Skip to main content

Advertisement

SpringerLink
Log in

Sexual Racism, Psychological Symptoms, and Mindfulness Among Ethnically/Racially Diverse Young Men Who Have Sex with Men: a Moderation Analysis

  • ORIGINAL PAPER
  • Published:
Mindfulness Aims and scope Submit manuscript

Abstract

Objectives

This study examined the potential moderating role of trait mindfulness on the association between perceived sexual racism and psychological symptoms among a community-based sample of ethnic/racial minority young men who have sex with men (MSM) residing in greater Los Angeles.

Methods

From a cross-sectional sample of 448 participants, aged 16–24 years, survey data were analyzed to examine rates of perceived sexual racism, mindfulness, psychological symptoms, and moderation by mindfulness through various analyses, including analysis of variance and logistic regression.

Results

Results indicated that Latino young MSM reported the lowest scores of sexual racism, and sexual racism was associated with higher odds of psychological symptoms, suicidal ideation with a plan in the past year, and self-injury in the past 3 months. The protective potential of mindfulness was suggested by its main effects on psychological symptoms; however, it only buffered the effects of sexual racism on suicidal ideation with a plan and self-injury, with marginal buffering effects on depression.

Conclusions

Findings underscore the potential utility of assessing sexual racism among young MSM of color, as well as the potential benefit of mindfulness approaches to buffer the effects of sexual racism on symptoms of depression. Interpretation of these findings is briefly discussed.

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.

Access this article

Log in via an institution

Price excludes VAT (USA)
Tax calculation will be finalised during checkout.

Instant access to the full article PDF.

Institutional subscriptions

Similar content being viewed by others

References

  • Asner-Self, K. K., Schreiber, J. B., & Marotta, S. A. (2006). A cross-cultural analysis of the Brief Symptom Inventory-18. Cultural Diversity and Ethnic Minority Psychology, 12(2), 367–375. https://doi.org/10.1037/1099-9809.12.2.367.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Baer, R. A., Smith, G. T., Hopkins, J., Krietemeyer, J., & Toney, L. (2006). Using self-report assessment methods to explore facets of mindfulness. Assessment, 13(1), 27–45.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bhambhani, Y., Flynn, M. K., Kellum, K. K., & Wilson, K. G. (2018). The role of psychological flexibility as a mediator between experienced sexual racism and psychological distress among men of color who have sex with men. Archives of Sexual Behavior. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-018-1269-5.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Bhambhani, Y., Flynn, M. K., Kellum, K. K., & Wilson, K. G. (2019). Examining sexual racism and body dissatisfaction among men of color who have sex with men: The moderating role of body image inflexibility. Body Image, 28, 142–148.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Black, D. S., Sussman, S., Johnson, C. A., & Milam, J. (2012). Testing the indirect effect of trait mindfulness on adolescent cigarette smoking through negative affect and perceived stress mediators. Journal of Substance Use, 17(5–6), 417–429.

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Broman, C. L., Mavaddat, R., & Hsu, S.-Y. (2000). The experience and consequences of perceived racial discrimination: A study of African Americans. Journal of Black Psychology, 26(2), 165–180.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brown, K. W., & Ryan, R. M. (2003). The benefits of being present: Mindfulness and its role in psychological well-being. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 84(4), 822.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Callander, D., Newman, C. E., & Holt, M. (2015). Is sexual racism really racism? Distinguishing attitudes toward sexual racism and generic racism among gay and bisexual men. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 44(7), 1991–2000.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Coffey, K. A., & Hartman, M. (2008). Mechanisms of action in the inverse relationship between mindfulness and psychological distress. Complementary Health Practice Review, 13(2), 79–91.

    Google Scholar 

  • Crenshaw, K. (1989). Demarginalizing the intersection of race and sex: A black feminist critique of antidiscrimination doctrine. University of Chicago Legal Forum, 139–167.

  • Creswell, J. D. (2017). Mindfulness interventions. Annual Review of Psychology, 68, 491–516.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Davids, C. M., Watson, L. B., Nilsson, J. E., & Marszalek, J. M. (2015). Body dissatisfaction among gay men: The roles of sexual objectification, gay community involvement, and psychological sense of community. Psychology of Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity, 2(4), 376.

    Google Scholar 

  • Derogatis, L., & Melisaratos, N. (1983). The Brief Symptom Inventory: An introductory report. Psychological Medicine, 13, 595–605.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Diaz, R. M., & Ayala, G. (2001). Social discrimination and health: The case of Latino gay men and HIV risk. Washington, DC: Policy Institute of the National Gay and Lesbian Task Force.

  • Diaz, R. M., Ayala, G., Bein, E., Henne, J., & Marin, B. V. (2001). The impact of homophobia, poverty, and racism on the mental health of gay and bisexual Latino men: Findings from 3 US cities. American Journal of Public Health, 91(6), 927–932.

