a space where clients feel supported and understood.
• Validate and respect the client's religious beliefs: Acknowledge and respect the client's religious beliefs, even if they may not align with your own beliefs. Help clients explore how their religious and sexual identities intersect with the Sexual Minority and Religious Identity Integration Measure (SMRII) and co-construct a treatment plan based on their self-assessment and reflection.
• Address internalized homophobia and religious trauma: Help clients explore the source of their negative beliefs and identify coping strategies to manage these feelings.
• Promote self-compassion and self-acceptance: Invite your clients to develop self-care practices, such as mindfulness and self-compassion exercises, to promote emotional well-being. In addition to practicing self-compassion, self-care for religious LGBTQ+ individuals might also involve finding a supportive community. This could be through joining an affirming religious community, working with an LGBTQ+ support group, or developing a “family of choice” network that can provide a safe and affirming space.
• Collaborate with religious leaders and stakeholders: Team up with religious leaders to create a supportive and inclusive environment for LGBTQ+ individuals within their religious communities. This may involve providing education and training to religious leaders on how to be more accepting and supportive of LGBTQ+ individuals.