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LGBTQ+ People’s Mental Health and Pets: Novel Strategies of Coping and Resilience

Archives of Sexual Behavior volume 50, pages 3065–3077 (2021)Cite this article

Abstract

Health disparities persist for lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and/or queer (LGBTQ+)-identified people, often shaped by minority stress through anti-LGBTQ+ stigma. Resilience and coping are important for LGBTQ+ people widely, especially through social supports, but further examination is needed into more diverse, expansive mental health assets. Companion animals, or pets, have significant positive mental health benefits in the general population, but more understanding is needed to validate LGBTQ+ people’s lived experiences of minority stress, mental health challenges, and pet-based sources of resilience. We employ the minority resilience framework to ask: What role do pets play in how LGBTQ+ people navigate and cope with stress? This U.S.-based study centers the voices of 45 LGBTQ+ people’s qualitative interview narratives characterizing the diverse coping and resilience-building processes they develop through pet relationships. Findings demonstrate diverse processes surrounding pets as contributing to resilience, as participants emphasized the unique beneficial emotional connections pets provided. Second, pet family members were conceptualized as vital sources of support that promoted thriving. Finally, pet relationships fostered happiness and life enjoyment that augmented participants’ life satisfaction. This study delineates more diverse understandings of how LGBTQ+ people manage stress through their pet relationships, which can provide vital information to service providers and policymakers in more holistically attending to marginalized communities’ health needs.

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Acknowledgements

The authors dedicate this work to the LGBTQ+ people and their lovely companion animal family members whose stories inspired this research.

Funding

This research was funded by the College of Liberal Arts at Oklahoma State University.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Sociology, Oklahoma State University, 457 Social Sciences & Humanities, Stillwater, OK, 74078, USA

    Rachel M. Schmitz & Lexi Almy

  2. Department of Criminal Justice and Sociology, University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY, USA

    Jennifer Tabler

  3. Department of Social Sciences, Midland University, Fremont, NE, USA

    Zachary T. Carlisle

Authors
  1. Rachel M. Schmitz
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  2. Jennifer Tabler
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  3. Zachary T. Carlisle
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  4. Lexi Almy
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All authors contributed to the study and manuscript preparation commensurate with authorship order.

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Correspondence to Rachel M. Schmitz.

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The university institutional review board (AS-19-74) approved this study.

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Schmitz, R.M., Tabler, J., Carlisle, Z.T. et al. LGBTQ+ People’s Mental Health and Pets: Novel Strategies of Coping and Resilience. Arch Sex Behav 50, 3065–3077 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-021-02105-6

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10508-021-02105-6

Keywords

  • LGBTQ+ people
  • Mental health
  • Pets
  • Coping
  • Resilience
  • Sexual orientation