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Follins, L. D. (2014). Young Black and Latino gay men’s experiences with racial microaggressions. In S. C. Howard (Ed.), Critical articulations of race, gender, and sexual orientation (pp. 47–63). London, UK: Lexington Books.

  • Fredrickson, B. L., & Roberts, T. A. (1997). Objectification theory: Toward understanding women’s lived experiences and mental health risks. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 21(2), 173–206.

    Google Scholar 

  • Graham, J. R., West, L. M., & Roemer, L. (2013). The experience of racism and anxiety symptoms in an African-American sample: Moderating effects of trait mindfulness. Mindfulness, 4(4), 332–341.

    Google Scholar 

  • Greer, T. M. (2011). Coping strategies as moderators of the relation between individual race-related stress and mental health symptoms for African American women. Psychology of Women Quarterly, 35(2), 215–226.

    Google Scholar 

  • Grossman, P. (2011). Defining mindfulness by how poorly I think I pay attention during everday awareness and other intractable problems for psychology’s (re)invention of mindfulness: Comment on Brown et al. (2011). Psychological Assessment, 23(4), 1034–1040.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Han, C.-S., Ayala, G., Paul, J. P., Boylan, R., Gregorich, S. E., & Choi, K.-H. (2015). Stress and coping with racism and their role in sexual risk for HIV among African American, Asian/Pacific Islander, and Latino men who have sex with men. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 44(2), 411–420.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Herek, G. M., Cogan, J. C., Gillis, J. R., & Glunt, E. K. (1998). Correlates of internalized homophobia in a community sample of lesbians and gay men. Journal-Gay and Lesbian Medical Association, 2, 17–26.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hidalgo, M. A., Cotten, C., Johnson, A. K., Kuhns, L., & Garofalo, R. (2013). “Yes, I am more than just that”: Gay/bisexual young men residing in the US discuss the influence of minority stress on their sexual risk behavior prior to HIV infection. International Journal of Sexual Health, 25(4), 291–304.

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Kabat-Zinn, J. (2003). Mindfulness-based interventions in context: Past, present, and future. Clinical Psychology: Science and Practice, 10(2), 144–156.

    Google Scholar 

  • Keng, S.-L., & Liew, K. W. L. (2017). Trait mindfulness and self-compassion as moderators of the association between gender nonconformity and psychological health. Mindfulness, 8(3), 615–626.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kipke, M. D., Kubicek, K., Wong, C. F., Robinson, Y. A., Akinyemi, I. C., Beyer, W. J., … Belzer, M. (2019). A focus on the HIV care continuum through the Healthy Young Men’s cohort study: Protocol for a mixed-methods study. JMIR Research Protocol, 8(1), e10738. doi:https://doi.org/10.2196/10738.

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • MacKillop, J., & Anderson, E. J. (2007). Further psychometric validation of the mindful attention awareness scale (MAAS). Journal of Psychopathology and Behavioral Assessment, 29(4), 289–293.

    Google Scholar 

  • Meyer, I. (1995). Minority stress and mental health in gay men. Journal of Health and Social Behavior, 36, 38–56.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Newcomb, M. E., Ryan, D. T., Garafolo, R., & Mustanksi, B. (2015). Race-based sexual stereotypes and their effects on sexual risk behavior in racially diverse young men who have sex with men. Archives of Sexual Behavior, 44(7), 1959–1968.

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Nott, K., & Vedhara, K. (1995). The measurement and significance of stressful life events in a cohort of homosexual HIV positive men. AIDS Care, 7(1), 55–70.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Podsakoff, P. M., MacKenzie, S. B., Lee, J. Y., & Podsakoff, N. P. (2003). Common method biases in behavioral research: A critical review of the literature and recommended remedies. Journal of Applied Psychology, 88(5), 879–903.

    Google Scholar 

  • Podsakoff, P. M., MacKenzie, S. B., & Podsakoff, N. P. (2012). Sources of method bias in social science research and recommendations on how to control it. Annual Review of Psychology, 63(1), 539–569.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Raymond, H. F., & McFarland, W. (2009). Racial mixing and HIV risk among men who have sex with men. AIDS and Behavior, 13(4), 630–637.

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Russell, S. T., & Fish, J. N. (2016). Mental health in lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender (LGBT) youth. Annual Review of Clinical Psychology, 12, 465–487.

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Shallcross, A. J., & Spruill, T. M. (2018). The protective role of mindfulness in the relationship between perceived discrimination and depression. Mindfulness, 9(4), 1100–1109.

  • Souleymanov, R., Brennan, D. J., George, C., Utama, R., & Ceranto, A. (2018). Experiences of racism, sexual objectification and alcohol use among gay and bisexual men of colour. Ethnicity & Health, 1–17. https://doi.org/10.1080/13557858.2018.1439895.

