Title: New data on lesbian, gay and bisexual mental health
Headings: New data on lesbian, gay and bisexual mental health
Cover Story
New data on lesbian, gay and bisexual mental health
New findings overturn previous beliefs.
Population-based studies
Discrimination and mental health
Gay and lesbian youth and suicide
Lesbian mental health

Content: The data contradict previous findings that there are no significant differences in the mental health of heterosexuals and LGB people, adds Cochran, who notes she is concerned that these findings may give ammunition to people who want to falsely promulgate the argument that gay people are by nature mentally ill. For one thing, she says, "these are certainly not levels of morbidity consistent with models that say homosexuality is inherently pathological." For another, the data simply don't prove either pro- or anti-gay arguments on the subject, whether it's that the inherent biology of homosexuality causes mental illness or that social stigma provokes mental illness in LGB people, she says. Cochran believes the studies demonstrate the need for better psychological treatment for LGB people--an observation consistent with the U.S. Surgeon General's recommendations in his report on sexuality and health, she observes. Discrimination and mental health
In a study that examines possible root causes of mental disorders in LGB people, Cochran and psychologist Vickie M. Mays, PhD, of the University of California, Los Angeles, explored whether ongoing discrimination fuels anxiety, depression and other stress-related mental health problems among LGB people. The authors found strong evidence of a relationship between the two. Again using data from one of the large public health surveys, the team compared how 74 LGB and 2,844 heterosexual respondents rated lifetime and daily experiences with discrimination. They looked at particular instances of discrimination, such as not being hired for a job or being denied a bank loan, as well as feelings of perceived discrimination, such as the sense that people treated them with less respect. The team also assessed rates of mental health disorders in both groups. LGB respondents reported higher rates of perceived discrimination than heterosexuals in every category related to discrimination, the team found.