The prevalence of suicidal ideation and past suicide attempts was found to be high in a sample of young gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (GBTQ) men.
This is according to a study – “Experienced Homophobia and Suicide Among Young Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, and Queer Men in Singapore: Exploring the Mediating Role of Depression Severity, Self-Esteem, and Outness in the Pink Carpet Y Cohort Study” by Rayner Kay Jin Tan, Timothy Qing Ying Low, Daniel Le, Avin Tan, Adrian Tyler, Calvin Tan, Chronos Kwok, Sumita Banerjee, Alex R. Cook, and Mee Lian Wong – that appeared in LGBT Health.
For this study, the researchers used the baseline data of the Pink Carpet Y Cohort Study, Singapore’s first prospective cohort study among young GBTQ men. The sample comprised of 570 young GBTQ men 18 to 25 years of age who were HIV negative or unsure of their HIV status. Statistical analyses were conducted through descriptive statistics, multivariable logistic regression, and structural equation modeling techniques.
The study found:
- Of 570 participants, 58.9% reported ever contemplating suicide
- 14.2% had ever attempted suicide
Controlling for key demographic variables, multivariable logistic regression revealed that experienced homophobia and depression severity were positively associated with a history of suicidal ideation, whereas depression severity and outness were positively associated with a history of suicide attempts.
Meanwhile, mediation analyses revealed that depression severity and self-esteem partially accounted for the relationship between experienced homophobia and suicidal ideation, whereas depression severity and outness partially accounted for the relationship with suicide attempts.
Since the prevalence of suicidal ideation and past suicide attempts was found to be high among young GBTQ men, “interventions to address experienced homophobia and discrimination among young GBTQ men are needed urgently,” the researchers ended.