    Google Scholar 

  • Szymanski, D. M., Kashubeck-West, S., & Meyer, J. (2008). Internalized heterosexism: Measurement, psychosocial correlates, and research directions. The Counseling Psychologist, 36(4), 525–574.

    Google Scholar 

  • Umana-Taylor, A. J., & Updegraff, K. A. (2007). Latino adolescents’ mental health: Exploring the interrelations among discrimination, ethnic identity, cultural orientation, self-esteem, and depressive symptoms. Journal of Adolescence, 30, 549–567.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Van Dam, N. T., Earleywine, M., & Borders, A. (2010). Measuring mindfulness? An item response theory analysis of the Mindful Attention Awareness Scale. Personality and Individual Differences, 49(7), 805–810.

    Google Scholar 

  • Wilson, B. D. M., Harper, G. W., Hidalgo, M. A., Jamil, O. B., Torres, R. S., Fernandez, M. I., & (ATN), A. M. T. N. f. H. A. I. (2010). Negotiating dominant masculinity ideology: Strategies used by gay, bisexual and questioning male adolescents. American Journal of Community Psychology, 45(1–2), 169–185.

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Wong, C. F., Kipke, M. D., Weiss, G., & McDavitt, B. (2010a). The impact of recent stressful experiences on HIV-risk related behaviors. Journal of Adolescence, 33(3), 463–475.

    PubMed  Google Scholar 

  • Wong, C. F., Weiss, G., Ayala, G., & Kipke, M. D. (2010b). Harassment, discrimination, violence, and illicit drug use among young men who have sex with men. AIDS Education and Prevention, 22(4), 286–298.

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

  • Wong, C. F., Schrager, S. M., Holloway, I. W., Meyer, I. H., & Kipke, M. D. (2014). Minority stress experiences and psychological well-being: The impact of support from and connection to social networks within the Los Angeles House and Ball communities. Prevention Science, 15(1), 44–55.

    PubMed  PubMed Central  Google Scholar 

Download references

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to acknowledge the contributions of the many staff members who contributed to collection, management, analysis, and review of these data: James Aboagye, Ifedayo Akinyemi, Alex Aldana, Stacy Alford, Wendy Hawkins, Ali Johnson, Nicole Pereira, Yolo Akili Robinson, Aracely Rodriguez, Maral Shahinian, and Su Wu. The authors would also like to acknowledge the insightful and practical commentary of the members of the Community Advisory Board—Daniel Nguyen: Asian Pacific AIDS Intervention Team; Ivan Daniels III: Los Angeles Black Pride; Steven Campa: Los Angeles LGBT Center; Davon Crenshaw: AIDS Project Los Angeles; Andre Molette: Essential Access Health; Miguel Martinez, Joaquin Gutierrez, and Jesse Medina: Division of Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles; Greg Wilson; and The LGBTQ Center Long Beach.

Funding

Support for the original research was provided by a grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health (U01DA036926). The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Adolescent and Young Adult Medicine, Children’s Hospital Los Angeles, 4650 Sunset Blvd., MS#2, Los Angeles, CA, 90027, USA

    Marco A. Hidalgo

  2. Department of Pediatrics, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Marco A. Hidalgo & Michele Kipke

  3. Department of Human Development and Family Studies, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, USA

    Eric Layland

  4. Department of Preventive Medicine, Keck School of Medicine, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA

    Katrina Kubicek & Michele Kipke

Authors
  1. Marco A. Hidalgo
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  2. Eric Layland
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  3. Katrina Kubicek
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

  4. Michele Kipke
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Contributions

MAH: designed and executed the study, assisted with the data analyses, and wrote the paper. EL: collaborated with the study design, analyzed the data, and contributed to the writing of the study results, discussion, and tables. KK: collaborated with the study design, writing of the discussion, and editing of the final manuscript. MK: collaborated with the writing and editing of the final manuscript. All authors approved the final version of the manuscript for submission.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Marco A. Hidalgo.

Ethics declarations

Conflict of Interest

The authors declare that they have no conflicts of interest.

Ethics Statement

All procedures involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the Children’s Hospital Los Angeles Institutional Review Board and with the 1964 Helsinki declaration and its later amendments.

Informed Consent

Informed consent was obtained from all study participants.

Additional information

Publisher’s Note

Springer Nature remains neutral with regard to jurisdictional claims in published maps and institutional affiliations.

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

About this article

Check for updates. Verify currency and authenticity via CrossMark

Cite this article

Hidalgo, M.A., Layland, E., Kubicek, K. et al. Sexual Racism, Psychological Symptoms, and Mindfulness Among Ethnically/Racially Diverse Young Men Who Have Sex with Men: a Moderation Analysis. Mindfulness 11, 452–461 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-019-01278-5

Download citation

  • Published:

  • Issue Date:

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-019-01278-5

Keywords

Search

Navigation