The Impact of Early Life Victimization and Prejudice on Adult Socioeconomic Wellbeing among Sexual Minorities

• In Event: Understanding Youth Victimization

Abstract

Sexual minority populations experience higher rates of several types of victimization and prejudice. While victimization and prejudice have many long-ranging negative effects, when they happen earlier in life (childhood, adolescence) they have the potential to undermine educational processes and self-esteem and contribute to reductions in adult socioeconomic wellbeing. I draw on theorizing on victimization in the life course, the stress process model, and research on LGBTQ+ populations to examine how victimization and prejudice in childhood and adolescence may impact adult socioeconomic wellbeing among sexual minorities. Using structural equation modeling on the Add Health data covering more than 20 years of the life course, I found that exposure to several types of victimization as well as school prejudice led to more adult financial problems and lower educational attainment among those identifying as bisexual, gay/lesbian, and mostly heterosexual. However, it is bisexuals that were most strongly affected by different types of victimization and prejudice. While I examined several mediating mechanisms (educational self-efficacy, self-esteem, school belonging, depression, health), there was more limited evidence for these pathways. I discuss implications of these results for theorizing victimization in the life course and understanding how victimization may contribute to patterns of inequality among sexual minorities.

Author

• Joanne M. Kaufman, University at Albany, SUNY