Abstract
Little is known about the characteristics of lesbian, gay men, bisexual and transgender individuals in Chile and the impact of stigma and discrimination on their happiness and social well-being. Against this background this study has three aims: to describe the sociodemographic profile of Chilean gay men and male-to-female (MtF) transgender population; to describe the levels of stigma and discrimination using the Subjective Scale of Stigma and Discrimination (SISD); and to describe the relationships among the SISD, other measures of discrimination and victimization, and measures of happiness and social well-being. Two types of sampling were designed. For gay men, a type of respondent-driven sampling (RDS) was used. In the case of the MtF transgender sample, snowball sampling was used. The final sample consists of 437 participants who are gay men (N = 325) and MtF transgender individuals (N = 112), with ages ranging from 18 to 64 years (M = 30.82, SD = 9.81) for gay men and from 18 to 75 years (M = 36.22, SD = 10.37) for MtF transgender individuals. The sociodemographic profile of the sample shows differential patterns revealing that MtF transgender individuals are in a more unfavorable position. There is a statistically significant difference in SISD scores between the gay men and MtF transgender individuals [t (435) = −2.48; p < 0.05; d = 0.26]. Furthermore, there are statistically significant differences in three SISD dimensions. These findings are important because they could orient the design of specific policies for each group.
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Appendix: Subjective Index of Stigma and Discrimination (SISD)
Appendix: Subjective Index of Stigma and Discrimination (SISD)
Next, indicate you agreement or disagreement with the statements below. Use the following scale: 1 = “totally in disagreement” and 6 = “totally in agreement”.
1. In our society, many homosexuals are often insulted on the street because of their sexual orientation | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
2. In our society, many homosexuals have been victims of homophobic aggression | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
3. In our society, many homosexuals are threatened on the street because of their sexual orientation | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
4. Mocking homosexuals is a common practice at school | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
5. Many homosexuals have had to leave home at an early age because of their sexual orientation | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
6. If a homosexual denounces aggression, his account could be questioned | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
7. The account given by a homosexual individual could be discredited and ignored by authorities | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
8. If a homosexual individual gets involved in an incident, authorities will always tend to blame him because of his sexual orientation | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
9. I think I could be fired from a job because of my sexual orientation | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
10. I think I could be rejected for a job because of my sexual orientation | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
11. If people knew about my sexual orientation, I could be harassed at work | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
12. I have felt harassed at work or at school because of my sexual orientation | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
13. If I compete for a job with a heterosexual individual, he/she will probably get the job despite our similar training and expertise | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
14. In our society, a homosexual individual does not compete for a job in similar conditions | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
15. I avoid talking openly about my homosexuality at work | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
16. I would never dare to say that I am a homosexual at work | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
17. In a society like ours, a homosexual will never be able to express his ideas freely | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
18. In our society, a homosexual individual may miss a chance to have social benefits because of his sexual orientation | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
19. I think I could be banned from an educational institution (high-school, tertiary education center, college, etc.) because of my sexual orientation | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
20. I could be arbitrarily detained by the police because of my sexual orientation | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
21. Religious discourse is homophobic | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
22. I have felt discriminated against in my religious community because of my sexual orientation | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
23. Extremely religious people discriminate against homosexuals | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 |
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Barrientos, J., Cárdenas, M., Gómez, F., Guzmán, M. (2016). Gay Men and Male-to-Female Transgender Persons in Chile: An Exploratory Quantitative Study on Stigma, Discrimination, Victimization, Happiness and Social Well-Being. In: Köllen, T. (eds) Sexual Orientation and Transgender Issues in Organizations. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-29623-4_15
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