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Resilience in Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual (LGB) Populations: An Integrative Literature Review

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Abstract

Growing attention has been paid to the process of resilience in lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) individuals. The aim of this article was to perform an integrative review of the literature on resilience in LGB populations so as to identify and describe the main conceptual dimensions studied. The SciELO, PePSIC, LILACS, Index Psi, PsycINFO, and PubMed databases were searched for articles published up to and including the year 2015. After the applications of inclusion and exclusion criteria, the final sample consisted of 39 articles. Three main dimensions of resilience appear to be studied in the literature: individual, family, and community-based. The majority of studies retrieved were international, empirical, cross-sectional, and quantitative, with a focus on individual resilience. Few studies discuss the simultaneous interaction between the individual, family, and social contexts, and their contributions to the process of resilience. The conceptual dimensions of resilience must be further integrated to provide a more accurate description of its relational and systemic nature.

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Notes

  1. We use the term LGB to refer specifically to studies involving lesbian, gay, and bisexual, but not trans (transgender), participants. The terms LGBT/LGBTQ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer) will be used to describe the “LGBTQ community” or specific study samples that included all LGBTQ subgroups.

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Correspondence to Aline Nogueira de Lira.

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A.N.d.L. declares that she has no conflict of interest.

N.A.d.M. declares that she has no conflict of interest.

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This study was funded by the Ministry of Science, Technology, and Innovation (MCTI), National Council for Scientific and Technological Development (CNPq), Ministry of Education (MEC), and Higher Education Personnel Improvement Coordination (CAPES) (process number 471426/2014-8).

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This article does not contain any studies with human participants performed by any of the authors.

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de Lira, A.N., de Morais, N.A. Resilience in Lesbian, Gay, and Bisexual (LGB) Populations: An Integrative Literature Review. Sex Res Soc Policy 15, 272–282 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s13178-017-0285-x

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