Impact of family of origin, self-construal, and acculturation on disclosure of sexual orientation among White and Asian-American lesbians and gay men.

Multiculturalism and Social Work | San Francisco State University

Impact of family of origin, self-construal, and acculturation on disclosure of sexual orientation among White and Asian-American lesbians and gay men.
Author:	Lee,-Kathy
Author Background:	Pacific Graduate School Of Psychology, US
Date	5/2000
Type	Dissertation
Journal Title:	Dissertation-Abstracts-International:-Section-B:-The-Sciences-and-Engineering.
Volume/Pages	Vol 60(10-B): 5228
Publisher
Subject Matter	Asian American, Research, Sexual Orientation, Sexual Identity, Acculturation
Population
Pedagogies
Abstract	This study investigated the impact of family of origin, self-construal, and acculturation on disclosure of sexual orientation for White and Asian American lesbians and gay men; specifically, the influence of these factors on perceived difficulty and actual disclosure of sexual orientation to specific target persons. Background information, acculturation status, perceived family health, self-construals of independence and interdependence, and sexual orientation disclosure were collected from 157 self-identified lesbians and gay men in California. Regarding perceived difficulty in disclosing sexual orientation, lesbians reported higher difficulty in disclosing to heterosexual friends than gay men. Self-construals of independence was negatively related to perceived difficulty in disclosing to heterosexual friends, youngest/only brothers, and both parents. Higher ratings of perceived family health significantly predicted lower level of perceived difficulty in disclosing to both parents for Whites and Asian Americans. Overall, individuals reported the lowest level of perceived difficulty in disclosing to close friends, followed by various siblings, and finally, parents were considered the most difficult to disclose their sexual orientation. With regard to actual disclosure of sexual orientation, lesbians reported higher percentages of actual disclosure to eldest sister and mothers than gay men for both Whites and Asian Americans. Whites reported higher precentages of actual disclosure to youngest/only sisters, youngest/only brothers, and mothers than Asian Americans. Individuals who disclosed to youngest/only brothers and fathers reported higher ratings of self-construals of interdependence. Gender was a negative predictor of actual disclosure to mothers in that gay men were less likely to disclose to mothers than lesbians while self-construals of interdependence was a negative predictor of actual disclosure to fathers in that higher interdependence predicted a lower likelihood of actual disclosure to fathers for both Whites and Asian Americans. Current findings suggest actual disclosure takes place at a number of levels (i.e., to self, to friends, to siblings, and to parents). The results of this study contribute to better understanding the 'coming out' process among White and Asian American lesbians and gay men. Implications for future research and clinical practice are discussed. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2000 APA, all rights reserved)
Website:
email: