Document Type
Article
Journal/Book Title/Conference
Perspectives on Psychological Science
Author ORCID Identifier
G. Tyler Lefevor: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4510-7306
Volume
18
Issue
6
Publisher
Sage Publications, Inc.
Publication Date
6-27-2023
Journal Article Version
Accepted Manuscript
First Page
1537
Last Page
1561
Abstract
Although many sexual and gender minorities (SGMs) consider themselves religious or spiritual, the impact of this religiousness or spirituality (RS) on their health is poorly understood. We introduce the religious/spiritual stress and resilience model (RSSR) to provide a robust framework for understanding the variegated ways that RS influences the health of SGMs. The RSSR bridges existing theorizing on minority stress, structural stigma, and RS-health pathways to articulate the circumstances under which SGMs likely experience RS as health promoting or health damaging. The RSSR makes five key propositions: (a) Minority stress and resilience processes influence health; (b) RS influences general resilience processes; (c) RS influences minority-specific stress and resilience processes; (d) these relationships are moderated by a number of variables uniquely relevant to RS among SGMs, such as congregational stances on same-sex sexual behavior and gender expression or an individual’s degree of SGM and RS identity integration; and (e) relationships between minority stress and resilience, RS, and health are bidirectional. In this manuscript, we describe the empirical basis for each of the five propositions focusing on research examining the relationship between RS and health among SGMs. We conclude by describing how the RSSR may inform future research on RS and health among SGMs.
Recommended Citation
Lefevor, G. T., Etengoff, C., Davis, E. B., Skidmore, S. J., Rodriguez, E. M., McGraw, J. S., & Rostosky, S. S. (2023). Religion/Spirituality, Stress, and Resilience Among Sexual and Gender Minorities: The Religious/Spiritual Stress and Resilience Model. Perspectives on Psychological Science, 18(6), 1537-1561. https://doi.org/10.1177/17456916231179137
Comments
G. Tyler Lefevor, Chana Etengoff, Edward B. Davis, Samuel J. Skidmore, Eric M. Rodriguez, James S. McGraw, Sharon S. Rostosky, Religion/Spirituality, Stress, and Resilience Among Sexual and Gender Minorities: The Religious/Spiritual Stress and Resilience Model, Perspectives on Psychological Science (18:6) pp. 1537-1561. Copyright © 2023 The Authors. DOI: 10.1177/17456916231179137.